Michael McDowell did not hide what he thought of Tristan McKee at Watkins Glen. He called the teenager “the real deal” and said McKee could be the driver who eventually takes over the No. 71 car for Spire Motorsports when McDowell retires.
The comment carries weight because McDowell, who turns 42 in December, is still trying to steady his own place in the No. 71 while Spire pushes to become one of the top teams in the Cup Series. McDowell’s last win came at the Verizon 200 at the Brickyard in 2023, and his recent results have slipped from his 2024 season, when he posted seven top-10 finishes, six pole positions and 256 laps led. In 2025, he led 96 laps with six top-10s and two poles, but his average starting position fell to 15.69.
McKee is not yet close to a full-time Cup ride. He does not turn 16 until August, though he has already raced in the ARCA Menards Series and the ARCA Menards Series East. At Watkins Glen in 2025, he became the second-youngest ARCA winner of the year, and two years earlier he became the youngest driver ever to win in the CARS Tour Pro Late Model division. Fox Sports' Bob Pockrass ranked him 14th among the top NASCAR prospects in 2025, a sign that the industry is taking notice even before he is old enough for the next step.
That is the tension in McDowell’s praise. Spire may like the idea of planning ahead for the No. 71, but McKee still needs more wins and more mileage in Truck Series and O'Reilly Auto Parts Series competition before any Cup decision becomes real. Through 11 races in 2026, McDowell sat 23rd in points with 189 points, 18th in average starting position at 19.0 and 24th in average finishing position at 21.5, making him the worst-performing driver at Spire right now. It would not be surprising if the team chose a different driver for the No. 71 next year if McDowell's contract expires after the 2026 season.
