“This unlocks a number of possibilities”: Corey LaJoie approves NASCAR’s decision to bring option tire compounds to races

Corey LaJoie has given his nod to NASCAR's historic tire decision for The Cook Out 400 at the Richmond Raceway. The Spire Motorsports drivers outlined that with more tire choices, a single driver could propel other teams to change their strategies.

After testing the 'option' tire at the million-dollar All-Star Race at the North Wilkesboro Speedway, NASCAR created history by allowing their use at a points race.

The prime tires, marked with the traditional yellow lettering on the sidewall, are durable but don't provide much speed to the high-octane rides. On the contrary, the option tire, denoted by its red lettering on the compound's sidewall, gets chewed up rapidly but produces a higher grip, and thus more control and speed.

While Corey LaJoie didn't use the option tires, he was pleased with how it turned out after drivers used it.

"Kudos to Goodyear from bringing this from the All-Star Race to a points-paying race. This unlocks a number of possibilities. You anticipate with two sets of option tires, everybody's gonna wait till the third segment and I was like, 'Somebody's going to throw them on and make everybody play their hand of cards.'" Corey LaJoie said via NASCAR on X.

"It's gonna push some different guys to do it. The first one to pull the trigger on them reds (option tires) is the #99 [Daniel Suarez] and the #34 [Michael McDowell]," he added.

Corey LaJoie kicked off his 23rd Cup Series weekend from 24th place. He claimed the 30th and 36th place in Stages 1 and 2, respectively, before concluding his 408-lap dash for a 34th-place finish.

Elton Sawyer resonates with Corey LaJoie's take and claims the move “was a huge success”

After the drivers witnessed immense tire wear at the concrete Bristol Motor Speedway, Goodyear started testing the option tire at the North Wilkesboro Speedway and the Iowa Speedway. On July 16, the competition officials announced the option tire's inclusion at the 0.750-mile oval for the post-Olympics break battle.

Daniel Suarez was among the drivers who donned the softer compound and was very pleased with his "fun" outing and how his #99 Chevrolet responded. The Trackhouse Racing driver even expressed his desire to see the option tires making their way into the playoffs.

NASCAR even increased the practice time from 20 minutes per group to a unified 45-minute run, with one set of each tire type available for testing.

Like Corey LaJoie praised Goodyear for bringing option tires to a points-paying race and the resulting strategies, Elton Sawyer spoke along similar lines. He hailed the company and highlighted how the option tire strategy unfolded for Suarez and McDowell and turned out to be a "huge success" (via NASCAR on YouTube).

"I thought the tires were great. Hats off to Goodyear, they've been a great partner throughout the process, what we learned at the All-Star Race gave us an opportunity to put them in real competiton where we're paying points and paying money...The way it unfolded early with the 99 and the 34 putting them on, it really showed us what that tire can do. So, we'll debrief with Goodyear, talk to the teams, but all in all I'd say, it was a huge success." (0:14)

The 99 team bolted the red-lettered tires at the beginning of Stage 2 and, as a result, Suarez climbed from a 15th-place finish in Stage 1 to sealing the top spot in the second stage. With that, he registered his first stage win this season.