Spire Motorsports Quaker State 400 Race Advance

• In 29 previous NASCAR Cup Series starts at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Spire Motorsports owns five top fives and six top 10s. Carson Hocevar earned the team’s best result, a second-place finish in the March 2025 event. Spire Motorsports fields the No. 7, 71 and 77 for Daniel Suárez, Michael McDowell and Hocevar, respectively.
• The Quaker State 400 Available at Walmart will be televised live on TNT Sunday, July 12 beginning at 7 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The 20th of 36 points-paying races on the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series calendar will also be broadcast live on the Performance Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Daniel Suárez – Driver, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Daniel Suárez will pilot Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 Freeway Insurance Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway (AMS).
• Freeway Insurance was established in 1987 and is one of the largest and fastest-growing personal lines insurance brokers in the United States, offering coverage through a “click, call, or come in” approach that connects customers nationwide. The company continually researches, grows, and diversifies its product offerings to stay responsive to the evolving insurance market. Freeway provides a wide range of options – from basic to premium coverage – in auto, truck, commercial vehicle, homeowners, renters, small business, motorcycle, recreational vehicle, fire, and flood insurance. In 2008, Freeway Insurance became part of Confie, the nation’s leading personal lines insurance distribution company. Customers can access Freeway Insurance through neighborhood offices, online at www.freeway.com, or by calling (800) 300-0227.
• On February 25, 2024, Suárez earned his second career NASCAR Cup Series victory when he took the checkered flag at AMS by winning the Ambetter Health 400 in one of the closest finishes in series’ history. Suárez prevailed in a dramatic three-wide sprint to the checkered flag, edging out Ryan Blaney and Kyle Busch by a scant 0.003 seconds. The victory was his first since 2022 at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway and secured Suárez’s spot in the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs.
• Suárez, a three-time NASCAR Cup Series race winner has made 15 starts at Atlanta, earning one victory, five top-five, seven top-10 and nine top-20 results. He holds an average starting position of 21.0 and an average finishing position of 16.4 at the 1.54-mile quad-oval. In total, he has led 32 laps at AMS.
• In the division’s most recent visit to Atlanta, Suárez started 12th after qualifying was canceled and worked through early handling issues as his No. 7 team made chassis’ adjustments throughout the race. He surged from mid-pack into the top 10 late, steered clear of the final overtime chaos, and finished fifth.
• Through 19 races, Suárez owns a career-best 14.6 average finish, a 6.3-position improvement over his 2025 season average. He currently sits 11th in the NASCAR Cup Series driver point standings.
• Last week at Chicagoland, Suárez scored his 12th top-15 and 16th top-20 finish of the 2026 season with a 14th-place result. After overcoming balance issues early in the race, the No. 7 team made adjustments that allowed Suárez to climb as high as 11th in the final stage.
• Suárez has made two NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series starts at Atlanta, earning one top-10 and two top-20 finishes. He recorded his career-best O’Reilly Auto Parts Series result at Atlanta with a seventh-place finish in March 2016.
• The Monterrey, Mexico native earned a fourth-place finish in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race at Atlanta in 2015.
• The 2026 Coca-Cola 600 race winner is a veteran of 342 Cup Series starts and has notched three wins (Sonoma, June 2022; Atlanta, Feb. 2024; and Charlotte ,May 2026), 26 top fives and 80 top-10s in NASCAR’s premier division. Suárez has led 945 laps and earned three poles since making his series debut in 2017.

Daniel Suárez Quote
You had a good day at Atlanta in the spring. How does that translate to Sunday’s race, and what are the biggest challenges when the track cools off under the lights?
“We know what we did in the spring and that gives us confidence coming back to Atlanta. Every race is its own story, especially Atlanta at night when the track cools off and the grip changes so quickly. You can be strong in one stage and just barely hanging on in the next if you don’t stay ahead of it. The biggest thing at Atlanta is patience. You’ve got to be there when it counts during the last run. That’s where races are won or lost.”

Ryan Sparks – Crew Chief, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Ryan Sparks is the crew chief for Spire Motorsports No. 7 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 and driver Daniel Suarez in the NASCAR Cup Series. Sparks has called 221 Cup Series races where he’s earned one win, six top-five and 15 top-10 finishes since keying the mic in 2020 for his first race in NASCAR’s premier division.
• Sparks best finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway came in the 2023 Ambetter Health 400, where he earned a fourth-place result with former driver Corey LaJoie. In the Cup Series’ most recent visit to Atlanta, Sparks guided Suárez to a fifth-place finish. Sparks has called 10 races at Atlanta, producing two top-five and three top-10 finishes.
• Sparks joined Spire Motorsports in 2021, where he served as both Crew Chief and Competition Director, leading the organization’s competitive and technical efforts. In 2026, Sparks serves in a singular role as crew chief for Daniel Suárez. He brings more than a decade of experience across all three national series, highlighted by 13 seasons at Richard Childress Racing and contributions to title-winning campaigns in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series (2011) and O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (2013).

Michael McDowell – Driver, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Michael McDowell will pilot Spire Motorsports’ No. 71 Delaware Life Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in Sunday’s Quaker State 400 Available at Walmart at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
• Delaware Life is a life insurance and annuity company that empowers financial professionals with a wide array of customizable solutions. A subsidiary of Group 1001 Insurance, Delaware Life was born out of the advisor industry and understands how important it is to find the right fit for every client, every situation, and every individual need. Delaware Life is passionate about equipping its clients with annuities that give customers peace of mind and a successful future, allowing them to plan with confidence for whatever’s next.
• McDowell has logged 21 career NASCAR Cup Series starts at Atlanta Motor Speedway, highlighted by one top five, two top 10s, and 58 laps led. The 2021 Daytona 500 Champion earned back-to-back Busch Light Pole Awards at the track during the 2024 season and were two of the six McDowell earned that year.
• In last year’s spring race at the Hampton, Ga., venue, the 19-year Cup Series veteran ran into power steering issues early in the race and was forced to retreat to the garage where he lost six laps while the team made repairs. With the help of a handful of timely cautions and savvy work from the driver’s seat, McDowell raced his way back to the lead lap to earn a respectable 13th-place finish.
• Atlanta stands as one of four tracks where the father-of-five holds a start in each of NASCAR’s national touring series, highlighted by a venue-best finish of fourth in Cup Series competition in fall 2023.
• Last weekend at Chicagoland Speedway, McDowell struggled with handling issues throughout the day and soldiered home to a 29th-place finish.
• Across the last eight races, the two-time Cup Series winner holds an average finish of 15.2, while pacing the field two times for eight laps (Watkins Glen/Charlotte).
• After 19 points-paying races on the 2026 calendar, McDowell is 21st in the Cup Series championship point standings. With seven races remaining before NASCAR’s playoff format begins in September at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway, the 41-year-old sits just 34 points below the cutline on the strength of two top-five and five top-10 finishes.

Michael McDowell Quote
What makes Atlanta unique?
“Atlanta is a unique challenge because it races a lot like Daytona, but handling still plays a huge role. We’ve built a solid notebook there over the last few years. We swept both poles in 2024 and last season we showed a lot of speed, even after having a power steering issue. We had plenty of speed at Daytona, and all our cars have shown what we are capable of. That gives us confidence heading back to another drafting-style track, especially after Carson’s (Hocevar) win at Talladega. Hopefully, we can put together a clean race, build on the momentum we’ve shown, and put ourselves in position to contend for the win. Atlanta is a great opportunity for our No. 71 team to keep stacking points and put ourselves in position to point our way into The Chase.”

Travis Peterson – Crew Chief, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Travis Peterson is the crew chief of Spire Motorsports No. 71 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in the NASCAR Cup Series with driver Michael McDowell.
• Peterson led McDowell to a pair of Busch Light Pole Awards at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 2024. Additionally, across eight starts at the ultra-fast 1.54-mile quad oval, the potent duo has logged one top-five, two top-10 and five top-20 finishes. Meanwhile, under Peterson’s leadership, McDowell has paced the field for 57 laps.
• Peterson and McDowell combined for five pole positions at the six events contested at drafting tracks during the 2024 season.
• The West Bend, Wisc., native is a 2012 mechanical engineering graduate of the Williams States Lee College of Engineering at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

Carson Hocevar – Driver, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Carson Hocevar will race Spire Motorsports’ No. 77 Zeigler Auto Group Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in Sunday’s Quaker State 400 Available at Walmart at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
• Zeigler Automotive Group is one of the largest privately-owned dealer groups in the U.S. with 88 franchises across 41 locations in Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan. Vehicle brands represented include all the domestic and majority of the imported manufacturers. Besides its extensive automotive portfolio, the organization owns and operates Zeigler Motorsports, an 85,000-square-foot motorsports dealership and action park, offering 19 different powersports brands, plus its own onsite restaurant: Trak Houz Bar & Grill. Additionally, Zeigler Motorsports houses the Elevate Leadership & Team Building Academy, an executive training company. The Kalamazoo-based dealer group also owns three Byrider franchises, three finance companies, several insurance firms, and a leasing firm.
• Through 19 races, Hocevar sits ninth in points, just 14 markers out of eighth. His one win, four top fives, seven top 10s, 524 points scored, average starting position of 11.0 and 15.0 average finish are all career highs through the first 19 points-paying races of the season. The team’s average starting and finishing positions have each improved by over seven positions compared to this point in 2025.
• The 23-year-old driver is on pace to improve his average finish by 6.6 positions at the end of the season, the largest improvement among all drivers in the field.
• In four Cup Series starts at Atlanta, the Portage, Mich., native has finished no worse than 19th, tallying two top-fives and three top-10 results.
• In the division’s first trip to the Hampton, Ga., oval in 2026, the No. 77 team rallied from falling two laps down early in the event to earn an opportunity to restart on the front row during NASCAR Overtime. Hocevar was eventually credited with a fourth-place result.
• In February 2025, Hocevar started 26th at the 1.54-mile quad-oval but was quick to climb the leaderboard. He picked up stage points in each of the first two segments and positioned himself to contend for his first Cup Series win in NASCAR Overtime. He made a three-wide move for the lead, but a caution for an incident while the leaders were making their way through Turns 3 and 4 brought the race to an end. Hocevar was ultimately scored with a second-place finish.
• The five-time CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race winner owns four previous Truck Series starts at Atlanta. This February, he scored a venue-best runner-up finish to teammate Kyle Busch, to record the second one-two finish in team history.
• In 16 Cup Series starts on drafting-style tracks, Hocevar has tallied one win, three top-five, six top-10 and 12 top-20 results, highlighted by his first-career win at Talladega (Ala.) Superspeedway this April.
• The 2024 NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year registered his first-career victory earlier this season at Talladega Superspeedway. He survived a late-race restart with three laps remaining and brought home the checkered flag and register Spire Motorsports’ first win since the 2019 Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway.
• Last Sunday at Chicagoland Speedway, Hocevar fought a tight-handling Zeigler Auto Group Chevrolet, and despite a Stage 1 spin, persevered for a 22nd-place finish.

Carson Hocevar Quote
Why do you enjoy racing at Atlanta?
“You are on offense at all times. At Daytona and Talladega, you can’t really pull out of line and make a move by yourself. You have to wait and hope when you try to make a move, the guy behind you will follow. At Atlanta, you can just continuously make moves on your own. If one doesn’t work, you get back in line and make the next one. I like to compare it to Daytona before the repave. I like to watch the old races and get jealous I never had a chance to race there. So, when we go to Atlanta, I am really just living out a childhood dream.”

Luke Lambert – Crew Chief, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

• Luke Lambert is the crew chief of Spire Motorsports’ No. 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in the NASCAR Cup Series with driver Carson Hocevar.
• Lambert is in his third season at Spire Motorsports and fourth with Hocevar. In 99 races, the duo has logged two pole awards, one win, seven top-five and 22 top-10 finishes.
• The 16-year veteran crew chief has called 18 NASCAR Cup Series events at Atlanta, seven of which have come since the track’s 2022 reconfiguration, where he’s tallied two top-five and six top-10 finishes. He also played a key role in Jeff Burton’s trio of top fives from 2007-2010 as a race engineer at Richard Childress Racing.
• In three NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series races atop the box at Atlanta, Lambert, 43, snagged one top-five and two top-10 results, highlighted by a fourth-place finish on the previous configuration with Elliott Sadler in 2012.

About Spire Motorsports …
Spire Motorsports fields full-time entries in the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series and Interstate Batteries High Limit Racing.

The team, co-owned by longtime NASCAR industry executive Jeff Dickerson and TWG Motorsports CEO Dan Towriss, 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 July 7, 2019. Less than three years later, William Byron drove Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 Chevrolet Silverado its first NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series win April 7, 2022, at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. The team’s most recent victory came May 24, 2026, when Daniel Suárez won the NASCAR Cup Series Series’ Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway.

In 2026, Spire Motorsports campaigns the Nos. 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1s in the NASCAR Cup Series and the Nos. 7 and 77 Chevrolet Silverado RSTs in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. The Mooresville, N.C., organization also fields the No. 77 410 sprint car in Interstate Batteries High Limit Racing competition.