Live Fast Motorsports is co-owned by BJ McLeod and Matt Tifft. Live Fast won't be a chartered team in NASCAR in 2024 after the co-owners sold the team's charter to Spire Motorsports a couple of months ago.
As we enter our final race as a full-time team, we want to thank our partners, drivers, and fans for their endless support throughout the last 3 years. We are excited to see what the future holds for us. Thank you #LiveFastNation! pic.twitter.com/JYKck0Wbzf
— Live Fast Motorsports (@teamlivefast) November 5, 2023
That wasn't the plan at the start of the 2023 season, as they hoped to keep the No. 78 car going for the foreseeable future.
However, McLeod admitted in an interview with Racer.com this week that they had to change their plans because the sport was changing at a faster pace than they had anticipated, and they weren't meeting their goals as a team.
"What caught me by surprise was the speed at which the sport advanced around Matt (Tifft, co-owner) and I and team Live Fast," McLeod said. "That's the part I didn't anticipate, and it just simply wasn't in a strong enough position financially to be able to keep up with our surroundings. That happens in other businesses too, and you have to shift to make decisions and move, and it's a good thing. It's a good thing for everybody. But that is the part that caught me the most off guard. I knew the sport was growing, and I knew the excitement around it, and that's the reason for the investment. But I didn't see that we were going to end up getting pushed to 36th on average at most of the racetracks this quick."
McLeod has plenty of Cup series experience and thought that the team could keep the car around 30th on speed. However, when the Next Gen car came in 2022, the car was pushed even further down the field.
2023 wasn't any better for the team, and hence they sold their charter to Spire for an estimated $40 million.
McLeod is proud he got to accomplish being a car owner in the NASCAR Cup Series, but it's going to be hard for Live Fast to make races in 2024 and beyond without a charter, which has McLeod questioning his future involvement in the sport.
