The most likely outcome was made official on Tuesday as Spire Motorsports confirmed that it has also hired crew chief Travis Peterson to pair with driver Michael McDowell at the No. 71 team next season.
The duo have worked together since 2021 at the Front Row Motorsports No. 34 team where they have earned three poles, one win, four top-5 and 14 top-10s. Their victory came last summer at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.
By having McDowell and Peterson reunite at Spire, the hope is that it shortens their learning curve at a new team.
“It is a very exciting opportunity,” Peterson said in a press release. “Michael (McDowell) and I had the opportunity to meet with Doug (Duchardt) and (Jeff) Dickerson and they really sold us on the vision of where Spire is going and how we could be big role players in building the organization. I think having that skin in the game was important to both of us.
“The opportunity in front of us has all the potential to be very rewarding. That was a huge part of it. I love the energy right now and the overall culture around Spire Motorsports. They’re investing in people and team ownership is highly engaged. The mindset is ‘We’re going to do what it takes to win and this is what we want to build. Here’s the vision, where we’re going, what we’re going to do to get there, and we want you to be part of it.’ That was the biggest selling point.”
Spire has spent a great deal of resources in working towards contention next season. Championship winning executive Duchardt joined the team last year. Championship winning crew chief Rodney Childers will join the team next year to oversee the No. 7 team.
The expectation is winning races and contending for playoff spots and Peterson with McDowell have proven capable of that already.
