NASCAR Cup Series Rookie of the Year in 2024, Carson Hocevar is one driver who has had a good introduction to the highest echelon of stock car racing this year. The 21-year-old racer managed to clinch the monicker after outscoring Josh Berry, another rookie full-timer in the sport by a margin of 107 points, leading to a convincing victory.
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The Spire Motorsports driver ultimately finished in P21 on the driver’s standings chart with one top 5, six top 10, and his highest finishing position of P3 at Watkins Glen International throughout the year.
While many in the stock car racing fraternity recognize the Portage, Michigan native’s raw talent, Hocevar also has a flip side to his driving which has sometimes held him back in his progression through the NASCAR ranks.
The #77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 driver, ever since his Craftsman Truck Series days has been somewhat of a firecracker on track when it comes to aggressive maneuvers and often does not realize when to cap off his aggressiveness. This driving trait has often led to him being called out for driving erratically to the point where his abilities have come under question, with his temperament often under question as well.
Carson Hocevar SPINS Harrison Burton under yellow. 😳
Watch on USA Network and the NBC Sports App. #NASCAR pic.twitter.com/f96OB8cqj0
— NASCAR on NBC (@NASCARonNBC) July 1, 2024
Carson spinning out fellow racer Harrison Burton under caution at Nashville earlier in the year and receiving a $50,000 fine and 25 points being deducted paints a picture well enough. Despite the penalties and backlash, Hocevar has managed to stay true to himself and his aggressive nature while finding a happy medium in the sport.
“For me, I was breaking my own childhood promise to myself that if I got there I would race exactly how I would want to watch them on TV. But there’s limits to that, it’s just being able to balance that more. They’ve got to get comfortable around me too, and I feel like I have the respect of others, but it’s a different type of respect,” said the #77 Chevy driver.
Looking to further perfect his craft and dial out what have been slight lapses of judgment as some would say on his part, Hocevar elaborated, “I feel like I’ve been able to put together full races. It’s just being able to do that 36 weekends in a row and not have the one or two ‘Oh, that was a rough day’ or ‘That was a dumb decision-making day’ or ‘That was a self-destruction day.’ It’s just minimizing those and having a full year.”
With a full year of racing under his belt and his fair share of criticism from the fraternity as well, it will be interesting to see how Carson as a young prospect in NASCAR evolves into what many have touted him as championship material. His results from his first year in the Cup Series as well as his Truck Series accolades certainly showcase his raw talent.
