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Sparks returns to crew chief role with Haley
Ryan Sparks will assume the crew chief role for Justin Haley and the No. 7 Spire Motorsports team beginning this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway.
Sparks, the competition director for the organization, will handle both roles following the departure of Rodney Childers. Spire and Childers confirmed they had mutually agreed to part ways earlier this week after nine races together in the NASCAR Cup Series. Childers and Haley earned one top-10 finish and sat 23rd in the championship standings.
Spire Motorsports and Childers acknowledged it “wasn’t working for either of us.”
In its announcement that Sparks will return as the team's crew chief, Spire Motorsports said it would be for the duration of the 2025 season.
Sparks and Haley worked together in the final seven races of the 2024 season when Haley rejoined Spire Motorsports. However, Sparks transitioned to the sole role of competition director when Childers was hired.
In 175 races as a Cup Series crew chief, Sparks has worked with multiple drivers. He has nine top-10 finishes and three top-five finishes.
Kelly Crandall
Kelly has been on the NASCAR beat full-time since 2013, and joined RACER as chief NASCAR writer in 2017. Her work has also appeared in NASCAR.com, the NASCAR Illustrated magazine, and NBC Sports. A corporate communications graduate from Central Penn College, Crandall is a two-time George Cunningham Writer of the Year recipient from the National Motorsports Press Association.
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