Corey LaJoie confirmed in August that he won’t be back with Go Fas Racing for the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season. Where will he end up?
Another Silly Season domino fell when Corey LaJoie announced that the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season would be his second and final season behind the wheel of the #32 Ford at Go Fas Racing.
The 29-year-old Charlotte, North Carolina native has long been vocal about his desire to land a ride with a more competitive team, and he has been confident in his ability to perform at a high level if given a car capable of winning races.
LaJoie did not have a full-time ride in the Cup Series until last season when Archie St. Hilaire’s one-car team gave him the opportunity to run the full 36-race schedule.
Before that, he competed part-time for Randy Humphrey Racing in 2014, BK Racing in 2017 and TriStar Motorsports in 2018, and he recorded just two top 23 finishes in 57 starts with those organizations.
He finished in 29th place in the championship standings in his first season at Go Fas Racing last year with two top seven finishes, and he sits in 30th through 33 races this season with a top finish of eighth, although his average finish has slightly improved from 25.9 to 25.2.
After gambling on himself to find a better ride next year by giving up his ride behind the wheel of the #32 Ford, where will LaJoie end up in 2021?
Here are five possible landing spots for him.
Possible Corey LaJoie 2021 landing spots: Hendrick Motorsports
Among the seats that we already know Corey LaJoie has his eyes on for the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season is the #88 Chevrolet at Hendrick Motorsports (since Alex Bowman moved from the #88 team to the #48 team).
Seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson announced after the 2019 season concluded that the 2020 season would be his 19th and final season as a full-time driver in the sport.
Hendrick Motorsports still plan to operate with four drivers next year, but even though the 26-race 2020 regular season and two round (six races) of the four-round,10-race playoffs are in the books and we are far closer to the start of the 2021 season than we are to the start of the 2020 season, no replacement for Johnson has been named.
But LaJoie has to be in the mix. While he knows he may not be one of the frontrunners to end up at Rick Hendrick’s four-car team next year, he took the initiative and delivered Mr. H. a handwritten letter before the season began, expressing his desire to be considered as a potential replacement candidate for the seven-time champion.
It goes without saying that this isn’t something you see every day. But will that rare, bold move pay off and net LaJoie the best opportunity of his career? It’s not super likely, so if not, what’s next?
Possible Corey LaJoie 2021 landing spots: Spire Motorsports
A ride with Spire Motorsports would not be a huge upgrade, if any, for Corey LaJoie following his departure from Go Fas Racing after the 2020 season, but it would be a way for him to remain in the Cup Series and continue to show team owners that he is capable of getting the most out of equipment that isn’t the best.
Spire Motorsports, which already had a charter which they purchased from the now defunct Furniture Row Racing, purchased the charter that Leavine Family Racing had been using to field the #95 Toyota after it was announced that Bob Leavine’s team would not operate in 2021.
With two charters that were both formerly owned by teams affiliated with Joe Gibbs Racing, they are set to operate as a two-car team for the first time, and they are well-positioned to field an entry for a full-time driver for the first time in their three-year existence.
Plus, they have a partnership with both Chip Ganassi Racing and Hendrick Motorsports, which can allow for further growth, especially as they expand and seek at least one full-time competitor.
With Ross Chastain and Justin Haley, two Kaulig Racing Xfinity Series drivers who have competed in several races for the team in the past, set to move to Chip Ganassi Racing’s Cup Series team and remain at Kaulig Racing’s Xfinity Series team, respectively, next year, LaJoie is in a good spot to land a seat.
Possible Corey LaJoie 2021 landing spots: JTG Daugherty Racing
Among the chartered teams in the NASCAR Cup Series with full-time drivers, the #37 team is the only team within 100 points of the #32 team (of those ahead of the #32 team) in the owner standings, as Ryan Preece has drastically underperformed in his second season driving for JTG Daugherty Racing and sits in 29th place in points with a top finish of ninth.
Whether or not Preece will be back behind the wheel of that car next year remains unknown. If Corey LaJoie doesn’t land a ride with one of the sport’s top teams, JTG Daugherty Racing would be a good stepping stone for him to prove himself.
While his results don’t entirely show it, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. has shown that JTG Daugherty Racing are more than capable of running at the front at a variety of tracks, just as Chris Buescher, who swapped teams with Stenhouse after 2019 and now competes for Roush Fenway Racing, did during his three seasons with the team.
At one point, Buescher recorded 16 consecutive top 18 finishes behind the wheel of the #37 Chevrolet. Not even Jimmie Johnson has ever pulled that off, and he won seven championships in an 11-year span.
It may not be the true top-tier team he is looking for, but this would be a great opportunity for LaJoie to illustrate his untapped potential.
Possible Corey LaJoie 2021 landing spots: Front Row Motorsports
Front Row Motorsports wouldn’t be a huge step up for Corey LaJoie, but it would be a big enough of a step up to justify him making the gamble to give up his seat at Go Fas Racing.
Michael McDowell and John Hunter Nemechek have illustrated that Bob Jenkins’s team have the ability to run in the top 10 or top 15 every once in a while, and both drivers have come close to securing upset victories in superspeedway races, where Front Row Motorsports have statistically had the most success in the past.
LaJoie himself has three career top eight finishes, and all have come in superspeeedway races.
As of right now, Front Row Motorsports don’t have any drivers under contract for next year. Both the #34 Ford and the #38 Ford are open.
While it is believed that McDowell isn’t going anywhere after three seasons, Nemechek is seen as a young driver who could very well land himself a better ride in the near future as well, given the potential he has shown in NASCAR’s lower series and has a rookie in the Cup Series.
Additionally, the team ran three cars full-time last year, a scenario that isn’t out of the question should the right situation arise. LaJoie does have the help of sponsors such as Schluter Systems, Built Bar, and Drydene.
Possible Corey LaJoie 2021 landing spots: Stewart-Haas Racing (Xfinity)
It is possible that Corey LaJoie will be able to remain within the Stewart-Haas Racing fold even though he is set to leave Go Fas Racing and won’t be promoted to their four-car NASCAR Cup Series team.
More from NASCAR
- NASCAR Cup Series: New team set to compete in 2024
- NASCAR: Will Kevin Harvick’s major record ever be broken?
- NASCAR: Surprising name continuously linked to new seat
- NASCAR driver at risk of missing the Daytona 500?
- NASCAR set for rare appearance last seen 13 years ago
This is possible because of who Stewart-Haas Racing are likely to promote to the team as Clint Bowyer’s replacement, and that likely replacement is Chase Briscoe, who currently competes for the Stewart-Haas Racing Xfinity Series team.
As a result, another seat will be open at Stewart-Haas Racing for next year, but at their Xfinity Series team. While LaJoie would ideally like to be in the the Cup Series competing for a top team, this may be the next best thing with so few Cup Series seats still available.
As noted on the previous slide, LaJoie does have the help of quite a few sponsors. which could bode well for him here. This could also put him in an ideal position to potentially move to Stewart-Haas Racing’s Cup Series team at some point within the next few years, especially since Cole Custer was just promoted from their Xfinity Series team ahead of this season and the same is likely to be true for Briscoe next year.
Where will Corey LaJoie end up competing in the 2021 NASCAR Cup Series season? Will his gamble to leave Go Fas Racing pay off in the form of a more competitive ride?