In NASCAR, every lap has the potential to stir up a storm in the garage, and lately, Dale Earnhardt Jr. has had his eye on one driver in particular: Carson Hocevar. The rookie’s debut season has been anything but quiet. With an intimidator-style approach, Hocevar has kept himself front and center week after week. From bold overtakes to door-to-door skirmishes, Hocevar has quickly become one of the most talked-about names in the sport. But after his latest on-track run-in, even some of his biggest supporters are starting to wonder if he’s crossing the line.
This time, Hocevar’s target, or, depending on your view, his opponent, was Michael McDowell. The clash at Watkins Glen produced as many social media replays as it did puzzled looks from the garage. On Lap 52, while battling for position, McDowell got into the right rear of Carson Hocevar’s No. 77 in Turn 1, sending him spinning.
What followed was pure racing theater. Hocevar clawed his way back without the benefit of a caution and, on the final lap, delivered a payback shot, slamming McDowell hard for 18th place at the line. The two cars crossed the finish still trading blows, but it was Hocevar’s post-flag lunge and his curt radio order “do not let him near me” that told the real story of simmering tension.
The incident lit up pit road chatter, filled airwaves in media circles, and dominated NASCAR podcasts. And while the jury’s still out on whether Hocevar’s style is just hard racing or something more, Dale Jr. has already weighed in, with a verdict that’s as direct as it is telling.
Junior and TJ Majors discussed the McDowell clash on the Dale Jr. Download, where the former zeroed in on what he believes is the root of the problem: no one in Hocevar’s own camp is stepping in.
“Until his crew chief or his owners outright go, ‘Carson… come on man, stop it,’ he’s not gonna make the adjustments… I don’t think they see a problem with it.” Further giving a benefit of doubt to the Carson Hocevar’s team that they don’t think he’s doing anything wrong, Dale Jr. exclaimed, “I don’t think they see a problem with messing with you. Until I see evidence that they had… they don’t like doing that, you know?”
And, that’s not the only case, Hocevar has been involved in high-visibility tussles: a run-in with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. that left tempers flaring on pit road; contact with Austin Dillon that triggered a multi-car pileup; and a particularly bitter exchange with Zane Smith after an on-track spin, which escalated to Smith’s crew confronting Hocevar in the garage area. The through line? Hocevar rarely backs down. And, maybe Dale Earnhardt Jr. knows these patterns well.
Another notable remark was how retaliation attempts by others haven’t stuck, notably Zane Smith “trying to put him on casters,” a racer’s way of saying sidelining a driver through aggressive payback. But Hocevar remains undeterred.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. is waiting for more on the Carson Hocevar saga, and says he’s “entertained,” but also suggested that this particular dust‑up might push Hocevar’s team toward hard conversations, especially if his next move crosses the internal red line: damaging equipment within his stable. But before that, let’s look at the harsh exchange.
Back and forth from the Watkins Glen
Watkins Glen turned into another volatile weekend for Carson Hocevar, showcasing the blend of emotion and intensity that has marked much of his 2025 season. The drama began even before the Sunday race, as tensions flared during qualifying, spotlighting Hocevar’s confrontation with veteran Brad Keselowski.
It began when Hocevar felt that veteran Brad Keselowski had impeded his run. Frustrated, the rookie slowed intentionally in front of Keselowski during the latter’s flying lap, a move that triggered a brief but heated pit road confrontation.
Hocevar: “emotions, not malice.” And, Keselowski didn’t see it the same way.
Keselowski: “On the track, I was just trying to get out of Carson’s way, but then Carson thought I had blocked him.”
But that was only the prologue. Once the green flag waved on Sunday, the drama hit another level with Hocevar and teammate Michael McDowell’s tangle. As the cooldown lap began, Hocevar’s radio crackled with this call for calm, “Let him go, let him go, let him go, be done with it,” Hocevar’s team told him. “We’ll talk about it when we get out of the car.”
However, Hocevar, in his post-race media interaction, had a different mindset: “I don’t want to talk to him, look at him, do not let him near me. No, we haven’t talked or whatever. He wanted to sit down and talk at Richmond. I’m gone racing, and he’s gone as well. Maybe it’s the best-case scenario that we’re both gone.”
“It didn’t seem like that big of a deal to me. Either he made a mistake, or he misjudged, and you know obviously turned me. Then, we were just fighting for the last lap and last corner. Felt like that was plenty okay to do, considering the contact, that I could play defense for one corner to try to get the spot.”
Meanwhile, McDowell was calmer and considerate, saying, “I’m easygoing, and you all have seen I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my career. So, I don’t ever get sideways when somebody comes up and says, ‘Hey, I misjudged that, made a mistake. If he wants to have a conversation, sure, no problem… We’ll just have that conversation.” But McDowell also didn’t hide his frustration when he said, “The thing that leaves me a little bit frustrated right now is they kept running into me and then I got crashed.”
So, whether battling Keselowski’s experienced frustration in qualifying or engaging in physical racing with McDowell on his team, Hocevar did provoke some reactions that have now fueled a new debate. What are your opinions?
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