- The 2025 NASCAR All-Star Open will mark Spire Motorsports’ 13th attempt to qualify for the NASCAR All-Star Race. Corey LaJoie posted the team’s best finish in the NASCAR All-Star Open when he raced to a fourth-place finish in the 2022 edition at Texas Motor Speedway. Spire Motorsports fields the Nos. 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolet ZL1s in the Cup Series for Justin Haley, Michael McDowell and Carson Hocevar, respectively.
- Spire Motorsports’ only appearance in the NASCAR All-Star Race came in 2020 when Haley qualified via his win in the 2019 Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway. The top-two finishers in Sunday afternoon’s All-Star Open will transfer into the main event, in addition to the winner of the All-Star Fan Vote.
- Coverage from North Wilkesboro (N.C.) Speedway will begin with the NASCAR All-Star Open at 5:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). The NASCAR All-Star Race will follow “The Open” at 8 p.m. EDT. Both races will be televised live on FS1. The all-star weekend festivities will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.
Justin Haley – Driver, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet ZL1
- Justin Haley will pilot Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 Gainbridge Chevrolet ZL1 in Sunday’s NASCAR All-Star Open at North Wilkesboro Speedway.
- Sunday’s NASCAR All-Star Open will mark Haley’s fifth attempt to race his way into NASCAR’s annual All-Star Race. His best finish came in 2022 when the event was held at Texas Motor Speedway where he finished third. The 26-year-old scored a fourth-place finish in last year’s All-Star Open and came home 14th when the event made its 2023 debut at the famed Wilkes County (N.C.) speedway.
- Haley has one start in the NASCAR All Star Race after earning a spot in 2020 via his win in the 2019 Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway. That summer’s annual visit to “The World Center of Racing” also marks Spire Motorsports’ lone win in NASCAR’s premiere division. Haley went on to finish 14th when the series contested the event on a Wednesday night at Bristol Motor Speedway.
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- Last week at Kansas Speedway Haley was involved in a multi-car incident late in the race but soldiered home for a 31st-place result.
- Over the course of his career, Haley has collected four NASCAR Xfinity Series checkered flags and three CRAFTSMAN Truck Series wins, making him one of just 41 drivers in history to have earned wins across all three of NASCAR’s National Touring Series.
- He made his first start in NASCAR’s premier division for Spire Motorsports at Talladega Superspeedway on April 28, 2019 – his 20th birthday. Over the course of the last seven seasons, the 26-year-old racer has notched one win, five top fives, 17 top 10s and 103 laps led.
- In total, Haley has made 53 Cup Series starts for Spire Motorsports, with the bulk of races coming during the 2021 season behind the wheel of the team’s No. 77 machine. In his second appearance amidst his return to Spire Motorsports at Talladega last October, Haley earned a seventh-place result, his first top 10 with the team since the 2021 Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona.
Justin Haley Quotes
You are an open entry this weekend, how do you feel about making it into the All-Star race?
“I’m excited to race North Wilkesboro this weekend with the 7 team. We’ve found a lot of speed recently and hopefully we can put it in the big show this weekend.”
Atop the No. 7 Box – Crew Chief Ryan Sparks
- Ryan Sparks serves in a dual role as both Spire Motorsports Competition Director and crew chief for driver Justin Haley and was first paired with Haley at Bristol Motor Speedway in September 2024.
- The Winston Salem, N.C., native has called 177 NASCAR Cup Series races where he’s earned three top-five and nine top-10 finishes.
- In total, Sparks has called five NASCAR All-Star Opens since 2020-present, and earned an event-best fourth-place result with Corey LaJoie during the 2022 edition at Texas Motor Speedway.
Michael McDowell – Driver, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet ZL1
- Michael McDowell will pilot Spire Motorsports’ No. 71 Delaware Life Chevrolet ZL1 in this weekend’s NASCAR All-Star Open, aiming to race his into Sunday’s 250-lap main event or be voted in via the All-Star Fan Vote.
- Last week it was announced that McDowell was ranked inside the top 10 in All-Star Fan Vote standings and joins Spire Motorsports’ stablemate Carson Hocevar as a contender for an opportunity to transfer into the main event.
- With a $1 million payday on the line, McDowell hopes to improve on his season-best short track finish of 12th at Martinsville Speedway. The Cup Series veteran returns to the historic .625-mile oval with a confidence boost, having recorded two top-10 starts and a venue best finish of ninth in last year’s event at the historic Wilkes County track.
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- Across the first 12 races of the 2025 season, the Glendale, Ariz., native has an average starting position of 13.9, including four starts inside the top 10.
- The No. 71 Chevrolet will return to its teal-and-blue Delaware Life livery for this weekend’s All-Star Open and pit crew challenge.
- McDowell has claimed three Xfinity Fastest Lap awards this season, clocking the fastest lap in the Daytona 500, at Phoenix Raceway, and again at Talladega Superspeedway. He stands as the only driver in the Cup Series to have secured three bonus points via the program.
- McDowell secured Spire Motorsports’ first Busch Light Pole Award at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in March. His 28.833-second lap marks the fastest lap in NASCAR’s seventh-generation Cup Series car (2022-present) at the 1.5-mile Nevada oval.
- Spire Motorsports will host a small media event on Thursday, May 15 to unveil this year’s Coca-Cola 600 scheme. Media members interested in attending should contact, jpayne@spire-motorsports.com to RSVP.
Michael McDowell Quote:
Does the All-Star Race take some of the pressure off from a normal race weekend?
“It’s fun to have a couple of weeks at home and have more shop friends, family and crew members there. As far as it being a pressure-free weekend—it’s not. It really isn’t, because you want to win. You want to make it into the All-Star Race.
“We were a few laps away from not having to think about the Open race in Texas, but North Wilkesboro is a fun weekend. It’s a cool racetrack. It feels like a little time capsule, and you get back to some of the grassroots that we have. The scoreboard there, the walls, the fans – it’s just fun. It’s a cool place, and we look forward to the weekend.”
Talk about the importance of qualifying well at short tracks.
“You’re racing for the top two spots, so every lap counts and everything matters. We saw that. We were close to racing our way in a couple of years ago. Just like every weekend, you have to qualify well, and you’ve got to have a good car because everybody’s so close. It’s an elbows-out kind of grind for sure. You always have the fan vote to fall back on, but I’ve never put a lot of emphasis on that. I did when I drove the No. 95. They did a little campaign because they wanted to have some fun. I love my fans. I have great fans. Obviously, I’ve been doing this a long time, and I’m super appreciative. But I’m also that guy who would just rather earn it on merit, so we’ll see what happens this weekend.”
Atop the No. 71 Box – Crew Chief Travis Peterson
- Crew chief Travis Peterson celebrated his 34th birthday last weekend at Kansas Speedway and led the Spire Motorsports contingency with an 11th-place qualifying effort.
- The University of North Carolina at Charlotte graduate led McDowell to a ninth-place finish in last season’s NASCAR All Star Race.
Carson Hocevar – Driver, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet ZL1
- Spire Motorsports driver Carson Hocevar will pilot the No. 77 Indy25 Chevrolet ZL1 in his second All-Star Open appearance. The Portage, Mich., native started and finished 10th in the 2024 All-Star Open, coming up short in his bid to advance to the feature event.
- Spire Motorsports and Gainbridge® have partnered with the WNBA All-Star 2025 Host Committee to feature the “Indy25” logo in recognition of AT&T WNBA All-Star 2025 taking place in Indianapolis. Gainbridge Fieldhouse, home of the Indiana Fever, will be the site of the 21st edition of the WNBA All-Star Game, as well as the WNBA STARRY 3-Point Contest and WNBA Skills Challenge July 18-19.
- Last Saturday at Kansas Speedway, Hocevar drove the No. 7 Delaware Life Chevrolet Silverado RST to victory in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. It was his first victory in two starts this season and fifth overall. Hocevar started 22nd in the No. 77 Delaware Life Chevy in Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race, led laps in the second stage and was tracking a top-10 finish before a flat tire forced the team to pit with less than 20 laps remaining.
- The 2024 Rookie of the Year earned top-20 finishes in the two points-paying races held so far on tracks less than a mile. He also had a strong showing in the Clash at Bowman-Gray Stadium.
- Hocevar is currently in the top-five in the All-Star Fan Vote, just three days before the Cup Series drivers take to the track for practice and qualifying at the famed North Wilkesboro Speedway.
Carson Hocevar Quotes
North Wilkesboro has hosted racing since before the sports’ inception. What does it mean to you to have the chance to compete on such hallowed grounds?
“Any time we can go to tracks that have a long history in the sport, it means a lot. North Wilkesboro was no longer on the schedule when I was younger, but I love racing and I’ve seen the old footage of the races there. It’s a place that is so important to the history of stock car racing and to see it brought back to life, and hosting the Cup Series, is really cool. I’m thankful that it’s something I get to be part of.”
Last year you put in a lot of effort to garner fan votes to advance to the All-Star Race, but this year you’ve been a bit quieter. Does that change in approach reflect the confidence you have in yourself to advance on track?
“I think so. I was a rookie last year, I didn’t have a lot of experience and I knew going in how tough guys race when there’s money on the line. I leaned on my personality a lot, but I feel like people know who I am now. We’ve had some really good runs and we get better each week. The No. 77 team has shown a lot of improvement on the short tracks and I think we learned a lot last year that will help us this time around.”
Atop the No. 77 Box – Crew Chief Luke Lambert
- In 2023, crew chief Luke Lambert led Noah Gragson to a seventh-place finish in the All-Star Open at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Gragson earned the Fan Vote to advance to his first All-Star Race.
- In 68 points-paying races contended on short tracks, Lambert has led his drivers to four top-five and 18 top-10 finishes, with 58 laps led.
About Spire Motorsports …
Spire Motorsports earned its inaugural NASCAR Cup Series victory in its first full season of competition when Justin Haley took the checkered flag in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway on July 7, 2019. Less than three years later, William Byron drove Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 Chevrolet Silverado to its inaugural NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series win on April 7, 2022, at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. The team’s most recent win came on May 10, 2025, when Carson Hocevar took the checkered flag in the Heart of Health Care 200 at Kansas Speedway.
In 2025, Spire Motorsports campaigns the Nos. 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolets in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team also fields the Nos. 07, 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolet Silverados in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series and the No. 77 Chevrolet in the ARCA Menards Series in select events.
