NASCAR spotter calls for punishment of Zane Smith crew chief after Carson Hocevar confrontation

Following the Iowa Corn 350 there was a contentious moment on the track between Carson Hocevar and Zane Smith’s crew chief. Ryan Bergenty, Smith’s crew chief, interrupted an interview Hocevar was doing with some harsh words.

The interaction was caught on camera by journalist Stephen Stumpf, who was conducting the interview. And the less than flattering things Bergenty had to say quickly made headlines.

Now, a NASCAR spotter is calling for punishment. Brett Griffin, who has spotted for various teams over the years and has occasionally appeared on the Door Bumper Clear podcast, took to Twitter to express his disappointment in the interaction.

“Crew member is way outta bounds if it’s not the crew chief,” Griffin tweeted. “I’ve been there. Glad the driver didn’t open his motorhome door when I was banging on it. Fine his ass.”

The initial reporting by Stumpf simply identified the aggressor in the confrontation as a crew member for Zane Smith’s team. Later, he was identified as Bergenty.

On the video of the interview, Bergenty can be heard initiating the conversation with Carson Hocevar. He wasn’t overly demonstrative, but he was forceful.

“Hey, when are you going to learn to f****** drive, dude?” Bergenty said, per Stumpf. “I mean you wiped us the f*** out.”

Stumpf, who was conducting the interview with Carson Hocevar, would add more context, as well. He noted that Bergenty questioned Hocevar’s driving ability. “Our car is fucking wrecked because you drive like a f****** r****d,” Bergenty said, per Stumpf.

Hocevar had an eventful day on the track, as Smith’s team was not the only one to take issue with Hocevar. Shane van Gisbergen also voiced his displeasure after an incident.

Van Gisbergen (inside) was driving alongside Joey Logano (outside) when Hocevar flew to the inside of the track, pushing them three-wide. Van Gisbergen made contact with Logano, but luckily neither of the two spun. Still, it left van Gisbergen fuming, at least by his standards.

“Hey, go apologize to the 22,” van Gisbergen told his crew chief. “That wanker in the 77 just shoved it three-wide.”

For his part, Carson Hocevar seemed unapologetic after the race. He posted to his Instagram account with the song “IDGAF” by Drake. In the post was a picture of a ticket counter, a reference to another journalist’s critical tweet after the race. You can find more on that here.