Friday’s NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Grand Finale proved to be a bigger slugfest than the Xfinity Series Championship run the following day. The major highlight of that unruliness came with barely 30 laps remaining in the 150-lap-long race, and that too, from the hands of Niece Motorsports driver Carson Hocevar.

Corey Heim was the victim. But he chose to retaliate. During the closing laps of the Lucas Oil 150, Heim hit Hocevar back and sent the #42 into the wall. Unfortunately, the revenge proved to be costly for Corey Heim too, as both he and Hocevar crashed out of the race. The incident has been a major point of conversation in the NASCAR community as even Cup drivers barged in and vehemently dissected this hullabaloo.

Chris Buescher shed light on the real nature of the Truck Series amid criticism from Cup drivers

Denny Hamlin reflected on the incident, saying, “This is what happens when there’s no rules, no officiating. You get a product like this. ‘The show’ has taken over US Motorsports and why it’s hard to take seriously.” On that note, Tyler Reddick called Carson Hocevar a “dumbass”. Even Chase Briscoe joked, saying that the only commotion missing in the race was race-winner Ben Rhodes blowing off his tires and pulling off an infamous move.

While a majority of the drivers were busy slamming Carson Hocevar, RFK Racing driver Chris Buescher chose to be different. It’s said that when a rookie ushers into the arena of NASCAR, he is first inducted into the Truck Series, and then, as they gain experience, they move up to the Xfinity and ultimately, the Cup Series. So, it’s natural for anyone to think that the Truck Series would feature the easiest level of racing. However, it’s not so.

Buescher said, “It’s not a learning series. It is a feeder series, but it is one of the top levels of motorsports in the country. It should look like it.” According to the #17 Ford icon, “knee-jerk” reactions like these are common in all three of NASCAR’s top-tier series. Even the local series are no exception. “It’s certainly a mentality change and it’s just frustrating watching stuff happen that affects a lot more people than someone who is upset that they got bumped at one point,” he added, embarrassed about the nature of the NASCAR racing series.

For Buescher, it wasn’t anything out of normal. Being the ultimate decisive race of the season, and just one winner’s seat he had expected the drivers to go all in. Although he did acknowledge that Heim has enough reasons to be mad, Buescher did not point fingers at Hocevar. He admitted, “I don’t wanna feel like I’m picking on anyone in person because like I said, I’ve seen this a lot and we’re seeing it more and more across all forms of motorsports.”

Watch this story: NASCAR Imposes Heavy Penalties on Josh Berry and Six Other Drivers in Xfinity Series

For Carson Hocevar, what bugged him more than his reputation of wrecking his competitors was the fact that it was for him that Corey Heim missed his shot at the title.

Carson Hocevar sees the trouble ahead of him

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Carson Hocevar felt like the payback was quite justified provided that he had hit Heim several times before. As reported by NBC Sports, Hocevar breathed regret as he said, “He should win the championship, man. He should win. I didn’t want to do that at all.”

However, Heim was not in the mood to accept apologies after he was hurled back to a disappointing 18th-place finish. He didin’t mince any words bashing Hocevar and said, “He’ll wreck you and apologize and then he’ll do it again. It’s not going to be the last time he does it. Certainly not the first time he’s done it. I’ve known him for a long time.”

Besides the times that Hocevar has been involved in other on-track skirmishes, fans would surely remember the time when NASCAR held Hocevar for two laps during the Martinsville race in spring when he had attempted to wreck Taylor Gray. Still, Hocevar argued that the intention of wrecking someone never crosses his mind.

“My track record, it’s going to kill me,” said Hocevar said, “I can’t sit here and say I didn’t mean to. I was just trying really hard. I was blocking and doing everything I could. I just tried to slow him up and messed up.”

“I’m just more mad right now that I cost (Heim) a chance at the championship. I don’t care about the reputation. I just feel bad that I robbed them of that,” he added.

For a sport that demands wrecks and contacts, Carson Hocevar seems to have picked up on its most significant nuance. Do you think Carson Hocevar’s move was unintentional? Let us know in the comments below!

Read more: Carson Hocevar’s Championship Chase Cut Short As Corey Heim Retaliation Wipes Out Upcoming Spire Motorsports Star