Spire Motorsports FaithFest 250 Race Report 2026

Shane van Gisbergen, driver of the No. 71 NationsGuard Chevrolet Silverado RST, secured a third-place showing for Spire Motorsports in Saturday's FaithFest 250 at North Wilkesboro (N.C.) Speedway. Chase Elliott earned a sixth-place finish in his first NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race since 2023, while Carson Hocevar finished 27th after leading a total of 74 laps. The No. 7 team sits fourth in the owner championship point standings and the No. 77 in ninth with three races remaining in the regular season.

Van Gisbergen started 19th in the 250-lap event and methodically worked his way forward despite battling a loose-handling truck in the opening stage. After the team made steady adjustments throughout the race, van Gisbergen advanced from 17th in Stage 1 to 14th at the end of Stage 2 before charging into the top five in the closing laps. The New Zealander passed for third with 22 laps remaining to earn his second top five in CRAFTSMAN Truck Series competition. Elliott piloted the No. 7 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Silverado RST to a fifth-place finish in Stage 1 before varying pit strategies for the remainder of the event shook up the running order.  The Dawsonville, Ga., native was scored in the 10th position with 100 laps remaining but was able to take advantage of his long-run speed to gain three positions during a long green-flag run to end the race. Hocevar started on the front row and quickly took the lead in the No. 77 Delaware Life Chevrolet Silverado RST. The Portage, Mich., native led the first 50 laps before falling to second ahead of the end of Stage 1. He retook the lead on Lap 98 prior to a caution on Lap 191 that brought the 23-year-driver to pit road for fresh tires. Hocevar restarted fifth, but a loose-handling Chevy led to contact with a competitor resulting in damage that cause a flat left-front tire. A caution-less Final Stage impeded the No. 77 team's chances for recovery resulting in a 27th-place finish.

The CRAFTSMAN Truck Series will be back in action next Thursday, July 24 at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park. The 200-lap race will be televised live on FS1 at 8 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). The 16th of 25 races on the CRAFTSMAN Truck Series calendar will also be broadcast live on the NASCAR Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

“I thought there were a few runs where we were pretty respectful early on, and we were kind of chipping away at it. I was free, and I thought the adjustments made the truck more comfortable. About that time, we lost track position and then didn't seem to be good enough to get back up through there. I appreciate everyone at Spire, HendrickCars.com and Chevy for having me. It had been awhile, but I’d love to try it again.”

“I’m pretty excited! That was an awesome race. The guys did a good job making the truck better and I found a line that worked for me. Thank you to the Spire Motorsports team, NationsGuard and Chevy for having me. Real pleasure and hopefully get to do it again.”

“We had a really fast Delaware Life Chevy today, just got too loose in Stage 2 and then couldn't recover after the flat tire. Really appreciate the hard work from everyone at Spire. North Wilkesboro is a fun track, so I'm excited to get in the Cup car and see what we can do with 450 laps."

About Spire Motorsports … 

Spire Motorsports fields full-time entries in the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series and Interstate Batteries High Limit Racing.

The team, co-owned by longtime NASCAR industry executive Jeff Dickerson and TWG Motorsports CEO Dan Towriss earned its inaugural NASCAR Cup Series victory in its first full season of competition when Justin Haley took the checkered flag in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway July 7, 2019. Less than three years later, William Byron drove Spire Motorsports’ No. 7 Chevrolet Silverado its first NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series win April 7, 2022, at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway. The team’s most recent victory came May 24, 2026, when Daniel Suárez won the NASCAR Cup Series’ Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte (N.C.) Motor Speedway.

In 2026, Spire Motorsports campaigns the Nos. 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1s in the NASCAR Cup Series and the Nos. 7 and 77 Chevrolet Silverado RSTs in the NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series. The Mooresville, N.C., organization also fields the No. 77 410 sprint car in Interstate Batteries High Limit Racing competition.

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