“It’s a shame that it has to come to an end”: Zane Smith reflects on his ‘violent’ Kansas flip after contact with John Hunter Nemechek 

Front Row Motorsports driver Zane Smith was caught in a major accident during the Hollywood Casino 400 Presented by ESPN Bet at Kansas Speedway on Sunday, September 28, 2025. Later, during a post-race interview with NASCAR analyst Bob Pockrass, Smith shared his views on the horrific incident.

The incident took place during overtime while 23XI Racing driver Bubba Wallace and JGR driver Christopher Bell were competing for the lead. At that time, Smith was on the outside line when the Legacy Motor Club driver, John Hunter Nemcheck, made contact with him, leading Smith into the outside wall on turn four.

This caused the #38 FRM Ford Mustang's wheels to climb up the wall and flip twice before tumbling down the track. Reflecting on the crash, Zane Smith told FOX Sports:

"It was a wild ride, no doubt. Before I knew it, I had a decent restart going, and I just get wrecked by [Nemechek]. He just drives through me, and then I was sliding on the wall. I was just mad at that point from how our day was going, and this just pissed me off even more because that’s what really hurt was just flipping down the track. It was violent, no doubt."

"It’s just a bummer. Right before that caution came out, we were going to have a top-10 day, racing up inside the top 10 a majority of the day, and it’s a shame that it has to come to an end out there. I want to give a shout-out back to everyone at FRM for bringing another really good car, especially at a mile-and-a-half," he concluded.

Zane Smith was left unhurt despite a nerve-racking crash, and his day resulted in a DNF and wrapped up the 267-lap race in P31. Meanwhile, Hendrick Motorsports driver surprised everyone and won his second race at Kansas Speedway.

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"But that's $75,000, and that's not very cool”: Zane Smith got candid about punching Carson Hocevar

Earlier this month, Front Row Motorsports driver Zane Smith was featured on the Stacking Pennies podcast. During the interaction, Smith opened up about his wish to punch Spire Motorsports driver Carson Hocevar in the face after the Iowa race.

However, the #38 Ford Mustang Dark Horse driver restrained himself from doing so, as these incidents never slip the governing body's radar. Following that, Smith also claimed that there was no point in talking with him, as Hocevar doesn't care. Reflecting on that, the NASCAR Cup Series driver told the podcast host:

“I didn't talk to him, and it's just you're not going to get anything from it. I don't really know how else you can explain that. I mean, yeah, you wanna go up to him and punch him in the face, but that's $75,000, and that's not very cool.”

Previously, Hyak Motorsports driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was fined $75,000 for punching Joe Gibbs Racing driver Kyle Busch at North Wilkesboro Speedway. Additionally, the governing body suspended Stenhouse Jr.'s two crew members for violating Section 4.4D of the rule book.

Zane Smith currently ranks 27th in the Cup Series points table with 537 points to his account. He has gathered four top ten finishes, one top five finish, and one pole position in 31 starts this season. Additionally, he has led 20 laps with an average start of 19.581 and an average finish of 20.903.