Carson Hocevar accepted responsibility for the contact that sent Joey Logano spinning and flipping onto his roof with five laps remaining in Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway.
The Spire Motorsports driver said he was looking in his rearview mirror to assess the approaching lanes when he made contact with Logano’s No. 22 Team Penske Ford during the YellaWood 500. The crash triggered a massive pileup on the frontstretch, collecting multiple cars and bringing out a red flag.
Hocevar admitted he failed to see what was happening directly ahead of him before hitting Logano at the wrong moment. The 23-year-old did not shy away from his role in the incident, repeatedly accepting blame for the contact.
Carson Hocevar Explains Contact With Joey Logano
Hocevar said he was focused on the traffic around him as the outside and inside lanes converged near the end of the race.
“I didn’t see a lot. I was more so looking to my left and my rearview of what lanes we’re going to merge to because we’re all on the top, and then all of a sudden the bottom came in,” Hocevar explained.
He said drivers from different lanes were trying to merge toward the middle, which kept him focused on finding the right position in the draft.
“I was more so looking at my rearview, and when I looked up, it was more so because I felt a bump, and I just hit him in the rear at the wrong time,” he added.
Hocevar said he had been making progress alongside Logano and felt bad about how the incident unfolded. He was trying to advance through the field in the third lane, where drivers often rely on pushing one another to maintain momentum.
“But I was making forward progress with him, so I feel bad because we were obviously making a lot of headway there and doing really good.”
He acknowledged the contact sent Logano spinning and took full responsibility for the mistake.
“Yeah, I just spun him. But I was more so looking at my rearviews, so that’s on me. But, yeah, that’s my fault.”
Joey Logano Walks Away From Terrifying Flip
The crash unfolded with five laps remaining and involved roughly 15 cars. Logano’s Ford spun toward the outside wall before further contact sent it onto its roof. The car slid along the track before coming to a stop.
Safety crews responded as officials stopped the race to assist the drivers and right Logano’s car. The three-time Cup Series champion climbed out and walked away from the wreck before undergoing medical evaluation.
The incident highlighted the risks of superspeedway racing, where cars run closely together and a small mistake in a drafting line leaves drivers little time to react.
The race resumed after the red flag and went into overtime. Kyle Larson eventually won, beating Hendrick Motorsports teammate William Byron by 0.041 seconds in a close finish.
Carson Hocevar Recovers After Talladega Damage
Hocevar also had to recover from damage to his No. 77 Chevrolet. He said the car suffered flat tires and a hole in the right-side door but remained in reasonable condition.
He credited the tow-truck driver and his crew with getting the car back on track.
“I really got to thank the tow truck guy for hauling ass and helping me out,” Hocevar said.
He explained that the team fitted four tires before pushing the car out of the garage because they were not allowed to reverse it out of the area.
“They put four tires on, pushed me out of the garage, and I got going,” he said.
Hocevar also acknowledged that an earlier pit-road speeding penalty hurt his race, leaving him two laps down for much of the day. Despite those setbacks, he worked his way back into contention and capitalized on the late-race developments.
His admission of responsibility for the contact with Logano stood out after one of the race’s most frightening crashes. Hocevar made it clear he had been focused on his mirrors rather than the car ahead, and he accepted that failing to see the situation develop contributed to the wreck.
NASCAR: Carson Hocevar Has Honest Response After Joey Logano’s Terrifying Crash