TALLADEGA, Ala. — Corey LaJoie moved to Rick Ware Racing prior to last weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway and he finished 15th.
LaJoie is optimistic about both that finish and the prospects of the series heading to Talladega Superspeedway this weekend. LaJoie’s best career finishes have come in restrictor-plate style races such as those at the 2.66-mile race track.
LaJoie, who ran the first 29 races of the season with Spire Motorsports before getting “traded” to RWR for the final seven events, was pleased with his start in the No. 51 Ford.
“When you can join a team and knock off a finish like that in the first race, it brings with it a big boost of excitement,” said the third-generation racer. “It reinforces the time and energy that everyone puts in to get these cars ready each week. It gives the No. 51 team momentum to build on for these final six races.
“One good finish can lead to another. I’m going to do everything I can on the track to bring home those results and show these guys that I appreciate the work they put in.”
LaJoie, 29, has one top-five and two top-10 finishes at Talladega, with a fourth-place finish coming last October.
“I’m really looking forward to getting back to Talladega and having a chance at redemption. The April race certainly didn’t end the way I wanted it to,” said LaJoie, who finished 18th in April. “You know it’s a possibility, but you don’t want to be that person upside down at the finish line. I enjoy superspeedway racing and I think we can build on the top-five finish that RWR earned at Daytona.
“The Fords are always so fast at the bigger tracks and the RWR cars have been up there at the front, so I’m excited to get there and see what we’ve got.”