Michael McDowell will continue his relationship with crew chief Travis Peterson after the 2024 Cup Series season comes to a close.
According to a press release, Peterson has agreed to a multi-year contract with Spire Motorsports. He will follow McDowell to the No. 71 team at Spire Motorsports and continue a relationship that began at Front Row Motorsports.
Peterson will round out a crew chief lineup. Luke Lambert will continue to work with Carson Hocevar on the No. 77 team while championship-winning crew chief Rodney Childers will take over the No. 7 team and work with a yet-to-be-announced driver.
"It's exciting to have Travis Peterson join Spire Motorsports," said Spire Motorsports president Doug Duchardt in a statement. "The first time Travis and I worked together was when Greg Ives and Travis came to Hendrick Motorsports to be the crew chief and the engineer for the No. 88 car with Dale (Earnhardt) Jr.
"I got to spend time with Travis there as a young engineer and it's exciting to see how he's grown into a leader and a crew chief. He's going to add tremendous depth to our crew chief lineup and be a great compliment to Luke (Lambert) and Rodney (Childers). I'm really excited to see what those three can do together."
Peterson took over the No. 34 team at the start of the 2023 season as Blake Harris moved to Hendrick Motorsports. The former Hendrick and Roush Fenway Racing engineer achieved immediate success with McDowell as they combined for one win, two top-five finishes, and eight top-10s in their first season together.
This season has featured similar consistency, although Peterson and McDowell continue to seek another win that would put them back in the playoffs. The No. 34 team has posted two top-five finishes and six top-10s. McDowell has also won the pole three times.
"There are times when you meet people and you are immediately able to naturally communicate on a real level," Peterson said about McDowell in a press release. "I feel like we were that way from the start. We didn't have to work at it. Our personalities, the way we openly communicate, and our honest nature helped us click from the start. We have no problem talking about hard stuff or easy stuff.
"We can be happy together when we win and be sad together when we lose. There is no red tape. We just work. It's hard to recreate that. Staying together is a huge part in coming to Spire Motorsports for both of us. It's hard to put a value on a driver/crew chief pairing, but there's an intangible there. We just knew it has been working, and if we can keep it going, we're only going to get better over time. That's what we're chasing. We want to continue to grow and get better together."