NASCAR veteran Rodney Childers to lead Corey LaJoie with multi-year contract at Spire Motorsports in 2025

Rodney Childers, crew chief for Josh Berry's #4 Stewart Haas Racing Ford, is set to join Spire Motorsports next season. Childers will be paired with Corey LaJoie and the #7 Chevy team in the upcoming season, as announced by Spire on July 9.

Following Stewart-Haas Racing's downsizing, there was plenty of speculation regarding the future of SHR drivers and the talented members of the team. Childers, who achieved tremendous success with Kevin Harvick for a decade, presumably courted a lot of offers.

Spire Motorsports decided to bring Childers into their fold, pairing him with experienced driver LaJoie. The team announced that Ryan Sparks, who currently serves as the crew chief for the #7 team and the competition director for the wider organization, will fully transition to the latter role after the conclusion of the 2024 season.

Spire Motorsports co-owner Jeff Dickerson expressed his excitement in welcoming Childers into the organization. The co-owner heaped praises on the veteran NASCAR crew chief, stating that the decision to hire Childers was an easy one that the team couldn't pass up on.

"There are decisions that professional racing teams make daily that take courage, require deep thought, and have some element of rolling the dice. To be clear, this wasn’t one of them. Rodney is a hall-of-fame worthy, championship-winning crew chief with 40 wins," Dickerson said in the press release.

"He is one of the best in the garage and when a guy like Rodney is available, it would be malpractice if we did anything but our absolute best to bring him into our growing organization. He will make us better the moment he walks into our shop, and we look forward to his contributions to our collective success."

Dickerson added that it was Ryan Sparks who proposed the idea to bring in Childers, enabling him to focus solely on the role of competition director. The co-owner emphasized that adding the SHR crew chief to their team will be pivotal for their growth.

---

Rodney Childers opens up about his decision to join Spire

Childers, who spent the previous decade at Stewart Haas Racing, elaborated on the decision behind joining Spire Motorsports. He explained that he was impressed with the organization's growth and emphasized that the team is investing in people, who make the difference in a racing team.

"I think the biggest thing is seeing how Spire Motorsports has grown over the last couple of years. They are investing in people, and that’s what makes a difference these days. We all buy the same chassis, bodies and parts. What makes a difference is the people," he said in the press release.

Spire Motorsports expanded into a three car team organization prior to the 2024 season and also bought Kyle Busch's Truck Series team.

"Spire continues to invest in the people within the team and they seek out good people to add depth to an already strong group. Corey (LaJoie) is a veteran of the sport and I think we have a tremendous opportunity in front of us," he added.

Rodney Childers explained that Spire Motorsports was "on his radar" for the past year having heard the testimonials from his #4 team members who had joined the organization. He expressed excitement about leading the #7 Spire team in the upcoming season.