NASCAR: Corey LaJoie had a joyful Christmas, now has full-time ride in Cup Series | Sports

“ That was a pretty cool day,” LaJoie said. “I usually find out my deal about two weeks before the season opens in Daytona. I’ve never had anything develop like this.”

So how did LaJoie celebrate his “best gift ever.”

“ I got married, went on a cool honeymoon and then got ready for the grind in Daytona,” he said.

On Wednesday, the 27-year-old LaJoie was at Bristol Motor Speedway for a preview of the 2019 season.

LaJoie already has April 7 circled. That’s the date of his next adventure – the Food City 500 Cup race at BMS.

“ I guess it’s from driving aggressive and being able to hang the car out a little, but I’ve always been able to pick this place up really quick,” LaJoie said. “You don’t have to finesse this track as much. You can get your elbows up and go to work.”

That aggressive approach paid dividends in LaJoie’s Bristol debut in a Pro Challenge Series event. He was just 14 at the time

“ When you are driving around a track like Bristol at 14, it feels like you’re at Daytona,” LaJoie said. “My mom was a little worried, but we had a lot of fun that day.

“ I got a little plastic trophy for winning that race, and I definitely want one of those big Bristol trophies now.”

According to LaJoie, no Bristol race is average.

“ After a race here, your neck and lower back are sore and your pride is sore after getting smoked by Kyle Busch,” LaJoie said. “I love just driving to Bristol because when you come down the road and turn a corner you are like “Holy Cow, there she is.”“

Competing for lower-budget team, LaJoie is forced to measure success in increments. For example, his average finish of 25th so far this season marks a four-spot improvement for the No. 32 car compared to this point last season. Current Cup regular Matt DiBenedetto drove the same car in 2018.

“ We were fifth-fastest during happy hour in Atlanta, so it’s good to know that the car has speed,” LaJoie said. “We just need to keep building our notebook and transferring that over to Sunday. If we can run in the top 27 every week, that’s solid for where we are budget and resource-wise.”

While drivers and teams often approach Bristol races as a wildcard event due to the likelihood of multi-car mayhem, LaJoie is frank about the odds facing the sport’s underdogs.

“ That guy that spends five dollars is always going to go faster than the guy that spends a dollar, that’s just the way racing works,” LaJoie said. “But Bristol is a place where we you can have a good result if you can make the car drive well and keep the fenders on.”

LaJoie, son of two-time Xfinity Series champion Randy LaJoie, is one of the most versatile drivers in the Cup garage. Four years ago, the ace mechanic turned down an offer from ultra-successful crew chief Chad Knaus to serve as a car chief.

“ I can pinpoint issues,” LaJoie said. “That background can get us back in the ballpark a lot quicker if I didn’t have that knowledge or ability to convey what I needed from the car.”

As for being force into the role of multi-tasker, LaJoie said that’s just the nature of a business dominated by mega-teams.

“ I am willing to do whatever takes,” said LaJoie, who also has experience as a crew chief. “Everybody is dealt a different hand of cards, and you have to play them the best you can. I’m doing a lot of cool things with different partners.”

One of those cool things was consenting to have his entire face placed on the front of his car for the Daytona 500 as part of an ad campaign with Old Spice.

“ I think they got their money’s worth on that,” LaJoie said.

LaJoie said his father is both his biggest fan and No. 1 critic.

“ Dad kind of steps back, listens on the radio and offers a couple words,” LaJoie said. “For the most part, he lets me figure things out on my own.”

The younger LaJoie grew up traveling to races with his family in a motor home and watching race from the pits. One Bristol sequence is indelible.

“ It was the race where dad got into a contest with Buckshot Jones,” LaJoie said. “Dad wrecked Buckshot. And Buckshot was on apron waiting so he could go up the track and wreck the old man.”

That plan for revenge went awry in a spectacular way.

“ Dad saw Buckshot coming out of the side of his window,” Lajoie said. “Buckshot missed dad and drove head-on into the fence.

“ My mom grabbed me and my brother after that, and we got police escort out in a golf cart. People were throwing beer and stuff. I think both drivers sold a lot of T-shirts that night.”

Randy LaJoie has already offered one bit of advice for his son in next month’s Food City 500.

“ Dad told me not to hit anything. That’s usually a good plan at Bristol,” Corey LaJoie said.