Carson Hocevar(Left): Photo by Jeff Robinson/Icon Sportswire Denny Hamlin (Right):Photo by Jeffrey Vest/Icon Sportswire
Carson Hocevar(Left): Photo by Jeff Robinson/Icon Sportswire Denny Hamlin (Right):Photo by Jeffrey Vest/Icon Sportswire
Carson Hocevar was over the moon after getting pole position at qualifying for the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Hocevar’s pole was received by resounding cheers from the fans in the grandstand. The Spire 77 Chevrolet driver said, “I appreciate it. I don't know if they're cheering just because I beat Denny or just the fact we were on the front row, but no, I'm super pumped. Denny stole one from me from Michigan.”
Hocevar’s comments came as a subtle dig at not just Denny Hamlin, the championship leader, but also Joe Gibbs Racing as a whole.
JGR and Spire are currently at loggerheads with the ongoing lawsuit revolving around JGR accusing Chris Gabehart, their former competitions director, of supplying Spire with confidential data around setups and strategy while taking up his role as Chief Motorsport Officer for the Chevrolet team.
Speaking to the broadcasters after winning pole, Hocevar said, “It's just fun to use our own notes the last two years and get these cars better and faster. And yeah, just enjoy it. These guys work really hard.”
TALLADEGA, AL - APRIL 26: Carson Hocevar 77 Spire Motorsports Chili s Ride the Dente Chevrolet celebrates in Victory Lane with Zac Brown following the running of the NASCAR, Motorsport, USA Cup Series Jack Links 500 on April 26, 2026, at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, AL. Photo by Jeffrey Vest/Icon Sportswire AUTO: APR 26 NASCAR Cup Series Jack Links 500 EDITORIAL USE ONLY Icon2604264638
TALLADEGA, AL - APRIL 26: Carson Hocevar 77 Spire Motorsports Chili s Ride the Dente Chevrolet celebrates in Victory Lane with Zac Brown following the running of the NASCAR, Motorsport, USA Cup Series Jack Links 500 on April 26, 2026, at Talladega Superspeedway in Talladega, AL. Photo by Jeffrey Vest/Icon Sportswire AUTO: APR 26 NASCAR Cup Series Jack Links 500 EDITORIAL USE ONLY Icon2604264638
In the midst of the season, the feud between the two camps has continued with JGR claiming that Gabehart was performing competition director-level roles for Spire despite his non-compete clause with JGR.
Interestingly, Hocevar’s speed to take the pole was the 4th fastest at Indianapolis in NASCAR history. The Spire 77 Chevrolet driver clocked a top speed of 186.598 mph. Kevin Harvick still holds the record at an incredible 188.470 mph back in 2014.
But Hocevar’s Indianapolis pole was special to him for multiple reasons, not least because of childhood memories.
Hocevar’s love for Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Carson Hocevar was in conversation with Jeff Gluck and opened up on what makes the Indianapolis track one of his favorites. Hocevar’s answer was an eye-opener to how the Spire driver viewed his racing career while growing up.
Hocevar told Gluck, “So I thought I was gonna go sprint car racing for my career, and my idol was Bryan Clauson. He got to do the Indy 500. So this was like the pinnacle for me and what I thought I was gonna accomplish. NASCAR didn't really seem that realistic on my radar.”
Hocevar said that for him, IndyCar and racing sprint cars were the achievable dream. But now that he’s in NASCAR and one of the most talked-about figures in the current grid, Hocevar also said that the Brickyard 400 was top on the list of races he wants to win.
“I'd say Michigan; I more so want to win just cuz the crowd. I want to win because of the track. So this is the number one track I want to win at.”
Unfortunately, he didn’t get the win and ended up 9th, but he was the highest-finishing Chevrolet driver on the day.
Read more at Daytona Racing Digest.
Written by
Debrup Chaudhuri
Edited by
Suyashdeep Sason