Rajah Caruth is set to return to the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series in 2025, once again driving the No. 71 Chevrolet Silverado for Spire Motorsports.
The 22-year-old driver will be returning for a third full-season campaign in the NASCAR Truck Series, and his second for Spire Motorsports.
HendrickCars.com, the online home for everything Hendrick Automotive Group, will return as the primary sponsor for Caruth in 2025.
In addition to announcing his plans for the 2025 season, Caruth walked across the commencement stage on Friday morning to accept his college diploma — a Bachelor of Science in Motorsports Management from Winston-Salem (N.C.) State University.
“I’m thrilled to confirm that Rajah Caruth will be back with us in 2025 driving the No. 71 HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Silverado,” said Jeff Dickerson, co-owner of Spire Motorsports. “He took the incredible high expectations we placed on him to start the year and exceeded them in every way.”
“I’m impressed with how he’s balanced his commitments to his race team, his craft, the media, and his growing fanbase while managing a full workload at Winston-Salem State University. Our organization believes in Raj and he has consistently shown the leadership, form, and work ethic that every team looks for in a driver. Everyone at Spire Motorsports is really happy to run it back with him next season.”
A native of Washington, D.C., Caruth collected his first career NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series pole position and victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in March.
“It is great to have a home and stability heading into next year,” said Caruth. “I believe this is the first time in my career I won’t be with a new team or competing in a different series at the start of the season. I really appreciate the opportunity Jeff (Dickerson) and T.J. (Puchyr) have given me, and I’m excited to continue preparations for 2025. Our organization has really grown over the past year, and we have shown what we are capable of. We have set the bar high for the season and the expectation is to win more races and compete for a championship.”
In just his second campaign in the NASCAR Truck Series, Caruth managed to accumulate one victory, five top-five finishes, and 12 top-10s, with a 10.7 average start and 11.6 average finish.
“Rajah is a young man of tremendous character and has proven to be a great representative of HendrickCars.com and our nearly 11,000 teammates across the country,” said Rick Hendrick, the chairman and CEO of Hendrick Automotive Group. “In addition to being extremely talented, he has an incredible work ethic. We couldn’t be prouder to make this announcement on the same day Rajah and his family celebrate his college graduation. He has a very bright future in the sport, and we are thrilled to continue supporting his journey in 2025.”
Caruth also has experience competing in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in recent years, primarily for Alpha Prime Racing, which resulted in a career-best 12th at Martinsville in October 2023.
In the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series, Caruth was named the 2021 Wendell Scott Trailblazer Award, an award based on a driver’s final Weekly Series national standing and on-track performance, sportsmanship, and community service.
“It is very special to have Hendrick Automotive Group and HendrickCars.com support me and my racing career,” added Caruth. “When I got the opportunity to drive their Xfinity car at Phoenix in 2023, it felt like an audition for 2024. I didn’t have any plans at that point. I’m thankful for everything Mr. and Mrs. Hendrick and all the great people at HendrickCars.com and Hendrick Automotive Group have done for me. I’m super thankful for their support and I’m ready to put on a show for them next year.”
The organization’s team and crew chief lineup is still being finalized and will be announced at a later date.
