After today’s EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at COTA, Corey LaJoie had a bit of a scary moment when he got out of his car. LaJoie would lay down outside of his car after the NASCAR race. Later he would be taken to the infield care center.
Today wasn’t exceptionally hot in Austin, Texas. Still, racing around the COTA track is anything but easy and LaJoie was worn out at the end of the race.
Corey LaJoie was released from the care center after receiving fluids. LaJoie, who usually keeps track of his fluid intake, wasn’t sure why he was dehydrated.
“Every muscle in my body cramped up. I was fine in the car, had a little bit of foot cramp,” LaJoie told Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports. “But as soon as I tucked my chin to get up out of the car, every muscle from the top of my abs to the bottom of my feet just seized right up. I tried to walk it off, but my feet wouldn’t work my legs wouldn’t work so I just had to lay down. But I got two bags [of IV fluid].”
Corey LaJoie is going to try and make sure this doesn’t happen again.
“So, you know, I look at my suit and the suit’s got a little bit more salt lines in it than usual and I think you’re just locked in for whatever it was probably 45 minutes for the last run I didn’t get a chance to drink a lot throughout the course of the race and I sweat a lot. So I just needed to be a little more ahead of it.”
Corey LaJoie addresses Lap 1 incident
In the race itself, Corey LaJoie had some mistakes as well. On Lap 1, Turn 1 LaJoie was in a three-car incident on the track. He got pushed wide on the turn and came back onto the track expecting Martin Truex Jr. to give him space.
The only issue, Truex didn’t have space to give him. Bubba Wallace was on his driver side door and the three of them would collide. Each driver had a hard road back to a respectable finish.
Truex was P10, Wallace P15, and LaJoie finished P25.
“Well, I watched the replay. It wasn’t anybody’s fault, I thought the 19 was clear bottom, I thought he was going to at least give me a lane to merge and he couldn’t because the 23 was on his door so when I tried to merge he got me in the left rear and kind of turned me into traffic and it was an uphill battle from there,” the Spire driver explained. “I just felt like I got used and abused multiple times, I saw red a couple times and got into a couple of guys and it was just a very, it just wasn’t a good day.”
Corey LaJoie had a tough day. On the track he couldn’t find speed or position after qualifying P5. That incident on the first lap was where he lost it and it never came back. Spire Motorsports has improved. There is still a long way to go, though.
Zane Smith ended up being the best Spire driver on the day. Smith finished P20. Meanwhile, his fellow rookie, Carson Hocevar, finished P23 in his effort.
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