Josh Berry addresses incident with Carson Hocevar ahead of Dover

Last weekend at Sonoma Raceway, Josh Berry got into Carson Hocevar and took away a strong finish from the 77 team. While Berry has at times been a critic of Hocevar, the NASCAR driver is saying he didn’t do anything intentionally.

With how much Carson Hocevar has upset other drivers and teams, it is a wonder he finishes any races. Hocevar was spun out and robbed of a top-10 finish after working hard all day at Sonoma to get to that point.

Speaking to the media at Dover, Josh Berry acknowledged his mistake. He tried to talk to Hocevar, but didn’t get a response.

“The 77 was a complete mistake on my part. I laid off at the bottom of one,” Berry told Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports. “I was trying to time it to where I could get up beside Carson and follow the 45 through, and just was too fast at the top of the hill, got too far left, ran into Carson, knocked him off the track. So, yeah, unfortunate. Obviously, I hate it for those guys. I tried calling Carson on Monday and sent him a text. Never heard anything back. Did talk to Luke [Lambert] Monday morning to apologize to those guys, and yeah, just part of racing. We were on old tires, and for me, just probably trying a little too hard in that situation.”

Josh Berry went on to finish P13. Meanwhile, Carson Hocevar finished P32. Not ideal for that 77 team as they close in on the playoffs and try to win their way into the postseason.

Josh Berry watched Ricky Stenhouse Jr. chew out Carson Hocevar

Remember back at Mexico City? When Ricky Stenhouse Jr. went up to Carson Hocevar’s car and laid into him verbally, it was exciting. Reporters tried to capture the moment as did TV. But Josh Berry was also there and he was watching closely as it was happening.

I’m not sure how Berry feels about Hocevar. He likely feels like most of the garage. Kid is talented but has to control himself on the track at times. So, who is to say what was a mistake and what was on purpose?

If Berry says it is a mistake, then it is. That is, until we get evidence to the contrary. Perhaps this isn’t the last time we see Berry and Hocevar into each other on the track.