Cup Star Shockingly Content With $26 Despite Getting “Totally Duped” by Unethical Campaign

For the 2024 All-Star fan vote, the Cup Series rookies are pulling out all the stops. But no driver has put in as much effort as Carson Hocevar. The #77 Spire Motorsports driver took the NASCAR community by storm after he revealed his witty All-Star fan vote campaign. Using clips he obtained through the Cameo platform, Hocevar managed to get other drivers such as Austin Dillon, Anthony Alfredo, and Kaz Grala to share their support for “Carson”.

Whilst you’d think such tactics wouldn’t go down well with the competition, the other drivers clearly had fun with Hocevar’s heroics, too. Seemingly, the Cameo campaign turned out to be a win-win situation. After Austin Dillon bought lunch with the Cameo money, Kaz Grala also revealed a similar fate for his ‘earnings’.

Kaz Grala made the most of Carson Hocevar’s Cameo payment

A few weeks ago, fans found out about Carson Hocevar’s deceptive All-Star fan vote campaign. The #77 Spire Motorsports driver had anonymously requested his competition to make a Cameo video, sharing their support for a man named ‘Carson’. With the drivers not knowing that it was their competitor that they were vouching for, even if the Spire driver won the fan vote, many believed he certainly wouldn’t win any brownie points with his fellow drivers.

On the Dale Jr Download, the Dirty Mo Media hosts sat down with some of the top contenders for the All-Star fan vote one last time. This is when Carson Hocevar revealed that he had spent a “couple hundred bucks” out of his pocket to cover the Cameo costs. Citing that he hadn’t used fans’ money, Hocevar highlighted that the other drivers didn’t get the short end of the stick as Austin Dillon was able to buy lunch.

Fast-forward to Grala’s turn, and the rookie confirmed Hocevar’s statement. Despite stating that he had ‘major trust issues’ earlier, Grala had a change of heart once the payment rolled in. When asked if he was okay with the Spire driver’s deceptive strategy, Grala had nothing but praise. He shared on DJD, “Well, you know, I’m okay with it, because it did catapult my campaign budget from $0 to $26 via Cameo so, for me, I think it was all positive.” For Kaz Grala, Hocevar’s investment turned out to be a rather helpful asset.

Instead of feeling cheated for his support, Grala shared how the money was put toward good use. The part-time Front Row Motorsports driver stated, “It might’ve gone towards dinner at some point, filled up the bank account a little bit. But I thought it was actually really funny. He got some props for that on my end. I had no idea. I got totally duped.”

Kaz Grala’s humble and positive attitude may itself bring him some much-needed fan votes. Even so, Grala’s campaign isn’t one to overlook either. As a part-time rookie, Grala is eager to make the most of every opportunity he gets this season. This is why entering the All-Star Race and winning the $1 million could change his fortunes for the 2024 season and beyond.

Kaz Grala looks at the All-Star Race as an ‘investment’

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As a 25-year-old rookie, Kaz Grala doesn’t have the privilege of major backing like the rising star Connor Zilisch. Whilst the young Trackhouse prodigy is thrown into different categories seemingly every weekend, drivers like Kaz Grala need to make a way forward for themselves. And with the All-Star Race promising life-changing money, Grala believes the reward could end up fast-tracking his Cup Series career. So what would Kaz Grala do with the million-dollar prize?

The Boston native shared on the DJD, “That would be tough. That would be a tough decision. But you know, for a guy in my position right now, I’d probably put it back towards racing. Because if I was full-time, maybe I wouldn’t have anywhere to put it yet. But a million dollars can get me another few races this year and I could use them. So if I got into the All-Star Race and won the All-Star Race, I’d probably pick up even more races from there. It’s an investment.”

So far this season, Kaz Grala hasn’t had the best runs with a dearth of a Top-10 or Top-5 in his current Cup campaign. And with time in his part-time campaign running out, the All-Star rave could be his saving grace. After all, any additional running time in these Next-Gen cars with every evolving complexities would be greatly beneficial. Whilst drivers such as Carson Hocevar and Noah Gragson have a full-time seats, winning the All-Star Race could help Kaz Grala secure one for next season.

But with the All-Star Open still a possibility and the fan vote still running, can Grala be the one that sidelines some of the top contenders?