The Clean Harbors 250 will mark the second time Spire Motorsports will field a NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series (NCTS) entry at Richmond Raceway. In August 2022, Rajah Caruth finished 25th in his second Truck Series start aboard the team’s No. 7 Chevrolet Silverado. Spire Motorsports fields the Nos. 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolet Silverados full time in the NCTS. An all-star driver lineup will rotate throughout the 2024 season in the No. 7 Chevy. Caruth drives the No. 71 entry and Chase Purdy rounds out the team’s fleet of Chevrolets in the No. 77.
The Clean Harbors 250 from Richmond Raceway will be televised live on FS1 Saturday, Aug. 10, beginning at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The 16th of 23 NCTS races on the 2024 schedule will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and Siri
Rajah Caruth – Driver, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet Silverado
Rajah Caruth will pilot Spire Motorsports’ No. 71 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Silverado in Saturday’s Clean Harbors 250.
Last time out, Caruth earned his third consecutive top-10 finish with an eighth-place result at IRP. During qualifying, he claimed the second Cometic Gasket Pole Award of his career.
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The Winston-Salem (N.C.) State University senior has two prior starts in the NCTS at the 0.75-mile oval, finishing 19th in last year’s event. In 2022, Caruth made his second career Truck Series start in the No. 7 Spire Motorsports Silverado.
Richmond is the site of the 22-year-old’s NASCAR National Series debut, competing in the 2022 NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) event. He started 22nd and finished 24th.
Caruth scored his career-best finish in 19 NXS starts at a Virginia short track, crossing the line 12th at Martinsville Speedway last fall.
The Washington, D.C., native is currently fifth in the NCTS championship point standings after 15 races. He has logged two poles, one win, three top-five, eight top-10 and 12 top-15 finishes. He’s recorded a 10.4 average start and an 11.0 average finish.
With his first career NCTS win and pole position earlier this season at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Caruth became the third African American driver, alongside NASCAR Hall of Famer, Wendell Scott and current NASCAR Cup Series regular Bubba Wallace, to win a NASCAR National Touring Series race.
Caruth raced his first full season in NCTS in 2023, earning four top-10 finishes and ending the year 16th in the division’s championship point standings.
Crew chief Chad Walter has called three Truck Series races at Richmond, highlighted by a fifth-place finish with Tyler Ankrum in 2020. Walter has been atop the box for 14 Xfinity Series events at “The Action Track,” finishing in the top 15 in 11 of those events.
The No. 71 Silverado is identified as Spire Manufacturing chassis SMT-058. The truck will be making its 25th appearance on the Truck Series circuit, visiting Victory Lane four times with Kyle Busch and John Hunter Nemechek in the cockpit.
Rajah Caruth Quotes
Richmond is your home track, the place you saw your first race and the site of your first national series start. How special is the venue to you?
“It’s been 10 years since the first race I ever went to. I even have the date, September 5, 2014, tattooed on me. It’s pretty surreal to look back on. It’s not the destination, it’s the journey. I remember I was 12-years-old and was surprised with tickets to my first NASCAR race, the XFINTY Series race that fall. Then you look at this season, with how well things have gone and to be in the mix for a championship, it has been quite a ride. I just feel really good about this weekend at this place that is pretty special to me. Hopefully we can have some good momentum to bring into Milwaukee and the playoffs.”
The playoffs start next time out at Milwaukee. How are you getting prepared to go racing for a championship?
“I’m honestly not doing much different. I’ve been mentally getting into the mindset since Nashville. I haven’t taken much time off these last two weeks. Everything is just amplified and everyone is getting excited. I’d be a lot more stressed if we were trying to lock in, but since we got our win and are fifth in points, we are in a really good spot. I’m just ready to compete for a championship and try to be one of the final four at Phoenix.”
Chad Walter – Crew Chief, No. 71 Chevrolet Silverado
Chad Walter has over two decades of experience and began his career with Hendrick Motorsports in 1996. Walter guided Caruth to his first NCTS win March 1, 2024 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Some of his most notable accomplishments include a pair of Daytona 500 victories (2001 & 2003) with Michael Waltrip, along with Cup Series wins with Steve Park and Terry Labonte.
TIL NEXT TIME, I AM STILL WORKING ON MY REDNECK!
