“It’s a little weird for me”: Carson Hocevar dismisses apologies in NASCAR as ‘pony show’

Carson Hocevar appreciated the fact that Josh Berry attempted to reach out to him following an on-track incident at Sonoma last week. However, it’s not that he was eagerly waiting for an apology. Rubbing is racing, and the Spire Motorsports driver knows that.

During last Sunday’s Toyota/Save Mart 350 Cup Series race at the 2.52-mile street circuit in California, Berry bumped Hocevar’s No. 77 Chevy, sending him spinning through the grass. As a result, Hocevar had to settle for a disappointing P32 finish.

Recalling his run-in with the Wood Brothers Racing driver at Sonoma, Hocevar told the reporters at Dover Motor Speedway,

“I mean, it’s just racing. I mean, sometimes, you know, stuff happens. We’re all in the limit of everything of all people, right? I’m on the limit of everything. So, yeah, it doesn’t bother me.” “Because, even if you do it intentionally or not, you’re never going to say that to the person So, it just kind of just becomes a pony show a little bit. So, you know, if I don’t like it … it’s a little weird for me. I’ve never been on this side of it, but yeah. I’m just kind of just going through the actions of it," he further explained.

Hocevar had never been on the receiving side of it, so perhaps he’s not sure about how to react to Berry’s apology. To him, it’s all a part of the sport. So it’s unlikely that the driver holds any grudge against Berry.

Carson Hocevar is now ahead of his 21st race of the season at Dover. Named the AutoTrader EchoPark Automotive 400, the 400-lap event has been scheduled for Sunday, July 20. The 22-year-old speedster will start the race from P33 alongside Hyak Motorsports driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. on Row 17.

Fans can watch Hocevar live on TNT Sports, 2 pm ET onwards, or listen to exclusive radio coverage on PRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

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Carson Hocevar reacts to his comments about Mexico City that led to a $50K fine

Carson Hocevar received quite the backlash after his controversial comments about Mexico City on a livestream. He was also handed a fine of $50,000 by his team. Notably, this happened after this year’s NASCAR Cup Series race at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.

Speaking with the reporters during a pre-race media availability at Pocono Raceway, Hocevar said,

“The issue wasn't for the team having their kind of frustrations, not that I'm giving my opinion and putting it out there. It's just the fact that, you know, my opinion wasn't my opinion. It was just based off everybody else, you know, that I've heard or seen, right? I didn't go do my own homework and voice my own opinion.”

Nevertheless, Carson Hocevar had to pay the fine, which was distributed equally among three non-profit organizations that serve Mexican communities, namely, the Cruz Roja Mexicana (Mexican Red Cross), the Un Kilo de Ayuda, and the Fondo Unido México. Hocevar also needed to undergo a cultural-sensitivity and bias-awareness training.

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Edited by Anisha Chatterjee