Well that was an adrenaline-inducing end to the Bass Pro Shops Bristol Night Race this past Saturday (Sept. 19). After contact between Ryan Blaney and Carson Hocevar, Blaney emerged from his crew area and made a beeline right for pit road.
Seconds later, the first fight since Ricky Stenhouse Jr. vs the late Kyle Busch back in 2024 was taking shape at Bristol.
Blaney was immediately restrained by NASCAR security and crew members before trying to get back at Hocevar, who was being held back himself.
The reaction has been immediate and the situation all around has ignited the fanbase. It’s gotten to the point where we want this question answered: Should NASCAR let drivers dictate the terms of any altercations? Thomas Dunn and Christopher Hansen evaluate that on this week’s 2-Headed Monster.
Boys, Have at It … Within Reason
You’ve met an author who will more often than not endorse drivers duking it out on their own, dictating the terms of conflict. Because at the end of the day, they’re the ones who have to answer to team owners about what transpires on track.
There’s no need for big crew members who outsize drivers by a significant amount to potentially injure someone or cause a ruckus that devolves into situations where those who feel wronged are basically powerless. One situation that comes to mind is Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano going at it back at Martinsville Speedway.
With NASCAR’s “Hell Yeah” marketing scheme that’s taken shape this year, it would’ve been lunacy to see all they do to promote the passion of the sport (including past fights which have been fined in commercials/promos!) to only then punish Blaney or Hocevar.
Thankfully, new NASCAR CEO Steve O’Donnell was in a similar frame of mind.
But its not that simple.
As O’Donnell notes, you can’t use your car as a weapon. Right-rear hooks open the can of worms that’ll undoubtedly cause immense chaos in the garage. And when someone throws a punch that sets up the next Jeff Gordon vs. Clint Bowyer?
We’ve got a problem. Because it should never get to that point in the first place.
When you have a racing incident, let them have at it. You’re adults driving at arguably the highest level of motorsports in America. In a sport that’s been recently marred by lack of personality and corporate PR speak, its refreshing to see two guys disagree and do something about it.
This sport wasn’t built on sunshine and rainbows. And it shouldn’t pretend that it’s like that anyway.
What it does need is common sense. If we think back to Bowyer running up to punch a defenseless Ryan Newman, that’s something that deserves scrutiny not only externally but internally.
But when Matt Kenseth had enough of Brad Keselowski at Charlotte Motor Speedway? That’s exactly the type of scenario NASCAR doesn’t need to police. Someone commits a transgression and another party either feels threatened or moved to the point of action? That’s their battle to take care of, until it involves innocent bystanders.
The series has been inching in the right direction when it comes to moves and decisions on the margin. This ruling is another example of it.
Not to invoke another era of “Boys Have at It,” but … let them have at it. Because it’s exactly the type of fervor the sport needs to push things back into the mainstream. – Thomas Dunn
NASCAR Is the Sanctioning Body and Should Act Like it
In any professional sport, whether it’s baseball, basketball, hockey and even racing, emotions can run high, and at times, boil over to the point where physical altercations erupt. In NASCAR, this rings true as 16 drivers battle for the Cup Series title, with a champion now crowned in seven races.
Last weekend at Bristol, Ryan Blaney and Carson Hocevar were racing one another for second in the closing laps when Hocevar attempted to cross underneath Blaney after getting a run off the top of the track as the pair entered turn 1.
Blaney had one of two options: Give a lane to Hocevar or attempt to defend the position, with the latter ending his race.
That didn’t stop Blaney from initiating the fight seen around the sport.
Too often in instances such as this, we’ve seen drivers cross the line of what is acceptable in terms of getting physical with another competitor, which is why officials need to be present before it ever reaches that point.
Fights between drivers aren’t new to NASCAR, but the way that NASCAR itself officiates them have changed over the years in terms of when drivers receive monetary fines or not.
The end result of what Thomas mentioned above between Busch and Stenhouse? A $75,000 fine for Stenhouse with suspensions handed out to several of his crew members as well.
While I agree that drivers should be free to express their emotions from time to time, having officials there to prevent anyone from being seriously injured should be standard practice moving forward. In the case of Blaney and Hocevar, they’re both in the midst of racing for a championship, and like we saw, emotions will boil over.
At the end of the day, what transpired on track between Blaney and Hocevar was a fierce battle that left Blaney infuriated, while Hocevar got off scot-free on track and still had an opportunity at the race win.
There was nothing wrong with what Blaney did in going and confronting Hocevar post-race given the circumstances. However, if this continues to be the norm when drivers take exception to a particular move made by a competitor on track, NASCAR needs to be ready to step in before things take a step too far. – Christopher Hansen
Thomas is in his second year covering NASCAR at Frontstretch. A Bay Area NASCAR fan for over 15+ years, he found his love for the sport through Jeff Gordon. He helps manage the 2-Headed Monster Column.
Thomas has enjoyed several trips to Sonoma Raceway in his time and currently covers college athletics in the Bay Area, writing about the California Golden Bears and doing play by play broadcasting.
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