“I’m entertained by him until it becomes my problem”: Dale Earnhardt Jr. on Carson Hocevar’s controversially aggressive driving

On the latest episode of the Dale Jr. Download on YouTube, the former Xfinity Series champion Dale Earnhardt Jr. talked about the Spire Motorsports driver, Carson Hocevar. During the podcast, Junior and his co-host, TJ Majors, touched upon Hocevar's aggressive driving style in the Cup Series.

The #77 Chevy Camaro ZL1 driver is known for being one of the most intimidating drivers on the track, and fans often draw comparisons to Dale Earnhardt Sr., aka the 'Intimidator.' Hocevar has been following a similar attitude since his Craftsman Truck Series days. Even in this season, he had two run-ins with Ricky Stenhouse Jr. in three weeks.

Reflecting on Carson Hocevar's run-ins, Dale Earnhardt Jr. shared his take and stated:

"I mean, and and honestly, I no no disrespect, TJ, but I am entertained by, I'm sure... I'm entertained by Hosavvar, you know, until it becomes my problem. Same thing. This week it was your problem, and you don't like it, and I get it. Um, and I that goes back to the same thing, like until he does, I think it's all fine until he does something to someone until he does something that risks a Hendrick or somebody that's above, like directly above, his chain of command." [01:02:21 onwards]

Carson Hocevar ranks 20th on the Cup Series points table with 462 points to his name. Notably, he has secured six top-ten finishes, two top-five finishes, and one pole position in 24 starts this season. Additionally, he has had six unfortunate DNFs, with an average finish of 22.125.

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Dale Earnhardt Jr. got candid about the NextGen cars in the Cup Series

Former NASCAR Cup Series star driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. is not the only person who is not too fond of NextGen cars. Just like Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin, Dale Jr. also believes the cars have an absence of tire wear and lack passing capabilities.

Reflecting on the same, JR Motorsports' co-owner further explained (via Dale Jr. Download):

"I want to say that I don’t love the Next Gen car, but it’s here. I don’t love the NextGen car. It’s a sports car. It’s not a NASCAR stock car, but it’s here.“

According to a report, the cost of a NextGen car can go up to $350,000 with all of its components. Also, the teams have invested a lot since the cars were introduced in 2022, and Team Penske driver Joey Logano won the championship title the same year.

“There’s millions of dollars already way down the road and the car’s here. It’s on the track. It’s not changing. It’s not going anywhere. It doesn’t do me any good to sit here and b** about the (expletive) lack of tire fall off or the inability to pass. It’s frustrating,” Dale Earnhardt Jr. added.

That being said, the countdown began for the Cook Out 400 at Richmond Raceway, scheduled for this weekend on Saturday, August 16, 2025. USA, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, and HBO Max will broadcast the 300-mile event live at 7:30 pm.