Partaking in races and bringing in the results are two different things. While race car drivers must follow rules to maintain the safety of all fellow drivers, they often need to take risks to get ahead. That’s the kind of approach that Corey LaJoie’s rookie teammate at Spire Motorsports, Carson Hocevar, follows.

His head is in the game and he does what needs to be done when the stakes are high. This #77 driver for Spire Motorsports is running his rookie season in the NASCAR Cup Series. But he has had a promising run throughout the season, with his latest eight finish at the Richmond Raceway.

What are the odds for Corey LaJoie’s aggressive counterpart in Michigan?

Dirty Mo Media’s Alex ‘Tampa Timms’ Timms has given Carson Hocevar the 4-1 odds to bring home a top-10 finish at the Michigan Raceway this weekend. This means there’s a 20% chance that Hocevar will be in the top 10 to take the checkered flag. These are tough odds, but at least have a hope that currently lacks from Corey LaJoie‘s expectation. The last race at Richmond was finished at 34th by LaJoie, as against 8th finish by Hocevar.

“I would much rather have somebody going forward with the chance of contact than a guy that’s just absolutely bleeding positions and you just hope it doesn’t go too far. I mean, he has a little bit of the ‘IT’ factor,” Steve Letarte said, praising Hocevar on the Dirty Mo Media show. Once crew chief to Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr, Letarte drew parallels between Hocevar and LaJoie’s performances at Richmond.

Carson has three top-10s this season in the Cup Series, but across the series, the driver has 33 top-10s and four wins in all. He is known for being a notorious driver who intentionally gets into crashes. But the young driver needs to mend his old habits to be taken as a serious contender in the top series. “And I think you know in late restarts he can either find you that top-10 or run into somebody because that’s how he goes,” said Letarte.

While Hocevar has been getting the finishes out of his car’s raw speed, he is quite impulsive when it comes to jumping positions. Some caution does more good than harm. That said, he has all the potential to get besides the best drivers in the race. Letarte explained, “Now, sometimes the dart has a couple less feathers than it should have on it as it’s going through traffic. But I think that’s youth.”

All the effort that Hocevar puts into the races will multiply once he starts racing like a professional. Currently, he runs like a wild horse, untamed and unabashed. With some decorum and sincerity, he can make it really big in NASCAR. “You just let experience come to him a little bit. But it’s hard to match that ‘Just Go’ pedal right like he, those aren’t calculated things is my point right,” remarked Letarte on Hocevar’s crude talent.

The recent penalty might have taught some lessons to the rookie driver

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Carson Hocevar’s last year Truck Series finale had many fans booing him for the mess that stripped Corey Heim of his race. The 21-year-old driver debuted the Cup Series this season with a similar racing style nonetheless and has been facing backlash for his racecraft.

During the Ally 400 at Nashville Superspeedway, Hocevar ran into Harrison Burton causing a great deal of resentment among the NASCAR world including drivers like Ryan Blaney. While Carson ended up 15th to the finish line, he forced Burton to finish at 25th. NASCAR later slapped Hocevar with a $50,000 fine and a loss of 25 points from driver standings.

These rulings from NASCAR are tangible lessons that drivers can build their careers upon. It is believed by everyone in the fraternity that Hocevar can become one of the biggest names in racing if only he tames himself worthy of such success. But the young driver is humble off the racetracks, as he acknowledges that playoffs are a fry cry for the team this season. “He’s still pushing the issue. I kind of like that in a racecar driver,” asserted Letarte.

Do you think Carson Hocevar can beat the odds for a top-10 finish at Michigan?