NASCAR fans reject Corey LaJoie’s part-time Cup Series ‘philosophy’

Corey LaJoie recently shared his thoughts on why he prioritizes racing in the NASCAR Cup Series over competing in lower divisions, even if it means finishing in the mid-pack. However, his comments did not sit well with many NASCAR fans, who criticized his stance as arrogant and dismissive toward the Truck and Xfinity Series.

Fans took to social media to express their disapproval, calling out LaJoie for his perspective. NASCAR journalist Bob Pockrass shared the interview on his official X account on January 27.

“Corey LaJoie, who will have Take 5 and DuraMAX as sponsors for his Daytona 500 effort with Rick Ware Racing, has been outspoken that he prefers to race on Sundays even if that means he has less of a chance of winning. He explains that philosophy”

Corey LaJoie, who will compete in a partial Cup Series schedule for Rick Ware Racing in 2025, made these comments while discussing his career approach. He said that racing in the Cup Series offers more visibility and sponsor value, whereas winning in lower divisions does not provide the same return.

He further argued that focusing on Cup racing allows him to race against the best drivers rather than settling for victories in smaller series. This argument drew strong reactions from the NASCAR community, with many fans disagreeing with his viewpoint:

"Good lord. What a complete asshat," a fan wrote.

"NASCAR drivers are becoming almost as elitist as F1 and IndyCar drivers," another fan remarked.

"This philosophy," a NASCAR fan page posted, along with a GIF saying, "Mmm. No, don’t like that."

"Guy’s got quite the ego when all he needed to say was it pays more to race on Sundays," one user commented.

"Dissing Truck Series winners when you haven’t won a single race or even finished top 20 in points in any top 3 NASCAR series is crazy work," another added.

"Translation: I can't even win on Fridays or Saturdays and don't want to expose myself," a fan mockingly commented.

The 2024 season was a challenging one for Corey Lajoie. At the end of it, he found himself at a 33rd-place finish in the standings with no wins and an average finish of 23.72 over 36 races.

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Corey Lajoie opens up on his mental struggles amid a difficult 2024 campaign

Corey LaJoie’s 2024 season started on a strong note but quickly fell apart, leading to his mid-season exit from Spire Motorsports. The team had counted on him to lead their Cup Series program, but a series of poor finishes and personal struggles changed their plans.

In the latest episode of the Stacking Pennies podcast on YouTube, Corey LaJoie admitted that a close friend’s accident deeply affected him, making it hard to focus on racing.

“So, everybody watched on live television how awful my year was, right? Perpetuated probably by a really close friend… got in an accident, got paralyzed, and went down the ‘What is life?’ rabbit hole, right?” LaJoie said. [0:06]

Spire decided to replace him with Justin Haley, working out a mid-season swap with Rick Ware Racing, which caught LaJoie off guard.

“A couple of weeks later, you get sat down, and you get told you’re going in a different direction, and I’m like, dang, that’s not the door that I wanted to get shut,” he recalled [at 1:52]

At Rick Ware Racing, Corey LaJoie put in strong performances but faced another roadblock as Team owner Rick Ware planned to give his son Cody a full-time Cup ride. In the end, LaJoie himself pushed for Cody to take over, bringing his full-time Cup career to an unexpected halt.