NASCAR: Surprise driver change raises another important question

Corey LaJoie confirmed this week that he will not return to Spire Motorsports for what would have been a fifth year behind the wheel of the No. 7 Chevrolet during the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season.

This announcement came as somewhat of a surprise, considering the fact that the 32-year-old Charlotte, North Carolina native signed a multi-year contract extension last summer that was said to tie him to the Jeff Dickerson and T.J. Puchyr-owned team through at least the 2025 season.

Spire Motorsports have already confirmed one driver change for the 2025 season, with Michael McDowell set to join the team after spending seven seasons with Front Row Motorsports.

It was assumed that McDowell would replace Zane Smith behind the wheel of the No. 71 Chevrolet, but does confirmation of LaJoie's departure open up the possibility of Smith remaining with the team?

What's next for Zane Smith?

Smith is currently competing for Spire Motorsports on loan from Trackhouse Racing Team. Though it is expected that the Justin Marks and Pitbull-owned team will acquire one of Stewart-Haas Racing's charters to expand from two to three cars, Shane van Gisbergen is believed to be the frontrunner to land that ride.

With McDowell expected to replace Smith and Trackhouse Racing Team expected to be full, Smith was left facing a bit of an uncertain future, and though LaJoie's departure now leaves Spire Motorsports with an unexpected open seat, it is still believed that the 25-year-old Huntington Beach, California native will move on as well.

Smith is said to be a candidate to replace McDowell at Front Row Motorsports, the team for which he competed in the Truck Series in 2022 and 2023.

Whether or not Trackhouse Racing Team would loan him out to a Ford team or cut ties with him completely is another major question that would need to be answered before that move takes place.

After starting the season with a top finish of 13th place and just one other top 20 finish in the first 14 races, Smith has recently seen an uptick performance and reeled off five top 20 finishes in the eight most recent races, including a career-high second place finish at Nashville Superspeedway.

Perhaps most importantly, he also no longer finds himself in last place in the point standings among the 34 full-time drivers following another strong run at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the Brickyard 400. Over the last month and a half or so, he has demonstrated that he belongs at the Cup level.

But if Smith does indeed move on after all, then who will replace LaJoie and join the No. 7 team, which is set to be led by championship-winning crew chief Rodney Childers in 2025?