JJ Yeley ‘excited’ for NASCAR return after decades of grinding it out with underfunded teams

After two decades of grinding with relatively smaller teams, NASCAR veteran JJ Yeley has landed a spot with a prominent stock car racing team, Spire Motorsports, in the Truck Series. Following the news, Yeley took to his X account and shared his excitement over the same, backdropping the original post from the Cup Series team.

The 49-year-old began his stock car racing journey nearly two decades ago in 2004. He drove the #11 Chevy as a part-time driver for Joe Gibbs Racing in the Cup Series, the #18 for the same team in the Xfinity Series, and the #47 Chevy for Morgan-Dollar Motorsports in the Truck Series. Since then, Yeley has been looking for a chance to compete for a major team.

JJ Yeley's wish came true in the 2025 season and Spire Motorsports gave him a chance to prove his worth. The NASCAR team announced that the veteran is set to drive the #7 Chevy Silverado RST in the upcoming Talladega Superspeedway race. Reflecting on the same, the Phoenix, Arizona, native stated:

"Excited to get another shot! It’s been a few years since having the resources, equipment and organization to get to Victory Lane"

JJ Yeley has completed 36 starts in the Truck Series since his debut race in 2004. He has yet to land a win in the series and has only two top ten finishes, which he secured in 2017 and 2010. The Love's RV Stop 225 is scheduled at Talladega Superspeedway on Friday, October 17, 2025, at 4 p.m. ET.

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“Someone needs to beat the s**t out of him": JJ Yeley expressed his frustration over rookie driver David Gasper

In 2024, former Joe Gibbs Racing driver JJ Yeley had a run-in at the Turkey Night Grand Prix in Ventura. Following the incident, Yeley lambasted the rookie driver, David Gasper, for making contact with him.

The Cup Series veteran was running fifth in the main event before the rookie driver ruined his day, leading to a DNF. Yeley was clearly frustrated by the crash and climbed up on his slammed car and threw his steering wheel at Gasper's car.

Yeley was not satisfied with throwing the steering wheel once and threw it at the rookie's ride once again. Later, during media interaction, he voiced his disapproval of David Gasper's actions and stated:

"Yesterday, we spun out or got in a wreck," Yeley said. "He hit me head-on, wide-open, never lifted. Right there, I don't know what the f*** he was thinking. We're running fifth, there's 10 laps to go. Just threw a dive bomb in there and wrecked me. He's rookie of the year, but somebody needs to beat the s**t out of him. If they don't stop me, I'll be the first one to f****** do it." (1:17 onwards)

JJ Yeley has completed 394 starts in the Cup Series but has not been lucky enough to cross the finish line in P1 and secure a win. However, he has gathered two top fives, nine top tens, and one pole position in his career. Additionally, he has led 88 laps with an average finish of 31.06.

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Edited by Tushhita Barua