You never forget your first and for Carson Hocevar and Zane Smith, the Gateway Motorsports Park was their debut Cup Series track. Smith ran his first race in the top division two years earlier at the track when he drove the #17 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing car. He started the race in P32 and finished in an impressive P17.
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Moreover, he’s run at the track multiple times in the NASCAR Truck Series five times and won the event in 2020. Going into the race on Sunday, the youngster is excited for what’s to come. He described the track as ‘special’ as per Speedway Digest and would be looking to earn a good finish at the venue that started his Cup Series journey.
“It’s so crazy to look back on that day and see where I’m at now, two years later. That was the craziest 24-plus hours I had ever experienced. Gateway will always be special to me because of that. It was my first ever Cup Series start and it’s exciting to go back this weekend for the first time since I made that start in the No. 17. That day opened a lot of doors for me and allowed me to learn. I had a lot of fun in the process,” he said.
Awesome day. Completed all the laps, learned a ton, raced hard, and finished 17th in my Cup debut. Thank you @RFKracing @FordPerformance @keselowski @Acronis @RFK17Team. A day I’ll never forget!
— Zane Smith (@ZaneSmith) June 6, 2022
For his teammate Carson Hocevar, the feeling is similar. He had a decent performance at the venue last year and will be looking to do even better on Sunday.
Carson Hocevar looking forward to the second Gateway run
Just like Smith, the former Truck Series driver, Hocevar also debuted in the Cup Series at Gateway Motorsports Park. He ran with Spire Motorsports last year, subbing for Corey LaJoie in the #7 car. Had it not been for a mechanical issue, he could have finished in the top 15 that day. It would not be amiss to suggest that this performance made Spire take notice of him as a serious Cup Series candidate for their team.
“I’m pretty excited, honestly. We ran really good last year in the No. 7 so I’m excited to go in the No. 77 this time with my team. We’re a great team so far and I’m excited to have those notes along with what we’ve learned this year to make our car better. A year difference means a lot so, hopefully, we’re much better, we make the right adjustments and right tweaks and can make our car better throughout the race,” he said as per Speedway Digest.
The race will be an enthralling affair and it will be interesting to see how these young guns from Spire Motorsports perform on their debut track.
