- Wallace’s spotter is not happy with the driver’s reaction to Hocevar’s move
- Hamlin pointed out Wallace’s mistake but didn’t let Hocevar’s slip either.
- Kevin Harvick warns Wallace about such moves.
For a stretch to open the 2026 season, Bubba Wallace kept himself in the hunt, sitting inside the top two in points through much of the first seven races.
By the time the field rolled into Martinsville Speedway, he stood third in the driver standings table. Then came a turn for the worse, as one error at Martinsville sent him tumbling 8 spots down the order from his previous position.
The Cook Out 400 last Sunday offered a chance to steady the ship. A finish inside the top 20 would have kept Wallace within reach of the top seven heading into the break. Instead, the day went off the rails after a run-in with Carson Hocevar, leaving the No. 23 team to pick up the pieces.
On a restart with 77 laps to go, Hocevar dove low and made it three wide under Wallace into the corner. Wallace, already grappling with a car that had not lived up to its showing in practice, took exception.
#One lap later, he drove into the No. 77 and followed it up with another shove into the turn. Hocevar spun, collecting others, while Wallace’s own car took damage that ended his race, dropping him to 36th.
Bubba Wallace’s spotter, Freddie Kraft, is not happy with the driver’s antics
After the race, Wallace owned up to the moment, pointing to a mistake. “I didn’t appreciate the three-wide into [Turn 1], fine, but I misjudged the center of the corner and didn’t mean to turn [Carson Hocevar].”
Even so, he did address the fallout, calling it a day that slipped through his fingers at one of his favorite tracks. The reaction from within his own camp did not pull any punches either. Spotter Freddie Kraft, speaking on Door, Bumper, Clear, laid it out in plain terms.
“There’s not really any sugarcoating about it. I got to take Bubba for his word. He said he misjudged. If he misjudged, it was a really bad misjudgment, and it hurts.We went from third in points to now, I think we’re, like, tied for eighth with five other guys. So if you want to be a contender for the championship or a contender to be top five, top seven, eight in points, whatever it is, that can’t happen.”
Kraft also pointed to the broader picture, noting Wallace’s track record at Martinsville, including two Truck Series wins, and made it clear that Hocevar’s move did not cross a line.
“Hocevar did nothing wrong. He took us three wide into one and passed us clean. If we’re going to contend for top ten in points, top five in points, We have to clean that s**t up. We will figure it out, and we’ll be better next time we show up at the racetrack.”
At the time of the incident, Wallace sat inside the top 16 in the race and stood to gain between 18 and 22 points depending on the finish. Instead, the damage left him with a single point.
Denny Hamlin shares his take on the whole Wallace-Hocevar wreck
Denny Hamlin, the co-owner of 23XI Racing, weighed in on his podcast, Actions Detrimental, offering a blunt read. “I made of it that Bubba wrecked himself trying to knock Carson out of the way. He just didn’t let up, kept driving in there, and eventually it caused him to wreck himself and others. That’s my take.”
Hamlin, however, did not give Hocevar a free pass. He pointed to the three wide move as one that may sit within the rules but often draws a reaction, saying, “It’s typically a d*** move.”
“If everyone is restarting into Turn 1 on a restart, everyone’s got to check up for the corner, right? If you’re in Row 8, you’re checking up for the entry for 1 sooner than you normally would. It’s like going into Turn 1 on COTA where someone just, ‘Alright, I’m just gonna go left and if you guys are going to check up, I’m just going to jam it on in there.’ Carson says I’m going to go three-wide on a restart at Martinsville to the bottom. It’s not illegal, it’s just a d*** move.”
Hocevar has driven in this manner since arriving in the Cup Series and has made it clear he will push the limit. Wallace, now 32, found himself caught in the moment, and the cost fell on his own race as well as others.
The Martinsville fallout drew a warning from Kevin Harvick
On his Happy Hour podcast, Harvick pointed to the pressure building within the team, with Tyler Reddick setting the pace this season. And he understood that Hocevar’s move riled up the No. 23 driver. But he did have some advice for the 23XI Racing driver.
Harvick said, “Wasn’t long ago we were talking about Bubba and Tyler being one, two in the points. Bubba’s 11th in the points,” he said.
“When you look at that, and you’re the guy that is 11th in the points, and your teammate’s the guy that’s won four races and leading the points, that’s a lot of pressure. And I promise you that he’s frustrated that he’s not been the guy that’s won the race. But you’ve got to keep it together. You can’t lose your cool like that,” the 2014 Cup champion added.
Next up is Bristol Motor Speedway, where Wallace has shown progress, even if the results sheet does not tell the full story. For the No. 23 team, the task now is to turn the page and get back on track before the season slips further from their grasp.
