NASCAR Cup Series rookie in 2024, Zane Smith’s tenure in the sport’s highest echelon did not last very long. Despite his talent behind the wheel, the nine-time winner in the Craftsman Truck Series also lagged behind his teammate at Spire Motorsports, Carson Hocevar, who managed to leave a mark on the sport in his rookie season.
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While Smith ranked in P30 on the driver’s standings table after the year, Hocevar finished in P21 and also won the Rookie of the Year Award. With no news of his future confirmed in the sport, Smith has also been vocal about how the 25-year-old has been downbeat over the past few weeks.
With Spire Motorsports’ aims to rise as a powerhouse operation in NASCAR, the team’s choice to go with experience in the form of Michael McDowell over youth and aggression from Smith certainly had the fraternity outpouring emotions for the California native.
“McDowell is only good at qualifying for superspeedways and good at road courses. Outside of that he is a bottom 20 driver and has already reached his peak performance. Zane Smith is young and showed speed in his rookie season which spire could have used to develop him,” opined one fan on how Smith has ways to go before achieving ultimate performance, in stark contrast to McDowell.
All respect to Zane but if I'm trying to make my team better, I'm taking the guy who turned a back marker team into multi time cup winners and playoff contenders, not to mention all the experience he comes with
McDowell was the right pick https://t.co/ujKnmHnQeG
— caba🍉 (@cabanascar42) November 17, 2024
“McDowell has peaked. He is at the highest level of driver that he will ever be. We have seen his best. Zane is just getting started, getting better and better each week. Potential superstar. No one can say that about McDowell,” another fan wrote along similar lines, while one supporter did not mince any words and said, “McDowell is old.”
Fans were quick to dismiss McDowell as a driver and his overall abilities in the Cup Series as one fan exclaimed, “no offense but the only relevant things mr mcdowell has done in his 16 year career is flip at texas in his rookie year and win a daytona 500 under caution.”
no offense but the only relevant things mr mcdowell has done in his 16 year career is flip at texas in his rookie year and win a daytona 500 under caution
— doug (@mrclayischill) November 18, 2024
While there seems to be an outpouring of emotion for Zane Smith and his lack of a contract for 2025, the silly season up until now has more or less wrapped up the field for the coming season. It would be interesting to see if further driver market changes come this late into the year, with teams and drivers already relaxed and beginning to get into the holiday mood.
Announcements could yet come in the first month of next year with drivers making moves. One potential landing spot for Smith could come in the form of Front Row Motorsports‘ third charter which is set to debut next season.
The team has already signed Noah Gragson and Todd Gilliland as two of the three drivers for next year as the racing outfit embroils itself in legal controversy with the sporting league itself, alongside 23XI Racing.
