After Sunday’s race at Nashville, NASCAR icon Dale Earnhardt Jr. shared his thoughts on Carson Hocevar and his racing shenanigans.
Following an incident on lap 106 where his No. 77 bumped into the back of Ricky Stenhouse Jr.’s No. 47 on his way to finishing in second place, Hocevar continued to irritate some of his Cup Series opponents on Sunday.
The contact sent Stenhouse Jr. skidding into the wall, and because his team was unable to fix the damage, the No. 47 was forced to retire from the race.
Post-race, Stenhouse Jr slammed Hocevar’s move as overaggressive, although when Hocevar spoke to the media, he didn’t share the same opinion.
“I kind of got a run and felt like I was kind of there,” Hocevar explained.
“I felt like I was there enough to get a call [from Stenhouse’s spotter] inside and have him just run the middle.
“Honestly, he probably could have cleared me, so that’s just what I expected him to do. And he didn’t. And by the time I checked up, I almost spun, too.”
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Dale Earnhardt Jr on Carson Hocevar
Reacting to the wreck and those comments, Earnhardt Jr offered his thoughts on Hocevar in general, revealing that whilst he is entertained by him, he still questions some of his actions.
“Well, I hear a guy that doesn’t know that he ran into the back of somebody and wrecked them,” Earnhardt explained on Prime Video’s broadcast.
“Hey, I’ll call it like it is. I like Hocevar a lot. Kid’s awesome. Ran second tonight. I like his attitude, I like his personality, and I like his style. But yeah, I think he could have cut the 47 a break, and he chose not to do that.
“That’s his way that he wants to race. He’s not very apologetic about it. A lot of people are going to love that. A lot of people are going to love how he races and how he does his job.
“From what I saw tonight, I think he probably could have gave Ricky an opportunity there and continued to race. And he’ll have to hear that side from Ricky, and it will be interesting to see how that plays out.”
Later, Earnhardt added: “I like what I see out of Hocevar. As a fan and a broadcaster, it is entertaining.”
“I just don’t like it when he wrecks the good guy, you know? I know Stenhouse has had his issues, too, but you kinda gotta pick and choose who your enemies are, and you can’t just kind of blanket the garage, right?
As a fan, it’s fantastic to see him in controversy, so I’m not sure if I want him to turn it off or back on. He provides us with a great deal of the colour and personality we require.
“But the garage kind of will police it a little bit. Regarding your point, Corey [LaJoie], I believe he may have messed with the wrong guy tonight, but no one has actually approached him yet.
