Monday Morning Pit-Stop is a weekly NASCAR column that runs on OutKick.com and Fox News Digital. If you’re looking for a normal NASCAR recap, go check out insufferable ESPN … assuming they still know NASCAR exists.
And then there was one.
That’s right. One race left in this 2026 NASCAR season. Hard to believe. Feels like we just revved engines in Daytona, and now we’re taking the checkered flag about 300 miles south in Homestead.
It flew by!
Not really.
Sometimes, it does. Not this year. This NASCAR season has felt like a grind, hasn’t it? Some of it was good. Some of it was bad. Some of it was really, really sad.
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It’s just been a grind.
But that’s a topic for next week, when we begin our two months of offseason decompression. For now, we leave Martinsville with everyone pissed at the same dude they’ve been pissed at all season long …
Carson Hocevar! In a shocking turn of events, Carson made more enemies on the track yesterday, and I’m not sure even I can defend him this time. I’ve generally tried to defend Carson most of the season because A) I think he’s good for the sport, and B) he’s definitely good for this column, but I think he probably deserves whatever he’s got coming to him after yesterday.
You’ll see.
What else? I’ve got a nice little ratings rebound at ‘Dega after the Phoenix disaster (sort of), Kyle Larson could have the championship wrapped up before the sun goes down next Sunday, and Austin Dillon boards Air Force One with Trump and heads to Daytona.
There are worse ways to spend a Friday, I reckon.
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Four tires, a quick splash of that Sunoco racing fuel, and maybe some brake fluid for Carson Hocevar … Monday Morning Pit-Stop — the ‘Brake Check 1, 2, 3′ edition’ — is LIVE!
Carson Hocevar did it again
Let’s go ahead and congratulate William Byron right off the bat so we can move on to more exciting things.
Byron led a billion laps (362) on his way to absolutely destroying the field yesterday at Martinsville. It was his first win of the season. Chase Elliott finished second. Kyle Larson finished ninth, and now heads to Homestead basically needing to finish the race to win another championship.
Probably won’t be quite as exciting as the old Championship Four races, but everyone was so appalled at Joey Logano winning that one time that we got that taken away from us and now we get this.
Oh well.
Anyway, it was a good day for Hendrick Motorsports. Was it the most exciting Martinsville race ever? Lord no. Again, William Byron led 362 (!!!) laps. There wasn’t exactly that usual Martinsville drama …
At the front of the pack.
At the back of it, though? Where Carson Hocevar found himself locked in a tight battle with Austin Cindric?
Yeah, buddy, there was drama:
Nobody loved this move
Amazing. Look, I can’t even defend it. That was so hilariously obvious from Carson Hocevar, I don’t even know what to say.
He can sit there and feed us the BS “It’s just Martinsville” line, but that doesn’t quite work in the days of SMT data and instant replay. Not one, not two, not three, but FOUR brake checks before he finally destroyed the No. 2 car.
Just nasty work from Carson. Nasty, nasty work. Austin Cindric, by the way, declined the NBC interview after the race. I’d imagine that means he’s keeping his options on the table for next weekend’s finale and doesn’t want to tip his hand to NASCAR.
Just a guess.
And by the way, for those calling me a drama queen for not siding with Carson here …
I present to you Kenny Wallace:
“Holyeeee s–t!! I’ve never witnessed anything like this,” Wallace tweeted Sunday.
No? Still not good enough for you?
How about Corey LaJoie?
“Good God Almighty,” he said.
Two NASCAR drivers — one former, one current — both appalled at whatever the hell that was from Carson Hocevar. And I like Carson! I’ve defended him a ton this year. I think NASCAR desperately needs a villain, and I think he fills that role nicely.
But Lordy, this was a bad look. Even his own spotter was tired of it yesterday:
“Hey just go. Please? Just go.”
Like I said at the jump — it’s been a long season. You can hear it in Tyler Green’s voice. Don’t blame him.
As for the fans … they weren’t pleased, either.
Let’s take a look:
Ratings, Trump & Natalie, oh my!
So, there are a ton of fans calling for NASCAR to “park” Carson Hocevar. Feel like that’s a bit silly. There’s one race left. Feel like this is a spot where NASCAR can let the drivers work it out on the track, no? Who’s gonna get in line first next week at Homestead to wreck Carson Hocevar?
Austin Cindric? Ryan Blaney? Brad Keselowski? Zane Smith? He’s made so many enemies this year, I’ve lost count.
Head on a swivel when you get down here, Carson!
OK, let’s put the pedal to the floor and get to a couple quickies on the way out. First up?
Last week, we talked about NASCAR’s horrific ratings for the Phoenix race a few weeks back (1.2 million). It was awful. I said the folks in marketing should be alarmed by what they saw. Lord knows I was.
For what it’s worth, I do have it on good authority that those folks in NASCAR HQ are NOT worried about the number. They believe it’s been a decent season, and feel the numbers have been a little off due to Nielsen reporting things a little differently. That’s true, by the way.
Nielsen has changed its methodology in reporting. We don’t have time to get into it today, but there is some truth to that.
Anyway — as expected — a shift back to NBC and to Talladega got things somewhat back on track last week:
Not bad! 2.5 million. Up 1% from last year. Down from the 3.1 in 2024. On par with everything else the past five years.
Look, it’s fine. I’m sure NASCAR was thrilled to get that number back in the 2s. It was the highest-rated race since the season finale at Daytona in August.
Again, though, it was also back on NBC for the first time in months. Network TV was expected to give the Cup Series a much-needed boost, and it delivered. We’ll see what Martinsville looks like.
Next? Before we head on out, let’s all hop aboard Air Force One with Austin Dillon and get this election week started right!
“Air Force One with Pop Pop. God Bless the USA,” Dillon wrote on Instagram.
Pop Pop, for those who couldn’t piece it together, is Richard Childress. Those two accompanied Trump to his Daytona rally last Friday. I’m sure liberals handled it well!
In other news … this election season ends in, like, 36 hours.
Amen. I can’t wait.
OK, that’s it for today. Good start to November. One race left, folks. Let’s dial it in for one more race.
On the way out, here’s NASCAR driver Natalie Decker attending a horse race over the weekend.
Giddy-up.
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