Why Carson Hocevar was suspended by Spire Motorsports at Martinsville. NASCAR driver breaks silence, says 'This is an embarrassing day...'

NASCAR driver Carson Hocevar has been suspended by Spire Motorsports for Sunday’s season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Spire said “racing at the Cup level is a privilege, and it comes with an expected level of professionalism.” Carson Hocevar was accused of intentionally brake-checking competitor Austin Cindric following a restart at Martinsville Speedway last Sunday. He denied doing it on purpose, according to news agency AP.

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What did Carson Hocevar do and why was he suspended?

Spire Motorsports announced Tuesday that it has suspended Carson Hocevar from Sunday's 2026 NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Justin Haley will replace him and drive the No. 77 Chevrolet.


The suspension follows an incident involving Hocevar and Austin Cindric during Sunday's race at Martinsville Speedway. According to SMT data, Hocevar repeatedly brake-checked Cindric's No. 2 Team Penske Ford. This caused the front of Cindric's car to suffer heavy damage, forcing him to retire from the race. He finished 36th.

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During Sunday's race at Martinsville Speedway, Austin Cindric was following Carson Hocevar closely when Hocevar repeatedly slammed on his brakes. This forced Cindric's car to hit the rear of Hocevar's Chevrolet several times. On the fourth brake-check, the front of Cindric's Ford suffered heavy damage after hitting Hocevar's stronger rear bumper. The damage forced Cindric to leave the race.

Spire Motorsports sent out the following in a statement:

“A decision like this has a lot of variables and a cascading effect across an organization like ours,” said Jeff Dickerson, co-owner of Spire Motorsports. “The easy thing would have been to leave this in NASCAR’s hands and let them decide what any penalty should be. To us, however, this isn’t about money or points. We believe in respect. Our integrity matters. This is the right decision for Spire Motorsports.

“Everyone here loves working with Carson, and we’ve enjoyed watching him thrive alongside our team. Sometimes the right decision for someone you care about hurts in the short term. The way Carson conducted himself at Martinsville doesn’t meet the standard we set for our drivers, team members or employees, and there are consequences for that. That doesn’t mean we don’t love him and support him.

“Racing at the Cup level is a privilege, and it comes with an expected level of professionalism from everyone who represents Spire Motorsports. We’ll go to Homestead united and compete as an organization. After that, we can get ready for Daytona in February with the right mindset to contend for a championship.”

Carson Hocevar responds to suspension

Taking to his Instagram story, Carson Hocevar said, "This is an embarrassing day for me. I let the people down that gave me the opportunity of a lifetime to drive a Cup car. I also let down my team, sponsors and fans. I crossed the line with my on-track actions and gave Jeff and Spire Motorsports no option but to put someone else in the 77 car this weekend at Homestead. I’ll be rooting for the entire organization this weekend and look forward to coming back in 2027 as a better driver, competitor and teammate.”