“(He) just seems to be proving me right over and over again.” Ryan Preece did not mince his words last weekend. The RFK Racing driver encountered Carson Hocevar back in 2022, when the two wrecked in a battle to win a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race. In 2025, both are in the Cup Series, and Hocevar again managed to tick off Preece in a controversial wreck. However, the latter let a meaningful discussion soothe their tensions.

Usually, Carson Hocevar is unapologetic for his actions. Earlier this year at Atlanta Motor Speedway, the Spire Motorsports sophomore driver raced multiple drivers aggressively, and yet shrugged about it later on. “We’re here to win races, not be a boy band,” is what Hocevar said after a career-high P2 at Atlanta. After Texas, however, Hocevar expressed regret – and his rival accepted accordingly.

A NASCAR conflict fizzles out somewhat

Well, the history of clashes in NASCAR is too dense. From Dale Earnhardt’s on-track conflict with Terry Labonte to Kyle Busch’s hot-and-cold relationship with Kevin Harvick, heated animosity between drivers is far too common. Ryan Preece declared after Texas that Carson Hocevar “has no respect for his equipment, anybody else’s equipment, and any other driver out there.” But what is uncommon is a healthy conversation immediately afterward.

Hocevar did just that after he derailed Preece’s No. 60 Ford from a possible top-five finish. He reached out to Preece mid-week and made sure to explain his stance. Hocevar explained that just after passing Chris Buescher, his No. 77 Chevrolet began pushing toward the outer wall. As its handling got tight, Hocevar ended up squeezing Preece’s No. 60 to the SAFER barrier, and then the latter was struck by a spinning Cody Ware.

This explanation seemed to appease Ryan Preece, who shared his comments with journalist Bob Pockrass. The RFK Racing driver was close to recovering from a disastrous 33rd start by running 4th, but it all came undone after Hocevar’s antics. Despite this situation, Preece listened to Hocevar’s explanations in a measured tone. “What he did is he explained what happened, what he was hearing, and why he made the decisions he made. Then I tried to give him a different perspective of what I would have done if I was in his situation. You know, it’s up to him to choose whether he’s going to put himself and myself or another racer in those type of positions.”

Carson Hocevar has been at the core of controversy several times now. From wrecking Corey Heim in the 2023 NASCAR Truck Series championship to intentionally spinning out Harrison Burton at Daytona last year, the sophomore driver can hardly get enough of ruffling feathers. Even amidst this storm, Preece wished him the best: “I think with the intentions and him coming over, hopefully, that’s the case. And I hope moving forward, you don’t hear him in controversy.”

However, Preece had something more to add, pressurizing Hocevar to not just show it in words, but in actions as well. He said, “Conversations are conversations. Actions really are what you can… base off what you can and cannot do around people. My hope is yes, but actions are what determine that.” Empty promises aren’t worth much, and Preece is hoping Hocevar’s isn’t one of them. With a fiery driving style at a track where mashing the gas will be the norm, it will be interesting to see how Hocevar approaches this race.

Now, after defusing this tense situation, Carson Hocevar can focus on his next race. And his confidence is on point for Kansas.

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Heading into the weekend boldly

NASCAR is going to one of its best tracks this weekend. Kansas Speedway, a 1.5-mile intermediate track, is where the Next-Gen car performs at its best. So, drivers are gearing up to make the best out of the venue’s advantages, including Carson Hocevar. The Spire Motorsports driver has enrolled in two races for that purpose – Saturday night’s Heart of Health Care 200 and Sunday’s Advent Health 400.

Hocevar has been one of four drivers in the Craftsman Truck Series field who have finished second at Kansas but have never won. In the Cup Series, Hocevar’s best finish has been 20th when he subbed in a Legacy Motor Club car in 2023. Fast forward to September 2024, the Spire driver qualified well and started 14th. However, his momentum sputtered due to on-track trouble, and he finished 32nd.

So, ahead of NASCAR’s fresh venture to Kansas, Carson Hocevar feels confident. That is especially after a pole-winning start at another 1.5-mile, Texas Motor Speedway. He expects the Texas sparkle to continue as he said in a pre-race interview: “Yeah, I think our cars are fast. I think our car, or my car specifically, has been really fast in the race, too. Last year was if we qualified good, we were, for some reason, not very good in the race. If we didn’t qualify good, for some reason, we were good in the race. Being able to translate that, I think, is really important.”

Evidently, Ryan Preece’s good wishes may go a long way to work out for Carson Hocevar. As the Kansas festivities roll around, let us see how Carson Hocevar performs.