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#77: Carson Hocevar, Spire Motorsports, Delaware Life Chevrolet at Atlanta

(Photo: Nigel Kinrade Photography)

The Underdog House: The Torch of Aggression Has Been Passed to Carson Hocevar

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Top Dog: Carson Hocevar

Every generation of racers features the conflict of a clean cut, mild-mannered driver up against an aggressive, or villainous, personality.

For every Bill Elliott, there was a Dale Earnhardt. For every Mark Martin, there was an Ernie Irvan. For every Matt Kenseth, there were the Busch brothers. And recently, for every William Byron, there’s been a Ross Chastain.

Now, insert Carson Hocevar, who, despite scoring a career-best runner-up finish at Atlanta Motor Speedway (Feb. 23), ruffled quite a few feathers along the way.

See also
Dropping the Hammer: The Wait for Carson Hocevar

There was no denying the speed in Hocevar’s No. 77 Chevrolet off the grid, as he rocketed from 26th to ninth by the end of stage one to earn two stage points. His opening stage characterized the large bulk of his on-track maneuvers throughout the evening. Slingshot passes, taking drivers three-wide, hold-your-breath blocks, and runs in the middle were just a mix in the bag of moves Hocevar used to sprint to the front.

His actions quickly drew the ire of Kyle Busch, who quickly resorted to the radio after the first stage to unpack his feelings on the sophomore driver, then followed it up post-race.

Controversy or not, Hocevar was able to make bold moves because of the speed and confidence in his car, waters other drivers didn’t want to tread. His momentum carried into stage two, where he earned an additional four stage points by taking the green-and-white checkered flag in seventh.

During the final stage, Hocevar’s aggression came back to bite him, as he got into the back of Ryan Blaney on lap 234, sending the No. 12 for a long spin.

Hocevar didn’t let the incident phase him, continuing to mix it up with the leaders, avoid a crash with eight laps to go, and put himself in position to score his first career win.

On an overtime restart, Hocevar put fellow Chevrolet driver Ross Chastain three-wide, shooting through the middle as the field took the white flag. Hocevar then got a head of steam down the backstretch, allowing him to split leaders Christopher Bell and Kyle Larson in turn 3 to have a shot at the win. However, yellow flashing lights sunk those hopes, as NASCAR called a controversial caution that gave Bell the victory.

Just feet away from his first victory, it was a Jekyll and Hyde sort of race for the 22-year-old, who certainly flexed his strengths, but he also made himself vulnerable to repercussions from his peers.

“There’s a few things I probably need to clean up on,” Hocevar told reporters after the race. “But normally, I’m riding 38th trying to put myself in a decent spot to finish in the teens, so this is really the first time I’ve been up front.”

Pegged by many as a future champion, that transition from battling in the teens to battling with the main players up front is one Hocevar will have to learn as he balances his aggressive nature with gaining the respect of the field.

Notable Underdog Runs

Can we officially call Ricky Stenhouse Jr. “Mr. Superspeedway?” No, he didn’t win, but the four-time superspeedway winner came awfully close, finishing fifth.

While Fords dominated qualifying, Stenhouse was one of several Chevrolets to quickly surge to the front, as the Olive Branch, Miss., native went from 34th to 13th in stage one, then wrapping up stage two in eighth. Stenhouse had a small dust-up when he made contact with Chase Briscoe on lap 149, causing Stenhouse to slip into Chase Elliott, sparking a crash that claimed Brad Keselowski and Corey LaJoie.

Stenhouse dodged a bullet on lap 204 when contact with Chris Buescher cut his tire. Yet, the crash that ensued allowed him to pit under the caution and stay on the lead lap. It wasn’t long before the No. 47 was back in the heat of the battle, avoiding the late-race crashes to bring home his first top five of 2025. Stenhouse has finished in the top 10 in four of the last eight superspeedway races.

“It was an up-and-down day for the No. 47 Chevy team,” Stenhouse said after the race. “We were at the back. We were at the front. We got some stage points. All-in-all, our Martin’s Famous Potato Rolls Chevy was really, really good.”

Backing up his top five in the Daytona 500 a week ago was John Hunter Nemechek, who rounded out the top 10 at Atlanta in 10th. Nemechek flirted with the top 10 for most of the race, collecting stage finishes of 11th and 13th. It was a fairly quiet race for the 27-year-old, if you can call anything quiet from that race. Despite fighting loose-handling conditions at times, Nemechek put his green machine in position at the end to score his second top 10 of the season, already halving his 2024 top-10 total of four.

The sting of having his Daytona 500 cut short was subsided by an 11th-place effort from Zane Smith. Smith put up a solid qualifying effort in seventh, and he could frequently be seen dicing it up, even leading the bottom line at times mid-pack.

Smith had to recover from a lap 183 incident that saw him receive slight damage. You can see Smith’s blue and orange in the midst of the crash footage below.

Fortunately, he was able to recover and finish as the highest Front Row Motorsports car in the final running order.

See also
Monday Morning Pit Box: Michael McDowell Rallies With Quick Repairs, Cautions at Atlanta

Michael McDowell deserves the comeback of the race award. The veteran quickly lost the pack early in the race after suffering power steering issues, briefly forcing him to the garage. McDowell fell six laps behind the lead pack, but with most cars remaining on the lead lap, plus several cautions, the Phoenix, Ariz., native got them back one-by-one.

Finally, the crash on lap 184 got McDowell back on the lead lap, making six free pass earnings tied for the most in a single race. And despite making contact with the wall with 18 laps remaining, the 40-year-old put his experience on display to finish 13th.

“To get all those laps back and have a fighting chance at a top 10 was a good day for sure,” McDowell told Frontstretch. “Proud of everybody’s fire, and it was great to see Carson [Hocevar] up there racing for the win.”

Oddly enough, McDowell is the only driver who has not been involved in an accident in the first two races of the season.

Stat to Chew On

Two races are in the books, and only two drivers have finished in the top 10 in both cases.

One is the points-leading Blaney, who has finished seventh and fourth. The other? None other than Nemechek, whose 10th-place run came on the heels of a fifth-place finish in the Daytona 500.

It will be a tall order for the Legacy Motor Club driver to make it three in a row next week at Circuit of the Americas, as his best road course finish last season was 21st.

Underdog Power Rankings

New to the column this season will be the power rankings of the underdog drivers. This weekly list will feature the top five drivers in the rankings based on performance, finish position, and points position.

1. Carson Hocevar: His full-race speed shined at Atlanta, and while he didn’t avoid adding enemies on the young season, there’s reason to believe he won’t relinquish this position over the year.

2. John Hunter Nemechek: Back-to-back top 10s are a stark contrast from the theme of Nemechek’s dismal 2024 campaign. With momentum on his side to kick off the year, it will be important to maintain it over the coming weeks.

3. Ricky Stenhouse Jr.: One of the top performing underdogs from a year ago, there are plenty of questions remaining about Stenhouse and the rebranded Hyak Motorsports team. Speed in both races so far may silence those questions if Stenhouse is able to maintain this performance.

4. Michael McDowell: McDowell’s rebound at Atlanta followed an 11th-place result in the Daytona 500. An accomplished road racer, there’s a good chance McDowell could ascend to the top spot by this time next week.

5. Todd Gilliland: Also a reliable underdog from 2024, Gilliland’s new role as the most experienced veteran at FRM is off to a quiet start, with finishes of 27th and 15th. He did qualify fifth and lead seven laps at Atlanta, promising signs of what could be in store.

Small Team Scheme of the Week

Are we back in the 2000s again?

Just weeks after Red Bull announced its return to NASCAR sponsorship, another fan favorite sponsor from the same era made its comeback at Atlanta Motor Speedway, with Aaron’s returning to the track.

Known as the “Dream Machine” in its days as a partner with Michael Waltrip Racing, fans saw Aaron’s return aboard Gilliland’s No. 34, marking its first race as a primary in a decade. Featuring the identifiable blue and white colors, along with splashes of green, the return of Aaron’s was fully welcomed among NASCAR fans.

Luken Glover joined the Frontstretch team in 2020 as a contributor, furthering a love for racing that traces back to his earliest memories. Glover inherited his passion for racing from his grandfather, who used to help former NASCAR team owner Junie Donlavey in his Richmond, Va. garage. A 2023 graduate from the University of the Cumberlands, Glover is the author of "The Underdog House," contributes to commentary pieces, and does occasional at-track reporting. Additionally, Glover enjoys working in ministry, coaching basketball, playing sports, and karting.

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Echo

Hocevar is no worse that Stenhouse

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CCColorado

Sorta..ones a Daytona winner the other a crash fest…ok.. both are crashfests! Just because you’re a fast driver doesn’t mean you’re a good one.
I had dissed John Hunter, but he did a excellent job at Atlanta… Hocevar should take notes, being fast upsetting folks only goes so far.

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DoninAjax

Hocevar better be prepared for some payback and it will be interesting how he responds!

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Jonathen

Great article, I always enjoy reading your page. Hocevar is just another in the line like Busch and Chastain. He’ll learn. Cool for the power rankings!

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