Zane Smith Slams Hocevar For Being Two-Faced In Podcast Interview

As Carson Hocevar's status within the NASCAR fanbase continues to climb, the ultra-aggressive racer is becoming less and less popular amongst some of his peers. The latest driver, who has had enough of Hocevar, is Zane Smith, the driver of the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford Mustang, who crashed Hocevar and himself early in last Sunday's eero 400 at Chicagoland Speedway.

On this week's edition of "Racin' With The Boys," a podcast co-hosted by Taylor Lewan and Will Compton, Smith didn't hold back when it comes to his frustration with Hocevar and Hocevar's legion of fans.

In the interview, Smith accused Hocevar of being two-faced.

"I don't know if he made a mistake, but he wrecked us," Smith said. "And then, he spends the rest of the race waving at me, playing nice guy like, 'Oh man, I'm so sorry.' And then goes on social media and like posts."

Smith continued, "If you're going to be the guy hiding behind social media, I don't know. That's a coward in my opinion. Act that way in person, like say that to my face, but don't be one way in person and then hide behind your phone."

Smith's disdain for Hocevar doesn't stop with the driver. His hatred extends to Hocevar's fans.

"His fans are the worst part," Smith said. "Have you ever seen the South Park huge guy that's like typing on the keyboard. That is like all of his fans."

When asked by Lewan if Hocevar's fans are the worst, Smith responded, "Pretty much. I feel like the whole industry would agree with that."

The bad blood between Hocevar and Smith spilled into last Sunday's race at Chicagoland Speedway, as Smith made contact with Hocevar on Lap 32 of the race. Hocevar would go on to finish 22nd in the eero 400 despite the early-race incident, while Smith would finish 28th.

While NASCAR plans to speak to Hocevar and Smith prior to this weekend's Quaker State 400 at EchoPark Speedway, Smith did not receive any penalties from NASCAR for the seemingly intentional crash with Hocevar.

In the days after the crash, Smith's early-race move was heavily criticized by many, including Kyle Petty, an eight-time winner in the NASCAR Cup Series.

"Zane Smith only made one mistake: he took himself out," Petty explained on this week's episode of "Inside the Race". "He went on a kamikaze mission. You can't take yourself out. It's a chess move. You gotta make your move and escape. You can't make your move and know you're giving up a man."

Hocevar, who has piled up enemies far faster than he has race wins in his young NASCAR Cup Series career, currently finds himself ninth in the NASCAR Cup Series championship standings, and is 117 points above the cutline for the Chase for the Championship with seven races remaining until The Chase begins.

So long as Hocevar doesn't suffer a monumental collapse, he should make it into the fight for the NASCAR Cup Series title this season, but the question is: will his enemies, Smith included, allow Hocevar to come close to sniffing a championship?

Over the last few seasons, Hocevar has picked on-track fights with drivers like Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., who ranks 26th in the standings, and Smith, who ranks 23rd. Those drivers, once The Chase begins, will have nothing to lose if they choose to exact further revenge on Hocevar.

Add us as a preferred source on Google