Carson Hocevar pulled triple duty at Daytona International Speedway this past weekend, a weekend that saw him contend for multiple victories but ultimately leave the "World Center of Racing" disappointed, with nothing better than an 18th place finish to show for his efforts.
While Hocevar, a full-time Cup Series driver with Spire Motorsports, is also set to be back with Spire Motorsports for Saturday's Craftsman Truck Series race at EchoPark Speedway (formerly Atlanta Motor Speedway) as a part of his 13-race Truck Series deal, he will not compete in this weekend's O'Reilly Auto Parts Series (formerly Xfinity Series) race.
Nick Leitz is set to replace Hocevar behind the wheel of the No. 42 Chevrolet for Young's Motorsports at Atlanta. Leitz run a part-time schedule with SS-Green Light Racing during the 2025 season and recorded a top finish of 11th place, his career-best, at Talladega Superspeedway, before running the season finale at Phoenix Raceway for RSS Racing.
Nick Leitz to drive for Spire Motorsports at Atlanta
Leitz has competed at Atlanta in each of the past two seasons, and he has done so in both O'Reilly Series races each year. He placed 26th and 20th at the track in 2024 with DGM Racing and 22nd and 24th a year ago with SS-Green Light Racing.
Beyond this weekend, Young's Motorsports have not confirmed any plans for their No. 42 entry, which is one of their two full-time cars. This is their first year running two full-time cars in the O'Reilly Series, with Ryan Ellis driving the No. 02 Chevrolet following his own switch from DGM Racing.
As for Hocevar, he was the betting favorite to win the Truck Series season opener at Daytona, but multiple tire issues left him staring at a disappointing 35th place DNF.
After a relatively uneventful 20th place finish in the O'Reilly Series race, he led on the final lap of the Daytona 500 before being involved in a wreck. He was eventually scored 18th after a slight post-race results change.
Although he doesn't have anything else confirmed at NASCAR's second highest level for 2026, it would not be a surprise to see him back with Young's Motorsports, possibly for multiple additional races.
Even NASCAR's relaxed restrictions on full-time Cup Series drivers competing in lower national divisions don't apply to him, as he is only in his third full season of Cup competition.
Saturday's Bennett Transportation & Logistics 250 is set to be shown live on the CW Network from EchoPark Speedway (Atlanta) starting at 5:00 p.m. ET. Start a free trial of FuboTV now and don't miss it!