Carson Hocevar conceded that his move from the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series to the Cup Series drew considerable backlash from those in his inner circle.

Since taking his talents to the top racing series of NASCAR, Hocevar has repeatedly ruffled feathers due to his aggressive driving style. Ryan Blaney described him as a “moron” following the Ambetter Health 400, AJ Allmendinger issued him a stern warning at the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix, Ryan Preece warned “he’ll have his day” after the Wurth 400 and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. threatened to ‘beat his a–‘ on the heels of the Viva Mexico 250.

Most recently, Hocevar drew the ire of Austin Dillon, who called him the ‘biggest dumb—‘ in NASCAR upon getting caught up in a wreck during last weekend’s Grant Park 165.

Though Hocevar’s racing tactics haven’t exactly made him many friends on the grid, they have led to respectable results. Over 19 races, he’s amassed four top-10 finishes, two top-5s and one pole — a far cry from the type of production that Spire Motorsports achieved just several years ago.

Back in October 2023, Hocevar inked a multi-year contract with Spire Motorsports to pilot the No. 77 Chevrolet in the Cup Series. The prior season, the team ranked a meagre 33rd in owner points while in the midst of a strenuous rebuild.

Given Hocevar’s prior success in the Truck Series, several people close to him questioned why he was taking such a massive risk by joining a downtrodden organization. “I had people really, really close to me and my family just be like, ‘Congrats, career suicide. Good job,’” Hocevar said while making an appearance on the ‘Dale Jr. Download’ podcast.

“I had people in my inner circle really close to me that aren’t in that inner circle anymore, but they were just like, ‘Are you f—— sure about this? You’re f—— winning truck races and you’re going to do this?’”

Despite receiving pushback from multiple angles, Hocevar remained committed to chasing his dream of racing in the Cup Series. “I’ve always wanted to drive a Cup car,” he explained. “I didn’t get winning stuff in trucks. If I really believe in myself, I can make this stuff winning, or I can make this stuff better… I’ve done it before. Not just be like, ‘Oh, I’m gonna make this winning,’ but I was like let’s just see where it goes. I just got to get in the door, get to Sunday, and see where it goes. If I was wrong, I was wrong at least on Sunday.”

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Now that Spire is a legitimate race contender, Hocevar noted that expectations are higher but the internal intensity has remained the same. “This year, it’s just been like, okay, we have to run up front and get stage points. That’s our goal,” he said. “Last year it was like, okay, we’re looking at points and we’re 18th, but it’s 100 to the next guy. It’s because he’s got 100 stage points — we have nothing.

“Our intensity level I feel like has been the same everywhere. It’s just whether our car or me can handle it on the right day. We’re trying to operate on that level now because if you’re expected to win races, I don’t feel like the moment is gonna be too big because our intensity is here. I feel like guys get that winning opportunity and now they have to raise their intensity up. Now they’re uncomfortable and that’s when they bust their a–.”

Carson Hocevar got into it with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. during NASCAR’s trip to Mexico City in June. During an appearance on the latest episode of the Dale Jr. Download, the Spire Motorsports wheelman revealed his team was so confused about the incident that they thought he suffered a medical emergency.

The Portage, Michigan native accidentally lost focus and turned the former Daytona 500 winner. According to Hocevar, he went through some serious brain fog at the moment, and didn’t mean to hit Stenhouse Jr. at the time. Still, the Hyak Motorsports wheelman wasn’t hearing any of it.

“Remember when Riley [Herbst], like, hooked around and the No. 47 was really close, and then like he like, putted right? I almost hit him. I thought his car was dead. I thought he hit the No. 35, so he’s putting over. So, he turned left. I was like, ‘Oh f***,’ and I locked up the brakes. We run a bunch of laps, and I’m just trying to get comfortable. The straightaways are so long, our cars are kind of slow with the horsepower, with the elevation and everything, and I noticed he was catching the guys in front,” Hocevar explained.

“I was like, ‘I’m going to earn some back here. I’m going to push him down the straightaway,’ so I was kind of staying close and everything. Just the biggest brain-fade ever. I got in the corner, and I was just like, ‘Oh, there’s a corner here,’ so I went to the break. I locked up. I just got zoned out. I was just like, you know, banging gears. Now there’s like five to go, and I’m just like, ‘Caution’s not going to come out. Yep, yep, yep. This is normal.’ For a minute, my guys thought I like, passed out, because my car just goes straight.

“I am legitimately in there, just holding the wheel straight, either getting ready to turn right to go to the garage. Not actually, but I was just literally sitting there and I’m watching him and I don’t even turn the wheel. I just literally like stop, and I’m just watching him spin. I’m just like, ‘Please for the love of God, save this thing. Even if you lose a spot, just save it,’ and I just watch him spin around.

“I’m just like, ‘Okay, do I just wait for him to go? Do I just get wrecked now?’ So I just stay — my car just stayed there for a while. They thought I legitimately like, a medical emergency, like I passed out from the heat and whatever. But I was just like, no. I was just sitting there watching.”

At the least, it certainly adds an interesting layer to the incident between Hocevar and Stenhouse Jr. in Mexico City. Evidently, Stenhouse Jr. bought Hocevar’s explanation, as there haven’t been any problems between the two drivers since that moment.

Moving forward, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. won’t give Carson Hocevar much grace on the track, but he’s put their scuffle in Mexico behind them, it seems. When these two are racing over the course of the summer, though, don’t expect any love, as they’re going to continue racing each other hard regardless.

Tom Blomqvist expects something from himself this weekend. He calls it “standard expectations for a professional racing driver,” but they carry more weight than usual.

He’s in a different car, in a different class, with a different team. One that’s leading the championship standings, by the way.

But Blomqvist is a key figure ahead of Sunday’s Chevrolet Grand Prix at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, as one of several fill-in drivers in Le Mans Prototype 2 (LMP2) for IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship regulars.

Blomqvist will fill in for Paul Di Resta with United Autosports USA as Di Resta is one of a handful of IMSA drivers competing in the FIA World Endurance Championship race in Brazil this weekend.

Blomqvist Entrusted for United Encore

Blomqvist will join Daniel Goldburg in the No. 22 United Autosports USA ORECA LMP2 07. The No. 22 car enters the weekend leading the LMP2 standings by 94 points over Felipe Fraga and Gar Robinson in the No. 74 Riley ORECA.

The one-off duty is both an honor and a unique challenge, Blomqvist explained.

“They’ve entrusted me with this role to do the job,” said Blomqvist, who also drove for United in the 2023 FIA WEC season. “I’m fully aware of that. I expect myself to do well and to perform.

“I’m comfortable with the team, and I’ve worked with them before. I enjoy working with them. I know the car very well, and I’ve had great success at the track before, as well, which is obviously very helpful.”

It’s helpful to be on a roll, as well. Blomqvist and Colin Braun teamed to win the Sahlen’s Six Hours of The Glen on June 22 at Watkins Glen International overall and in Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) in the No. 60 Acura Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian Acura ARX-06.

Blomqvist also has a winning relationship with CTMP, the track formerly known as Mosport. In 2023, he and Braun teamed to win in the Meyer Shank Acura on the 10-turn, 2.459-mile circuit. A year earlier, Blomqvist set the outright track record in a previous generation Daytona Prototype international (DPi) car, the Acura ARX-05.

“The track is a lot of fun – a ton of fun,” Blomqvist said. “It’s always one you want to drive, especially in LMP2 cars. It’s the perfect track for the class. I’ve obviously been in the right place at the right time when I’ve been there. I’d like to do the same with Daniel and the guys this year.”

Blomqvist can also speak to those GTP regulars playing in the LMP2 field this weekend.

“The P2 is a little bit of a different driving style – more of a natural driving style because of the lack of electronic aids,” Blomqvist said, comparing the LMP2 car to the GTP.

“They’re a bit lighter, and the engines are obviously completely different. Even the little things like seating position are a little different. But ultimately, it’s a race car, and in my case, I’m used to jumping between the two cars.”

MSR Teammates and Now Fun Rivals … Again

For the second time in two months in two series, one of Blomqvist’s Acura MSR teammates will be a rival in another LMP2 car.

Renger van der Zande, who races the sister No. 93 Acura MSR entry with Nick Yelloly, is another fill-in driver this weekend at CTMP.

Van der Zande will fill in for Sebastien Bourdais in the No. 8 Tower Motorsports ORECA LMP2 07 this weekend with co-driver John Farano. Van der Zande and Bourdais won overall at CTMP in 2022 in a Chip Ganassi Racing-prepared Cadillac DPi-V.R.

Coincidentally, the Dutchman raced for United Autosports in the 24 Hours of Le Mans last month while Blomqvist, Yelloly and Colin Braun were in three other LMP2 cars. On Sunday, van der Zande will race against United and against his Meyer Shank teammate, Blomqvist.

“It’s going to be fun,” van der Zande laughed ahead of Le Mans before the first of his two LMP2 cameos. “I mean, if I suddenly get a free slipstream somewhere, I’m sure it’s (Blomqvist).

“You know we get along very well. … We have a good understanding, have the bigger goal, big picture in mind. It’s gonna be fun to be racing against each other.”

The occasional fill-in role allows drivers to experience the inner workings of other teams. Van der Zande encountered it at Le Mans, where he teamed with Pietro Fittipaldi and David Heinemeier Hansson to finish seventh in LMP2 in the No. 22 United Autosports entry.

“There’s a great organization behind it,” van der Zande said of United. “I was very happily surprised about the atmosphere. It’s a real group of real racers. … I felt home straight away, so it was a great opportunity to get to know another team.”

Now he’ll go up against his teammates from the recent past, against his teammate from the present, in a car they don’t always drive.

Recapping The CTMP Changes

It’s not uncommon for sports car drivers to freelance during the season, especially when scheduling conflicts arise. Beyond Blomqvist and van der Zande, five other LMP2 cars have revised lineups this race.

As Di Resta, Malthe Jakobsen and Mikkel Jensen race Peugeot 9X8 Hypercars at Sao Paulo, Alex Quinn (No. 04 CrowdStrike Racing by APR) and Hunter McElrea (No. 11 TDS Racing) fill in for Jakobsen and Jensen, respectively.

Quinn, who raced alongside George Kurtz and Nicky Catsburg at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, has made five IMSA starts and races alongside Kurtz. McElrea, who won the Michelin Endurance Cup as third driver with Jensen and Steven Thomas last year, is set for his IMSA sprint race debut.

Two new Canadians make their series debuts on home soil. Phil Fayer takes over for Nick Boulle, last year’s CTMP winner and LMP2 champion, in the No. 2 United Autosports USA ORECA alongside Ben Hanley. Travis Hill steps into the No. 18 Era Motorsport ORECA alongside Ryan Dalziel, the major race-winning sports car veteran who is now also Era’s sporting director.

JDC-Miller MotorSports also makes its season debut in the class, with Gerry Kraut and Scott Andrews back in their No. 79 ORECA for the first time since Road America last season, where they finished second.

Fittipaldi races in one of the five unchanged full-season lineups competing this weekend in IMSA, with Chris Cumming in the No. 73 Pratt Miller Motorsports ORECA. Both “DHH” and Tobi Lutke’s commitments allow for Hill’s debut at Era.

The four other cars that are unchanged from Watkins Glen, save for dropping from three drivers to two, are the No. 43 Inter Europol Competition (Tom Dillmann and Jeremy Clarke), No. 52 PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports (Mathias Beche and Rodrigo Sales), No. 74 Riley (Fraga and Robinson) and No. 99 AO Racing (Dane Cameron and PJ Hyett) ORECAs.

The evolved CTMP entry list creates a fascinating scenario as to whether the full-timers or the fill-ins will prevail both overall and in LMP2.

Live coverage of the Chevrolet Grand Prix can be seen Sunday at 2 p.m. ET on USA Network, YouTube and IMSA.tv.

IMSA Wire Service PR

Latest update for Forza Motorsport was just introduced by Turn 10 Studios and sponsored by Open Division Rivals, wherein competitors create a machine that has the best performance possible under an imposed PI limit for each PI category. Exciting, right? Response? I’d say it’s nothing worth a victory lap.

Replies to the announcement tweet flooded it: hype followed by frustration, confusion, and doomposting. And honestly, for a good reason: Microsoft laid off a good chunk of the staff of Turn 10 just recently, and gamers are not feeling positive about the future of this franchise.

What Format Is Open Division Rivals?

Open Division Rivals is a bit of a flex zone for car-builders. Take any production vehicle in the game, tweak it to a PI limit assigned to its class, then compete to set the fastest lap time. Being a permanent addition means this is not some limited-time event, so if you’ve got some min-maxing to do, this is your turf.

But this launch time is the worst time possible.

Layoffs & Uncertainty: The Elephant in the Room

Many replies neglected to pay attention to the new mode and just went for the throat: “Why bother when it’s cancelled?” another user asked in a very straight manner. One more commented, “Hard to feel confident in this game at all with how MS has cut back your team quite a bit.”

Ouch.

That skepticism is justified. The recent cuts hit Turn 10 hard, and while the studio hasn’t officially announced any cancellations, the deafening silence has prompted the questioning of the matter. Some even accused the devs of purposely avoiding the question when one frustrated fan shouted, “Answer questions about Forza Motorsport series future!”

Then, there was the whole side track about the “Is this even a real-person posting?” idea. One reply speculated that maybe the Forza account is generally automated now, just tweeting press releases at some timer, all the while the real team is… well, who-knows?

Mounting the Defenses

Not everything was doom and gloom, though. Few players kept up the good fight, calling Forza a “pioneer of simulation” and urged them to “keep it up.” Another wants just “more tracks Originals PLEASE.” And there was that wholesome Mustang fan dreaming of realizing the dream of owning a Ford IRL.

But let’s be honest; the overall atmosphere? Aside from dark gloominess, sprinkled with occasional ‘meh’ from the distracted.

What’s Next for Forza Motorsport?

Turns out that undertaking is stilled somewhere in a waiting game. Despite the arrival of the new mode, biggest would be concerning if Turn 10 could even sustain the game for the long term or for that matter would want to. Shaken in their regard for the confidence, despite no official word on the next thing, players are left dead between hoping for the best or expecting the worst.

In any case, regaining the community will require much more from Turn 10 than just putting out a new Rivals mode.

In the interim? If you’re still into Forza Motorsport, meanwhile, Open Division Rivals is having the time of its life. The big question is: does the game itself have a future?