In 10 NASCAR Cup Series (NCS) races at Dover (Del.) Motor Speedway, Spire Motorsports has logged one top-15 and two top-20 finishes. Corey LaJoie, driver of the No. 7 Gainbridge Chevy Camaro earned a team-best 14th-place finish last May at the Monster Mile. The Mooresville, N.C., team fields the Nos. 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1s in the NCS with LaJoie, and fellow drivers Zane Smith and Carson Hocevar, respectively.
The Würth 400 from Dover Motor Speedway will be televised live on FS1 Sunday, April 28, beginning at 2 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). The 11th of 36 races on the 2024 NCS schedule will be broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90. NASCAR RaceDay’s pre-race coverage on FS1 will take the green flag at 1 p.m. EDT.Corey LaJoie – Driver, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Corey LaJoie heads to Dover Motor Speedway behind the wheel of the No. 7 Gainbridge Chevrolet Camaro ZL1.
Lajoie started 31st and finished 18th last weekend at Talladega Superspeedway.
LaJoie is a former Dover winner in ARCA Menards Series East (formerly K&N Pro Series East) competition. The third-generation racer started on the outside pole in the American Real TV 150, led 42 laps and went on to collect his sixth win of the 2012 season behind the wheel of his family-owned No. 07 entry. He made five ARCA Menards East starts at the Monster Mile from 2009-2015 and recorded one win, three top-five and four top top-10 finishes.
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Sunday’s Würth 400 will mark LaJoie’s 11th NCS start at Dover Motor Speedway and 247th career NCS start.
In 10 previous NCS starts at Dover Motor Speedway, LaJoie has logged one top-15 and two top-20 finishes, The Concord, N.C. native has recorded a 29.8 average start, a 26.9 average finish and completed 3.389 of 3,826 laps contested (88.6 percent).
Last May, LaJoie started 27th and raced his way to a 14th-place finish in the No. 7 Fraternal Order of Eagles (FOE) Chevrolet Camaro.Corey LaJoie Quotes
Talladega didn’t turn out exactly as planned but you’re heading to Dover this weekend where you had a solid finish last season and a win in 2012. What’s your outlook?
“I’ve had some success at Dover Motor Speedway in the past and having a Miles the Monster trophy on the shelf gives me a little extra boost of confidence. We need to start putting some points on the board to make up for these disappointing results over the last few weeks, so our plan is to put together a respectable finish in our Gainbridge Chevy Camaro and work our way back up the standings.”
Zane Smith – Driver, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Zane Smith will make his first NCS start Sunday on the concrete high banks of Dover Motor Speedway driving the No. 71 Focused Health Chevrolet for Spire Motorsports.
The one-mile oval is a favorite venue for the 24-year-old Cup Series rookie who took the checkered flag when the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (NCTS) held its last race at Dover in 2020. He also owns three NASCAR Xfinity Series starts scoring two top-10 finishes at the “Monster Mile.”
Smith arrives in Dover after running well at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway last Sunday moving from 30th to 15th in the first 10 laps, then racing in the top-10 for more than 25 laps. He was collected in a late-race incident that left him with a 29th-place finish.
Focused Health will serve as the primary sponsor for Smith’s No. 71 Chevrolet. The blue and orange paint scheme represents a health insurance agency that assists consumers and employers in navigating the myriad of health insurance options in the government programs space.
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Race fans can join Smith for a 15-minute Q&A at the pre-race stage on the frontstretch Sunday at 11 a.m.Zane Smith Quotes
Are you looking forward to racing at Dover again this weekend?
“Dover is one of my favorite tracks to race. I have a win there in the Truck Series and a couple top-10s in the Xfinity Series. It is a track that I know really well and had some success. I know my team is going to bring a fast car this week, just like they do every week. I’m looking forward to seeing what we can accomplish at Dover.”
Carson Hocevar – Driver, No.77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Carson Hocevar will make his first NCS start at Dover Motor Speedway in Sunday’s Würth 400 driving the No. 77 Premier Security Chevrolet for Spire Motorsports.
Hocevar started 35th and finished 17th in last Sunday’s Geico 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. The top-20 effort marked Hocevar’s sixth top-20 finish of 2024.
Premier Security is a long-time supporter of Hocevar’s career. The Flint, Mich.-headquartered organization has been prominently featured alongside Hocevar dating to his time racing short tracks in the pavement late model ranks.
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In his lone NCTS start at Dover Motor Speedway, Hocevar started 20th and finished 12th in 2020’s KDI Office Technology 200.
Hocevar leads the NCS Sunoco Rookie of the Year standings and is currently 21st in the division’s championship points. Over the course of the season’s first 10 races, the 21-year-old has notched one top-10 and three top-15 finishes.
The Portage, Mich., driver logged four NCTS wins in 2023 and finished third in the series’ championship point standings.
Hocevar is featured on Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90 Tuesdays at 5:30 p.m. ET following each race to discuss his NCS rookie season. Carson Hocevar Quotes
We’re back at a mile track this week and you’ve only raced Dover Motor Speedway once before in your career. How are you feeling about this week?
“It was fun when I got to run there a handful of years ago so I am excited to go back and even more excited to run our Premier Security Chevrolet. I feel like we should be pretty sporty. We have speed at these types of tracks and (crew chief) Luke (Lambert) feels very confident. I also feel good about our race cars and what we bring to the track. I’m hoping we can have another solid day and just continue to rack up the points and better our finishes.”
From the Top of the Box
Ryan Sparks – Crew Chief, No. 7 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Ryan Sparks serves in a dual role as both Spire Motorsports competition director and crew chief for driver Corey LaJoie and the No. 7 Chevrolet Camaro in the NCS.
Sparks, a Winston-Salem, N.C., native, has been paired with LaJoie since 2020.
Combined, Sparks and LaJoie have earned four top-five and seven top-10 finishes, including a fourth-place finish in the 2024 Daytona 500.Stephen Doran – Crew Chief, No. 71 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Stephen Doran begins his first full season as a Cup Series crew chief leading Zane Smith and the No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet team during the 2024 season.
In 2006, Doran got his start in NASCAR at Petty Enterprises.
Prior to his arrival at Spire Motorsports, Doran worked at Stewart-Haas Racing as an engineer, most recently on the No. 4 car driven by Kevin Harvick.Luke Lambert – Crew Chief, No. 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1
Luke Lambert is the crew chief for Spire Motorsports’ No. 77 team with 2024 NCS Rookie of the Year candidate Carson Hocevar
The 2005 North Carolina State graduate has led the competition efforts for some of the sport’s most notable names including Jeff Burton, Ryan Newman, Elliott Sadler and Chris Buescher.
In 2014, Lambert led Newman to a berth in the Championship 4, and ultimately a runner-up finish in the NCS championship point standings
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