Zane Smith was levied a hefty fine by NASCAR following his on-track actions from this past weekend’s Cup Series’ Freeway Insurance 500 event at Phoenix Raceway.
During the cooldown lap at the conclusion of Sunday’s event at Phoenix, Smith accelerated his No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford entry into the rear of Carson Hocevar’s No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet entry prior to both reaching pit road. The Huntington Beach, Californian’s action towards Hocevar was a retaliatory act after the latter made contact with the former and Josh Berry through Turns 3 and 4 while both were battling for positions amid a 19-lap dash to the finish. Ultimately, Hocevar’s actions was caused by Ross Chastain bumping and sending Hocevar into both Smith and Berry. Hocevar proceeded to finish in 12h place behind Berry while Smith ended up in 15th place.
The post-race run-in at Phoenix between Smith and Hocevar marks an additional chapter amid a feud between both competitors who have had previous run-ins. Notable incidents between both competitors include Iowa Speedway in August 2025 and Chicagoland Speedway this past July. Following the latest run-in, both competitors were warned by NASCAR during the next-scheduled event at EchoPark Speedway.
As a result of Smith’s post-race actions at Phoenix, NASCAR found Smith to have violated Sections 4.4a & 10.5.2.5a of the NASCAR Rule Book that highlights behavioral actions and safety violations. While Smith was not issued any points penalty, he was levied a $50,000 fine. Smith is currently ranked in 26th place in the 2026 Cup Series standings while Hocevar, who is a Chase contender, is ranked in 11th place and trailing the points lead by 158 points with three-scheduled events remaining.
No additional penalties were levied towards any teams and competitors between NASCAR’s top-three national touring series divisions during this past weekend’s triple-header events at Phoenix.
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck, O’Reilly Auto Parts and Cup Series divisions return for a triple-header weekend of racing at Talladega Superspeedway in Lincoln, Alabama, between October 23-25.
The Truck Series competes at Talladega for the Love’s RV Stop 225 this upcoming Friday, October 23, at 4 p.m. ET on FS1, NASCAR Racing Network and SiriusXM while the O’Reilly Auto Parts Series competes the following date, October 24, for The Progress Group 250 at 3:30 p.m. ET on the CW Network, MRN Radio and SiriusXM. The Cup Series caps off the weekend with the YellaWood 500 on Sunday, October 25, at 2 p.m. ET on NBC, MRN Radio, SiriusXM and HBO MAX.
