Motorsports
Dale Earnhardt Jr. shares his message to Carson Hocevar after Nashville, his response
Carson Hocevar was the talk of the NASCAR Cup Series following his dust-up with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. at Nashville Superspeedway this past weekend. Dale Earnhardt Jr. made sure to have a couple of words with the young wheelman following the race. On the latest episode of the Dale Jr. Download, the NASCAR Hall of Famer […]

Carson Hocevar was the talk of the NASCAR Cup Series following his dust-up with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. at Nashville Superspeedway this past weekend. Dale Earnhardt Jr. made sure to have a couple of words with the young wheelman following the race.
On the latest episode of the Dale Jr. Download, the NASCAR Hall of Famer shared what his advice to Hocevar was. It was a poignant statement, and we’ll see over the next couple of weeks if the message sunk in for the Spire Motorsports wheelman.
“I told him after the race, I said, ‘You’re going to win a shit-ton of races.’ I was like, ‘I think the world of you and your talent, but there’ll be times in that booth when I’m just gonna have to say — you know, call it like I think I see it,’ and some drivers do not like that,” Earnhardt Jr. stated. “My buddy, Martin Truex Jr. just gets so annoyed with me. I couldn’t really tell though, because he hardly communicated either way. But we would have some conversations. He’s like, ‘Man, why do you say that?’ I’m like, ‘Well, I got to. You know, it’s kind of what’s happening right now with you.’ But some guys don’t mind it and some guys do.
“Carson’s response to all of that was, ‘I’m just glad you’re talking about me.’ I kind of wanted to use that reference that dad said many years ago, they need to either be cheering you or booing you. When they don’t — when you get up there and they don’t do anything, you’re in big trouble. So, you’ve got to be a driver that’s making or getting a reaction, for fans to have real connection, real value to the sport and the industry and your partners.”
Alas, Hocevar has shown immense speed in 2025, but many within the motorsports world aren’t too keen on his aggressiveness week-in and week-out. Whether he dials it back or not remains to be seen, but he’s continuing to make enemies throughout the season.
It’s led to some solid finishes though. Just look at his runner-up run this past weekend in Nashville. He’s fast, and the wins will come, but he’s not making any friends in the process.
Time will tell when Carson Hocevar gets to Victory Lane, but Dale Earnhardt Jr. recognizes the young man won’t have much help from the field if he continues racing this way. If the past is any indicator though, he might not care very much about that.