NASCAR Truck Series driver to make sudden midseason team change

Perez, 20, won the ARCA Menards Series championship in 2024 and is 17th in the Truck Series standings following the Aug. 8 race at Watkins Glen. Corey LaJoie, a veteran of 275 NASCAR Cup Series starts, will take over the No. 77 for the rest of the season. 

The Truck Series will return to action at Richmond Raceway for the regular-season finale on Aug. 15. Perez must win the race to qualify for the Truck Series playoffs. 

The release of Perez comes one week after Niece Motorsports made the shocking decision to release Kaden Honeycutt, who was comfortably inside the Truck Series playoff picture and will drive the No. 52 Halmar Friesen Racing Toyota for the rest of 2025. 

But this move isn't quite as jarring. Spire is an organization that, as it has grown, has made several bold moves in regard to driver lineups. That included making what was essentially the equivalent of a stick and ball sport driver trade with Rick Ware Racing in 2024, when LaJoie and Justin Haley swapped rides for the final seven Cup Series races. 

LaJoie will bring a veteran presence to an organization in Spire that is still chasing a Truck Series championship with driver Rajah Caruth, while Perez will have to acclimate to his new team quickly to build momentum as he prepares for his sophomore season in 2026.