@midwesttrainchasers8587 I mean, Kyle literally sold his truck team to Spire, his shop and employees essentially got absorbed by them, and he drove and won for Spire in the truck this year. He has a working relationship with that team as it is, so moving to them for Cup actually makes a lot of sense
@@caidenshafer6951 If you dont count Zane (Trackhouse) he the same amount of CUP wins in the past three years then their current drivers have in all 3 series combined... in there entire career. Carson has them all with 4 truck wins. What a ridiculous statement made by a hater, we get it you dont like Kyle but stop.
Kyle sold his truck team to Spire, his shop and employees essentially got absorbed by them, and he drove and won for Spire in the truck this year. He has a working relationship with that team as it is, so moving to them for Cup actually makes a lot more sense to me now than it did when the news first broke
We all know Busch is unhappy at RCR Randle Burnett hasn’t produced cars consistently for Kyle to drive. Kyle likes a loose and more free car. Every weekend the car is on the tight side. RCR on the cup side has struggled tremendously since the new gen car.
Holy smoke! I think LaJoie knew that his days at Spire were numbered, this leaves the door wide open for Kyle Busch to leave RCR for Spire. A championship winning CC in Rodney Childers partnering up with a champion like Busch could be a spicy combination, watch out for the #7 team if KB joins next year.
I can't imagine anyone wanting to take on the albatross that Kyle Busch would be to any team he joins. Past his prime and can provide no meaningful input on the current gen car so not sure what the upside to bringing him onboard would be other than experience and the young guys have shown that is not what it used to be in NASCAR. I was excited to see KB get a chance outside of JGR but unfortunately it appears to show that some, not-inconsiderable amount of his success there was because of the equipment. Now we have an older, past his prime, pissed off, shitty attitude guy that seems to not understand that most of what he is going through he brought on himself. A cast off in a team full of cast offs with Love being the only guy on the team with a solid future as Austin Hill looks like he is taking the KB approach to racing. I just don't see KB going anywhere than where he is.
@@ChuckHickl Hmmm, all good reasons why Spire might not want Busch. But I always ask myself - what would be the most entertaining thing for me? I have to say, I'm intrigued by the possibility of Busch going to Spire. It's almost absurd.
@@user-iz6cc6lz3j-Vickie"fiery" is one thing, Busch adds a ton of stupid adolescence into that asking with a propensity to air everything that flashes through his brain. Cannot see Rodney touching any of that.
No surprise, multiple years in cup and zero nascar wins in any of the top 3 touring series is not good for job stability. I hope that Michael McDowell gets Rodney Childers, that's a winning combination.
Such a stupid comment! Corey has clawed his way up through the Cup series with one car independent teams that were the David's to the Giant powerhouse teams. Eight races and one run in with Kyle Busch shouldn't define his career!
The NASCAR industry basically gave up on Corey after he failed to deliver in his one race for the #9 team and Carson Hocevar was running better than he did in his own car until his brake rotor failure.
Corey has had years. And don't blame underfunded cars cuz Kurt Busch took #51 before it was Rick ware, start and park car to top tens and put it on the map. Corey is not a hass been, he is a " never been". Young guns and good veterans will push him out
It escaped me that not everyone will realize the following quote is from a movie, and I probably dated myself with this quote. But it is just a quote. No one lose their stuff. "Gawd Damn... You got to be a stupid mother-bleeper- to get fired on your day off." How the hell you get fired on your day off? ...meanwhile, Sergio Perez is gonna be like 'Hold My Beer' next week.
Eric - I recall Dale Jr saying on one of this episodes that "things at Spire still need to be worked out" and this was after they announced Rodney's deal. I at time though that was weird and thought something like this could happen. It seems as he hinted us that this could be coming.
I might sound crazy but here’s my take. - Spire 2025 lineup includes: McDowell, Hocevar, and Busch to the 7 with Rodney. - Spire and Busch have also been business partners in the past with Spire buying KBM. -IF the charter deals DOES NOT go through, Spire will redeem ALOT of the money they paid for the SHR charter, and put that toward Kyle’s salary. - RCR will drop from being a key Chevy partner and be replaced by Spire (similar to what happened with FRM and SHR).
Corey Lajoie was in my 2024-25 Hot Seat predictions, then it's happening about Corey Lajoie is out of Spire after this year. I am absolutely surprised by this news during the 2 break weeks and also what happened at Pocono Raceway 2 weeks ago with Kyle Busch that Corey became the enemy No. 1 of the fans on Twitter.
Corey is the only veteran that you can say is a "veteran" by tenure in the sport alone. Has been isn't even the term he's a never will be in NASCAR. The cockiness to say "he'll be making more money than any spotter" is insane too cause I don't really see any team wanting to sign him. Being a veteran in the sport without a win is INSANE.
I think the Pocono situation played a big part in what happened. I think a lot of teams were upset at that and rightfully so and probably his own team. It’s no coincidence all the sudden. He’s not a cup driver anyway, belong in the lower levels.
One thing that crossed my mind with this.. what if Spire sells one charter and then merges with RCR? I mean Austin and Kyle both have said many times that RCR is going to see some big changes. Both are Chevy teams and Spire doesn’t mind spending big bucks. You never know these days.
I keep hearing people say he is not that good equipment. they don't get their parts from advanced auto parts. they all get there parts from the same place. motors are the difference. but it comes down to the guy driving . he might get a #8 ride . trade with Bush. or maybe tge 41 car. it's not the cars as much as it was before gen6 cars. set up and driver make the difference.
I felt like Corey knew when he dumped kyle at pocono when it happened, but now that you say it, its totally possible and makes sense why Corey was so pissed off. I also have a hard time believing they hired Rodney for Corey. I think Rodney was hired knowing who the driver will be and is not surprised by the news today. The timing is because the next domino is ready to drop and that could be kyle! I think you're right, and I hope you are!!
Agreed. But payroll might be a big problem for Spire, after the signings of Zane Smith, Carson Hocevar, Michael McDowell and now Rodney Childers… Sorry, but I just don’t see Kyle Busch at Spire Racing anytime soon…
@@twoblacklabs904 Not so sure about that - Kyle is about winning races and he's obviously hungry to get back to being competitive. He's also the highest earning driver in Nascar, and with no race team to support, how much money does he really need? He could retire tomorrow and most likely be set financially for life.Would he take a pay cut if it meant he'd be back to running how he used to? The possibility is there.
I get it, its been a tough year.. but I don't wish bad on anyone and I feel for Lajoie. I like to laugh and make jokes about how he always wrecks people and adds a bit of an exciting chaos factor to the races. But as a person, a father, a husband.. I really hope whatever his future holds for him is ultimately a happier place for him.
My guess is Gainbridge made Spire's decision to move LaJoie out of the car. They invested a lot of money in the team and want to get a lot more performance out of it. There are still a lot of drivers on the free agency market, and now is the best time in several years to pick a driver who you feel has a lot of potential. Will it be Kyle Busch or will it be another driver that they can build their future around? I could see them going either way.
Smoking some good stuff if you think any team will hire Corey LaPew. His Nascar days in any series i think are OVER and good ridden 😂 I'll add you must be drinking some moonshine if you think any Cup team will hire Ryan Preece. Back to the minor leagues for him. There's too much good talent out there for Cup teams to waste any time on these 2 guys.
@@seanscorsonellibean2153 Preece also has never been in top equipment either in the Cup Series, LaJoie idk what will happen to him just a guess because Trackhouse gives guys oppurtunities too
Hocevar’s 15.6 average finish in the 77 is absurdly impressive! I get Spire is improving, but that car was a back marker with Dillon and Bilicki/Cassil. And he’s just a 21 year old rookie. I’m actually kinda hoping Hocevar pairs up with Childers. Lambert is incredible with young drivers, but Rodney Childers has a HOF resume and he may be able to tap into Carson’s potential more than anyone in the sport. Maybe the 7 goes to a young guy that can work with Luke.
It was kinda writing on the wall with McDowell signing there that they wouldn’t bring LaJoie back. They’ll probably move Hocevar to the 7 and have Zayn Smith in the lineup still would be good. LaJoie can outrun lower mid pack cars, but can’t with mid to top tier equipment
You know Eric, you got me thinking... Busch to Spire would be awesome. Move Austin Hill up to run the 8. He fits the family restaurant / rough bourbon sponsor vibe. What's that? Lajoie to the 21 (Xfinity) at RCR? Finally a top tier ride that he can wheel the hell out of. But there's something lurking... What about Busch and Childers spearheading Honda's entrance to NASCAR? Especially with possible buy in from Andretti. What a great way for Busch and Childers to finish their chapter before retirement. (Honda to Toyota) Sorry you guys couldn't find sponsorship for Kyle. Don't worry, we have plenty!
Randy Lajoie is at North Georgia Sppedway tonight, trying to sell seats. My son works for a team that uses his seats and he saw it and stopped to chat. Randy said Corey asked him what he should do after the team gave him a $1M and said bye. He said, "Go on vacation."
This move don’t surprise me either. Does anyone remember that show race for the championship I think it was called? There was this this scene where Lajoe tried taking over working in the car for the engineers. It was so cringe and you can see the engineers pissed if faces at him lol. Makes me think the team hasn’t liked him for a long time now.
I think we all knew Corey was going to be on the Hot Seat next year. There was a big question mark on whether or not he was going to be able to handle the pressure, but I did expect to see him in the 7 car in 25. I do feel bad for Corey, he seem like a good dude and likeable guy, but I understand Spire position.
Corey has been close to winning before it just didn't go his way I'm not a fan of his But I still would like to see him win a race It's always nice when an underdog can get a win against the big teams.
Can you make a video regarding all the silly season changes coming in 2025 regarding each ride and if the ride has not been filled who may or most likely fills that seat?
I'm not so sure on Kyle Busch, if only because they are in a bind and I don't mean on track. Dillon is likely gone after 2025 and Jesse Love needs a decent mentor to break into Cup As to Childers, definitely pair him with McDowell. As soon as that 34 won the 500, that team found their stride and are now a Tier 1 Ford partner. I can't say if he can build Spire the same way given HMS, RCR, and Trackhouse already have that distinction...then again if you told me Front Row would replace SHR four years ago I'd think an asteroid hit their factory
This makes a lot of sense considering Spire hired Rodney Childers to be crew chief of the 7. What a waste that signing would be if Lajoie was still the driver.
Is it possible that McDowell goes to the 7, and Zane Smith stays with Spire another year in the 71. Then Trackhouse can promote SVG to cup in the 97 if they end up with one of the SHR charters.
I am not surprised if we are to be honest. Spire is trying to become a contender and sadly Lajoie has not shown the ability to assist in the vision. The last few weeks shows that this has already been in the works from the way that he started driving on the track
@@FrontstretchFan Absolutely. This year seems forced and angry from him as a driver. I mean. There is pain in his statement. I know he isn't the best driver out there but hopefully dude can get a seat somewhere with a better environment around him
I kind of thought Corey would do well if anyone would take a chance on him. Like when he wrote HMS for the 48... I think he just needs teammates and equipment to lean on and he could be a star. If anything, he could be a Chastain type driver (able to win and compete for win and top 5s).
Dang im bummed for Lajoie. I figured next year would be the make or break season for him. Im curious if he'll take another ride or call it a day on the track.
Corey would make a great XFINITY lifer or Truck lifer, it'll be like Custer stepping down to XFINITY from Cup, instant championship contender if he's in a good team.
Corey has been so important for that team. Yeah Carson is ahead of him in the points but they don’t have really good cars. LaJoie has definitely struggled the past couple of months. Now we know which car McDowell will be driving with which crew chief. With Carson doing pretty good, where would Kyle Busch go at Spire? The other car is Trackhouse and Zane. This is pretty crappy for Corey at this time of year. Maybe second car for Haas in Xfinity?
Two questions in my mind: ! - Can Spire afford to buy out Kyle's contract as I would expect Childress to ask a premium price? 2 - Can Spire afford a 40 year old driver on the downside of his career that makes 10 - 15 MILLION dollars a year? While not ever a Kyle Busch fan, do enjoy watching him race as he is an ultimate competitor that will also make other racers better
I expect he'll probably stick around in the sport in some capacity, but I don't see him finding another seat in the Cup series. I think everyone's given LaJoie as much of the benefit of the doubt as they're inclined to. Even when Spire started to get their act together, he still proved to be the weak link.
I have a feeling this move was only done because Spire has already had go ahead or the talks with someone else thats lead to a contract and the seat is filled already. If I guess I say either they worked out a deal to buy out someone else's contract and have them to replace Corey whether that is Zane, Busch, or someone else. Zane could happen since there is no space for him in the Trackhouse stable. Busch could happen because they paid RC enough and Childress wants to move Austin Hill up. Those 2 seem the most likely to fill the seat.
I don’t think Corey’s been done dirty at all. He’s been terrible all year, and Pocono didn’t help that case. Hocevar has outrun him. Hocevar, a rookie. Zane Smith has also started outrunning him. Another rookie. Hate to say it. Corey’s overrated.
LaJoie has been awful for months. Not surprising. I posted in his podcast comments a few weeks back that he needed to stop overdriving his equipment and causing wrecks.
Corey will be cutting it up in the back half of the truck field next season with Ty Dillon or the middle third of the xfinity grid with Matty D. He is the second coming off Dibenedetto
Boy Eric I like your take on Busch to Spire with Childers maybe they do a driver swap Lajoie to the number 8. This is exactly why they call it silly season keep up the great work bud
Something tells me that there could've been something behind the scenes between Lajoie & Spire that could've also led to this decision. With how sudden this is, it's not something that should be overlooked
@@BraydenBunch58 New York racing is Chinese racing? That makes no sense! Spire is funded by Gainbridge, a sports sponsoring LLC that is an arm of an Illinois and Delaware Insurance giant!
Great podcast. Umm, I think your hunch that soemthing is very odd about this announcement is spot on. You have enough experience to know how it normally works and how it works when it is abnormal. This is abnormal. Not going to hazard a guess. However, I really hope Corey lands on his feet. A super nice person and a great ambassador for the sport. He should be proud of what he has done on and off the track. It would be so ironic of he wins a race or has a string of top finishes before the season is out. That I would like to see.
