Shane van Gisbergen isn’t having the best of NASCAR weekend racing at the Charlotte Roval. Unable to grab a win in the Xfinity Series race and drop out of the playoffs, SVG was looking forward to the Cup Series event to make amends and get back into victory lane.

Having dodged the big ones and kept his nose clean, the Kiwi speedster was trying to make gains in the final stage run. Like the Xfinity Series race, he made the most of the Turn 7 exit to advance further up the field. However, only this time around, Spire Motorsports driver Carson Hocevar rammed into the back of the #13 Kaulig Racing Chevy.

Hocevar perhaps pulled out more than just a bump and run as Shane van Gisbergen was sent spinning on the corner exit. The Spire Motorsports driver had no pressure on his car, and therefore his move to dump SVG quickly became a talking point. Was he too aggressive in his move to get the better of SVG? Or did his lack of experience force him into making the mistake?

Fans certainly weren’t having any of the excuses and pinned the blame on the rookie driver for spoiling SVG’s day. Many even highlighted how he’s had a reputation for causing the ruckus in the past, and today’s event further highlighted that aspect of his racing style.

Carson Hocevar reprimanded by the fans for wrecking Shane van Gisbergen

The rookie Spire Motorsports driver has shown sparks of brilliance this season. He has four top-10 finishes, and recently he registered his best finish (P3) at Watkins Glen. People were starting to take notice of his steady rise at the Cup and appreciated his learning through his first full-time season. But his antics and decision-making at Roval have left fans confused. “Hocevar is such a menace sometimes… just as I was starting to like the kid, lol.”

This wasn’t the first instance of Carson Hocevar running through a fellow Cup driver on the racetrack. Earlier in the season at Nashville Superspeedway, he deliberately banged into Harrison Burton, causing him to spin across the track. This incident wasn’t even race-related, as it happened under caution. NASCAR dropped the hammer on the young driver with a fine of $50,000 and 25 docked points. “I want to like Hocevar, but he races like an a–.”

Hocervar’s peers, especially at the Truck Series level, know all about his antics and how he constantly played with fire in racing his opponents. Corey Heim fell prey to his games, and his retaliation cost him a fine of $12,500 during the 2023 season at Phoenix. Heim also incurred a penalty of 25 points, which proved detrimental to his title hopes. “He’ll wreck you and apologize, and then he’ll do it again the next week.” This is how Heim described Hocevar, and today’s event has got this fan convinced that he is indeed back to his usual self. “Hocevar back to his old self today.”

Talking about racing etiquette, he felt he was on the receiving end of the stick during the playoff race at Kansas Speedway. With 24 to go in the race, the #77 was unable to check up after running into the #14 of Briscoe. Todd Gilliland, who was charging in the top lane, ran into the #77 and brought out the caution. Fuming by the treatment he received by the SHR driver, he let his team know who caused the wreck. “I didn’t hit anything. Just Chase Briscoe f–king sucks.” Now that the roles are reversed, this fan was quick to highlight that he hasn’t earned enough respect to call out seasoned drivers. “Hocevar has no right to talk about Briscoe’s aggression.”

There’s always a fine line between going overboard and racing hard. In Hocevar’s case, he’s got a track record of racing the way he did today. The only difference is that his slide job on Shane van Gisbergen was captured on camera. Taking a dig at the young driver, this fan added, “Hocevar is one of the dumbest drivers we’ve seen in years. Talented, but f–k is he stupid.”

Wrecking and crashing certainly isn’t the best practice to stay afloat at the Cup level. Especially for a rookie driver, who’s only learning the tricks of the trade against the best stock car drivers of the country.