Carson Hocevar’s attempt to defeat Harrison Burton under surveillance in Nashville proved costly.
NASCAR fined Hocevar $50,000 and 25 points for intentionally spinning Burton on the backstretch after a caution flag was waved.
Brad Keselowski hit the wall after contact with Austin Dillon in Turns 1 and 2. As the field slowed after the accident with 58 laps to go, Hocevar took his frustration out on Burton.
Hocevar was not penalized in the race, even though NASCAR race officials penalized Layne Riggs two laps for reckless driving during Friday night’s Truck Series race. Decisions aren’t always consistent among officials in NASCAR’s top three series, but it was still a bit of a shock to see Riggs get penalized while Hocevar escaped any in-race penalties.
Hocevar finished 16th after Sunday’s chaotic five-overtime finish. Joey Logano won the race after running out of fuel for more than 100 laps. Burton finished 28th to continue a miserable year. He is 33rd in the points standings.
Hocevar was 22nd before the penalty and now sits 24th and 181 points outside of the final playoff spot. Hocevar needs to win a race in the final seven regular season races of the season to make the playoffs, and that’s much easier said than done considering his two top-10 finishes and three laps led in the first 19 races of the season.
The points penalty could be decisive in the race for Rookie of the Year, however. Hocevar now trails Josh Berry by 50 points as the best rookie in the points standings.
