Carson Hocevar entered the Iowa Corn 350 on standout form, qualifying 7th, his best starting position at Iowa Speedway, for Spire Motorsports in the No. 77 Chevrolet. Though he ranked 16th in practice and carried on with even results through the weekend, Carson built momentum early, making steady gains as the field shuffled under frequent caution flags. By mid-race, he had climbed into the top 15, leveraging consistent restarts and smart pit strategy amid the chaotic 12-caution affair to position himself for a strong eighth-place finish.
Trouble struck on lap 229 when Hocevar got loose off Turn 2 and tagged Zane Smith, sending Smith hard into the SAFER barrier. Immediately, Smith’s race went into the gutter; he lost multiple laps and ultimately returned to finish a decimal 36, six laps down. The wreck not only ended Smith’s day but also snapped the momentum from a solid mid-pack run. But what took the cake was the post raised tension. Speaking about Carson’s race, the No. 77 driver said, “Yeah, I felt like our car was pretty good, you know, just kind of stretchy. I don’t know if anybody could have predicted how this race works, you know.” But that is when disaster struck.
After the chaotic race, rage boiled over when Ryan Bergenty, crew chief of Zane Smith, confronted Hocevar in a heated fashion. According to Stephen Stumpf of Frontstretch, the only phrase that could be clearly heard was, “Our car is f—— wrecked because you drive like a f—— r—–.” Contexts and delivery made at one of the most profane list confrontations captured this postseason.
Asked one question before the confrontation started. Video ends when I was told to stop filming. https://t.co/J2IqWG1wRV pic.twitter.com/NEcBia24K3
— Stephen Stumpf (@stephen_stumpf) August 3, 2025
Meanwhile, Zane Smith’s own race fell apart entirely. He started 30th in qualifying, placing behind Carson in their Spire-aligned gear, hoping to grind forward through the pack. Instead, the Hocevar contact derailed any comeback. Smith crossed the line in 36th with huge points implications for his meddling campaign, losing ground yet again in a streak of late race incidents that have stolen potential finishes from him in recent weeks.
The post Carson Hocevar Confronted by Furious Crew Chief in Post Race Drama at Iowa appeared first on EssentiallySports.