Tommy Joe Martins won’t be letting Corey LaJoie forget about his recent comments anytime soon.
Following the NASCAR Truck Series and NASCAR Xfinity Series’ tests at the Rockingham (N.C.) Speedway on Tuesday, Martins took to social media to fire back at LaJoie, who had made comments that could be described as incendiary in regards to NASCAR’s lower divisions.
On Monday, it was announced that, rather than choosing to run a larger schedule in the NASCAR Truck Series or NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2025, LaJoie would instead run a limited Cup Series schedule with Rick Ware Racing in 2025. LaJoie’s first race in the RWR No. 01 car will be the 67th Daytona 500 on Feb. 16, with the other races on his schedule yet to be named.
“Those guys that say they want to win (in the lower divisions) win one or two Truck races and they’re lifelong Truck guys and never get to race on Sundays,” LaJoie told Fox Sports’ Bob Pockrass when asked about his decision to run a part-time Cup Series schedule. “It’s all about Sunday. I don’t want to go run Formula 3. I want to be a Formula 1 driver. Sure, do you want to go pump your ego up and hold a trophy on a Friday night when there’s 12 people in the grandstands? No.”
Corey LaJoie to drive limited schedule for Rick Ware Racing. He’ll attempt Daytona 500. Other races TBA. No. 01 — to align with his Stacking Pennies Performance brand. LaJoie also will be an analyst for the 5 Cup races on Amazon Prime Video. He explains new number/philosophy: pic.twitter.com/q8CaPwVtY5
â Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) January 27, 2025
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“I want to compete against the best because I feel like, with every group that I’ve been (with), groups that I’ve built from the ground up, any given Sunday we can contend for a win.”
LaJoie’s comments sparked many social media debates, but Martins’ response is certainly the most influential.
“More than 12 in attendance today,” Martins quipped in a post on X on Tuesday afternoon.
More than 12 in attendance today @RockinghamSpdwy @XfinityRacing https://t.co/B3mK90kXia pic.twitter.com/BvTxSB35yI
â Tommy Joe Martins (@TommyJoeMartins) January 28, 2025
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LaJoie’s comments are made that much more interesting given the story of his father’s racing career. Corey LaJoie’s father, Randy, won 15 Xfinity Series races over 350 starts and back-to-back Xfinity Series championships in 1996 and 1997, respectively. While Randy never had much success in the Cup Series, he carved out an impressive Xfinity Series career that will always have him in conversations regarding the best Xfinity Series drivers of all-time. The son of an Xfinity Series legend talking down on the second highest level of stock-car racing in the world is certainly a surprising development.
Corey LaJoie’s comments also seem to come from a slightly misguided place, given that the veteran driver has yet to visit victory lane in the Xfinity Series, Truck Series or ARCA Menards Series. In 34 combined starts in NASCAR’s Single-A, Double-AA and Triple-AAA equivalents, LaJoie is winless with only seven top-10 finishes.
LaJoie has certainly carved out a respectable Cup Series career for himself, and he’s absolutely correct that sponsors would rather see their brands displayed on a Cup Series car compared to an Xfinity or Truck Series vehicle. However, he could’ve worded his response to his decision to run a limited Cup Series schedule in a more tasteful manner that doesn’t make it seem like he’s talking down to lower-level lifers who turned themselves into Truck and Xfinity Series legends.
Regardless, Feb. 16’s Daytona 500 will be a chance for LaJoie to prove his doubters wrong and show that he is deserving of more Cup Series opportunities in the future.
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