Another week of NASCAR Cup Series action is in the books, and it's another week in which all anybody is talking about is Carson Hocevar instead of the race winner. But this time, it's a little bit different.
Hocevar tangled with Ryan Blaney in the late stages of Saturday night's Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway, an incident in which neither driver was free from blame. Then, the two Chase contenders threw hands on pit road in a heated scuffle that has the whole sport buzzing.
For the third-year Spire Motorsports star, it's been a ticking time bomb as to when he would finally answer for rubbing the wrong driver the wrong way. Now, he's been offered a reminder that there are consequences for his actions.
For both himself and for NASCAR on the whole, it's what needed to happen.
Carson Hocevar can be himself, but the rest of the garage is right to fight back
Hocevar is a golden goose for NASCAR. He's peak entertainment every week and he's an undeniable talent. When (and not if) he starts stringing wins together on a regular basis, he's going to be the most popular driver in the sport. Heck, he might already be.
However, he's also just as unpopular with his competitors as he is liked by fans. And there's a reason for that too. He routinely steps over the line and he doesn't apologize for it. He plays up the act and taunts his rivals to a point that practically begs them to fight back. And yet until Saturday night, nobody really had.
If Hocevar is going to be one of NASCAR's faces of the next generation, he needs to take it as often as he dishes it out. That's what made all the sport's old-school rivalries so great. Icons like Dale Earnhardt, Darrell Waltrip, Rusty Wallace, Tony Stewart, and the Busch brothers were put in their place as often as they ruffled feathers. It didn't change who they were, but it at least let them know they weren't always going to get away with their antics.
Whether rightfully or not, Hocevar has a reputation as a young immature punk. And if he's going to go down the road of being unwaveringly true to himself, he needs to accept that there's going to be a target on his back. Blaney is the first one to say enough is enough, and he won't be the last.
NASCAR needs the type of passionate rivalries that Hocevar is inciting. But those rivalries also need to be two-way streets, and perhaps a little humility would serve the Michigan native well.
All season long, the Cup Series field has been overdue in sending Hocevar a message. Now, consider that message delivered.
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