Corey LaJoie sends message to Kyle Busch after Watkins Glen wreck

Corey LaJoie has spoken out following the dramatic crash with Kyle Busch's No. 8 Toyota Camry during the playoff race at Watkins Glen. The incident, which happened on the first lap of the race, resulted in Busch spinning out and impacted several other drivers, including Denny Hamlin and Ryan Blaney. The chaos led to a DNF for Blaney, the defending champion, and marred Busch’s chances of a successful race finish.

Reflecting on the incident on his podcast " Stacking Pennies ," LaJoie issued a public apology, admitting his role in the wreck.

“There’s really no excuse for that. I was trying to... my only intention the first lap was to get singled out and not ruin anybody’s day and that’s the exact opposite of what happened," LaJoie apologized.

This incident wasn't a standalone occurrence; the driver admitted to a recurring pattern of on-track conflicts between his No. 7 car and Busch’s No. 8 throughout the 2024 season.

“There’s a magnet for the 7 and the 8 car, unfortunately, and he’s had the short end of the stick. So I’m just waiting on payback,” LaJoie admitted - a hat tip to a wisp of underlying tension between the drivers.

This week, LaJoie turns his focus to the upcoming race at Bristol, one of NASCAR's most storied tracks.

"Obviously, the history involved makes it a cool place to race. It is also the pinnacle of short track racing. I always enjoy my time there and I hope to bring home a good finish in our Mattress Warehouse Camaro,” LaJoie said.

Hamlin was keen to get his point of view on record following the race, via his podcast Actions Detrimental .

“It looked like the No. 7, Corey, just hit the rumble strips a little bit wrong and it shot him into the door of the No. 8. Spun out the No. 8 and stack-up ensued.”

Blaney, unable to repair his car to continue his Bristol campaign, also admitted his annoyance with what happened, via SiriusXM NASCAR Radio .

“When we got the damage and broke the part, I thought and honestly, all of us on the 12 team thought that ‘Hey, bring us back to our stall and let’s at least take a look at it and see if we can fix it.’ And then when they told us we were done and they put us in the garage [and] we’re out, I was still confused.

“We all were talking to NASCAR and everybody didn’t really understand the rule. When I gave my TV interview, I didn’t know the rule until I got back to the garage. We sat down and kind of went through the rulebook and NASCAR did everything right by the rulebook.

“If you are involved in an incident and you cannot drive it back to the pits, unless you have four flat tires and you cannot move, then you are done. We didn’t have four flats. I couldn’t drive it back. By the rule, you are out. But I honestly did not know that at the time. That’s kind of why I was the way I was in my interview, kind of confused. But yeah, NASCAR did everything the rule book says. So, I don’t blame them for that at all and I’m happy we cleared up some of the confusion afterwards. I wish I would’ve settled down beforehand so I didn’t come off angry in that way.”