“He does dumb s**t all the time,” an exasperated Ryan Blaney vented after the Brickyard 400. As if getting beaten by Kyle Larson for the lead wasn’t frustrating enough, a mid-race wreck had Blaney fuming. The culprit? Carson Hocevar, who caused the mess and drew ire from Blaney and his competitors. Hocevar’s rowdy reputation continues, but Kevin Harvick recently suggested it might be time for him to change.

Causing a ruckus in NASCAR’s top series during your rookie year can be a red flag. And, it’s clear the penalty didn’t make much of a dent. Instead of piling on like his rivals, Harvick took a different approach—he felt sympathy for Hocevar’s desperate situation.

Kevin Harvick shows concern for edgy rookie

Ever since he entered NASCAR in 2019, Carson Hocevar has been on a rough edge. He even called aggression his secret weapon, something that makes him feel “really comfortable.” However, the downside of this has been obvious—his peers are getting fed up with him. Dale Earnhardt Jr. ranked him as one of the “s**t-stirrers” of NASCAR along with Ross Chastain.

Then Hocevar spinning out Harrison Burton under caution at Nashville drew widespread criticism. Recently, Noah Gragson felt absolutely at his wit’s end after being a part of Hocevar’s mid-race stunts in Indianapolis. So all this has led Kevin Harvick to direct a pitiful eye toward Hocevar. The lap 110 wreck at the Brickyard 400 race saw Hocevar clipping Blaney, who took out Jimmie Johnson and Joey Logano.

Kevin Harvick analyzed the incident on ‘Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour‘ where he said, Hocevar kind of poked his nose in the middle. Then he had Blaney on the outside that just came down the racetrack…I don’t remember who was on the inside but they caused the crash. When Blaney got turned to the left, it actually hooked the right rear of Jimmie Johnson which hooked the left rear of Joey Logano. And all those guys wound up in the fence.”

Initially, Harvick espoused the belief that Hocevar was in the clear. “When you look right here, I don’t think Hocevar’s doing anything wrong. He is clearly in the middle of the racetrack and the 12 comes down on him.”

Yet Kevin Harvick believes that drivers are set to default whenever Carson Hocevar is involved. Thus the rookie is in a bad state in terms of reputation, and Harvick feels for him. “But you hear so many guys talk about Hocevar and how frustrated they are with the way that he races and the things that he does. It just seems like it’s always gonna be his fault at this particular point…I’ve been through spells of times like that.” 

Harvick further emphasized Hocevar’s need to hone himself. With time, the Spire Motorsports rookie would gain the maturity to take wise decisions on the racetrack. Knowing when to spin a guy and when not to becomes primarily important. Kevin Harvick himself was known for a rowdy side—remember his infamous scuffle with Greg Biffle in 2002? The veteran added some words of advice for the rookie: “He’s definitely gonna have to learn the Cup style of racing – it’s much rougher than it used to be, and you gotta air to the aggressive side.”

However, aside from his wrecking attitude, Carson Hocevar’s racing ability draws no doubt. The foremost evidence of that lies in his rivaling his own teammates and also Harvick’s successor.

Hocevar still outshines his peers

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Two drivers are jostling for the Cup Rookie of the Year award. But one of them has an edge over the other—Carson Hocevar has performed beyond his years. Of course, Josh Berry, Kevin Harvick’s successor at Stewart-Haas Racing, has notched impressive results—two podium finishes and two top-ten results. He is 33 years old and has a long resume of experience in late models and NASCAR. On the other hand, Hocevar is only 21 and jumped from the Craftsman Truck Series to Cup last year. He has already soared above his senior teammate, Corey LaJoie.

Hence Kevin Harvick holds immense hopes for the Spire Motorsports’ driver. After notching a P14 finish at Iowa Speedway, Harvick appreciated Hocevar’s fast progress. “The thing I like about Carson Hocevar is, he’s learning and finishing. He’s not spinning out and driving over his head, which I think a lot of people thought he was going to do, me being one of them, on much more of an occasion than he has. He’s done a great job, in kind of tempering his speed, with making sure that the car is going in the right direction, and finishing races. He’s consistently positioning himself inside the top 15 now.” Accordingly, Hocevar finished in commendable 12th place in Indianapolis as well.

However, presently, Hocevar’s chaotic reputation precedes his winning one. So as Harvick emphasized, the rookie needs to work on his respect among peers and race cleaner.