​NASCAR had hoped a Saturday meeting at EchoPark Speedway with Carson Hocevar and Zane Smith would cool one of the Cup Series garage’s most scrutinized rivalries. Instead, the drivers departed with the impression that not much had changed in the dynamics between them. The gathering came a week after the latest flare-up between Hocevar and Smith at Chicagoland Speedway, where contact reignited a historically tense relationship. NASCAR chose not to levy penalties after the race, but officials did summon both drivers for a pre-race conversation ahead of Sunday’s Quaker State 400, which was available at Walmart.
By the end of qualifying Saturday, it was clear the discussion had yielded little common ground. When asked if the meeting had improved the situation, Smith made his sentiment unmistakably blunt. “I just don’t like him,” he told reporters. On what came out of the talk with NASCAR officials, Smith offered a stark assessment: “I think we both understand where we’re at with everything, but it doesn’t change how much he dislikes me and how much I dislike him.” When pressed on whether the two could race each other without another incident, his answer was unequivocal: “No.” And when asked whether his issues with Hocevar stem from his aggressive driving style, his personality, or both, Smith gave a simple, definitive reply: “It’s both.”
Smith added that he has no personal gripes with other competitors, but he warned that he would respond if Hocevar crossed the line again. “I have no problem with anyone else, and I’m not going to go create the trouble,” he said. “I believe in racing people the way they race me. But if he brings that to me, we’ll go from there.”
Hocevar, for his part, questioned why NASCAR deemed a meeting necessary in the first place. “I’ve never been called to the hauler after getting wrecked,” he noted. “It’s funny. It seemed like a racing deal.” Asked whether he could move forward without another incident with Smith, Hocevar suggested he already was. “I already did. I’m looking forward to it,” he stated. “I told the guys in the NASCAR hauler, if you expect it to continue, I don’t know if I would have picked this week. We’re going to Atlanta. If we were going to Martinsville or something, yeah, it makes sense. I don’t know if you could wreck anybody intentionally here at Atlanta. It will be hard to do.”
Hocevar also defended the idea that the competitive tension between the two is part of what fuels the sport. “That’s what drives the sport, passion and clashing,” he said. “It’s good.” Taken together, their comments offered a stark snapshot. NASCAR may have hoped the Saturday meeting would defuse tensions before the next race weekend, but neither driver appeared ready to soften his stance toward the other. With both men steadfast in their positions, one of the Cup Series’ most closely watched rivalries seems unlikely to cool off anytime soon.