“I’m over him. … I’m going to wreck his a–.” Kyle Busch wasn’t mincing any words when it came to Carson Hocevar’s antics. The #77 rattled the cages last weekend, and he remained unapologetic about it. “I had to be aggressive and make some drivers uncomfortable,” he justified, much to everyone’s disappointment. But was Hocevar right? Was going aggressive the only route he could take? There’s one person who agrees.

Toby Christie came to his defense like a guardian angel. Speaking about Hocevar’s on-track actions, Christie said, “Yeah, he was pretty defiant on it too. When people were kind of questioning him and pressing him on it. I mean, and to his right, that’s what you’re there for, right? I mean, you can say everything else you want, but how are you going to fault the guy for trying to go for a win? So, I think ultimately, in the long run, that will play better for his team, that he was trying to win a race, and I think it will play better for his sponsors, that he was trying to win a race.” 

True to his guns, Hocevar didn’t regret his actions. “I’m not sure who we 100% hit, other than just, you know, just filling really tight holes and pinch and aero-block and play offense and defense, right? And this car rewards being aggressive. I mean, obviously, we had a shot to win the race, and I was, I think, the most aggressive. So the end result means, you know, if you play aggressively and you have a really fast car, you can take advantage of being aggressive.” 

Looking back at the race, what unfolded in lap 234 was a simple case of going for the gap. Hocevar had speed and while chasing Blaney, he saw a gap opening up. Blaney first turned his car onto the inside line, suddenly switching to the outside right when Hocevar’s #77 was moving across. It wasn’t Hocevar playing bumper cars, but a pure racing incident. Throughout the race, Hocevar took his competitive spirit up to a notch when he competed with Ross Chastain for the pole position even though Christopher Bell won in extra time. People expected him to mend his ways after similar antics with him spinning Harrison Burton under caution during the June Nashville Cup Series race saw him get fined $50,000 and 25 points.

Even Ryan Blaney, after spinning out due to the incident, knew how it all unfolded. “I wasn’t slowing. He was drafting to me, and he didn’t lift and just gave me a shot when I’m turning into one and it spun me out,” Blaney said. “I was just happy I didn’t hook a right back into everybody and was able to stay on the apron.” 

Christie also opined, “Some of their competitors might be a little upset, but at the end of the day, he did what he needed to do. He might have moved a couple of guys out of the way, or put them in a bad spot for a minute, but nobody really crashed hard as a result of something Carson Hocevar did. And I think ultimately, that will do the thing at the end of the day. When people take time to think about what really happened on Sunday, they’ll be like, you know what, we didn’t crash out because of him, so why are we that mad?”

Even though Kyle Busch must be feeling frustrated right now he needs to remember Hocevar is a reminder of his pre-family version. He can go out of his way to try to guide him about the same things he once was accused of and try to be a role model for the 2024 Rookie of the Year.

Hocevar’s apology is debunked by veteran

Carson Hocevar found himself crowded around his No.77 car after the race. Some were even expecting an apology from him. But keeping Hocevar’s outlook in mind, it seemed unlikely. But it did happen not for the ones he wrecked but for someone who got caught because of it. He said, “First off, apologies to Larson and HMS, Mr. H — they help us out a lot. And I didn’t realize that we weren’t racing back to the line. The last two nights were kind of that way, and I hit the 20 to get him out of the way and fill the middle. You know, a little bit longer, and maybe we would win the race,”

Only time will tell how sincere he was with his public catharsis. “I think he was apologizing to them because he didn’t help them at the end,” Dale Earnhardt Jr. suggested on the Dale Jr. Download. “I don’t think he was saying, ‘Hey, I’m sorry, Rick, for being a menace on the racetrack today.’ I think he was literally apologizing for a very specific choice he made that he thinks they might not have agreed with.”

“I only think that he was apologizing to them for not pushing Larson to the win and being selfish and going for it himself,” Earnhardt said. “And I think Rick would say, ‘Dude, you go for the win. I appreciate the sentiment, but go for the win.’” Junior’s comments might be a cheeky indication of the fact that how new racers might need to keep a jovial relationship with already established powerhouses with possibilities of future collaborations in mind.

Despite the controversy, Earnhardt sees Hocevar’s rise as an undeniable asset to Spire Motorsports. The kid might also be able to bring back the age-old aggression of his father “The Intimidator” itself and give NASCAR the boost it’s been waiting for.