"I'm not going to apologize for having a shot to win a race”: Carson Hocevar makes feelings crystal clear on aftermath of Atlanta race

NASCAR: Daytona 500 - Media Day - Source: Imagn
Carson Hocevar during the Daytona 500 Media Day - Source: Imagn

Carson Hocevar held his own amid a controversial outing at Atlanta Motor Speedway. The sophomore driver stated in NASCAR's mid-week media availability he wouldn't apologize for going out to race for a win.

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Hocevar clarified that his initial apology to Hendrick Motorsports was about the caution ending the contest. When the yellow flag came out on the final lap, the 22-year-old overtook HMS driver Kyle Larson to post his best career finish in P2.

Despite fellow NASCAR drivers blasting him for driving aggressively, Hocevar shared with the media that the Spire Motorsports crew enjoyed the race weekend and that he was unapologetic for having a shot to win.

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"I've enjoyed the moment of just being a second-place finisher on Cup. I think my guys have really enjoyed it," Hocevar said via Kelly Crandall on X. "Other than the conversation you guys seen everything else in, my world's been positive."
"The conversations that my team has behind the scenes with our manufacturers and other teams have all been positive from my recollection or what I've been told [...] There's only so much I could do... I'm not going to apologize for having a shot to win a race," he added.
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Speaking about his apology to Hendrick Motorsports, a partner and fellow Chevrolet team of Spire Motorsports, the No. 77 driver said:

"The apology that I did to Hendrick and Chevy was... I didn't see the replay. I was apologizing more for the circumstances that yellow came out."
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When the white flag came out, Kyle Larson led the field until Christopher Bell got a push from Hocevar to take first place. Hocevar later split the two drivers in the middle forming a three-wide but Josh Berry crashed behind them to bring out the race-ending caution.

The top five finishers in the Ambetter Health 400 at Atlanta were Christopher Bell, Carson Hocevar, Kyle Larson, Ryan Blaney, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr., respectively.

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"I didn't realize we weren't racing back to the line": Carson Hocevar on apology to Hendrick Motorsports camp

After the Atlanta race, Carson Hocevar apologized to Hendrick Motorsports including team owner Rick Hendrick and driver Kyle Larson. Hocevar said he didn't realize they weren't racing back to the line but had to capitalize on the opportunity to try and win the race.

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The Michigan native told Fox Sports via X (formerly Twitter):

“First off, apologies to Larson and HMS and Mr. H (Rick Hendrick). They help us out a lot, and I didn’t realize we weren’t racing back to the line. The last two nights were kinda that way. I hit the No. 20 to get him out of the way and fill the middle," Hocevar said after the race [0:14 onwards]
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He added:

“There's some stuff I gotta learn, and clean up a little bit but I feel like we put ourselves in the perfect opportunity to try and win a race. I've never had that opportunity really before, especially on a superspeedway," he added [0:50 onwards]
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With Bell and Hocevar securing the top two positions, Larson lost the chance to win his first race at a drafting-style track.

The next race weekend will be held at the Circuit of the Americas on Sunday. The 2024 Rookie of the Year will enter the 95-lap road course race 15th in the standings after jumping 15 positions thanks to a runner-up finish at Atlanta.

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Edited by Rupesh Kumar
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