Carson Hocevar continues to impress in Cup Series rookie season

The most impressive takeaway from Hocevar's rookie season, however, has been his ability to consistently perform above the abilities of his equipment. Sunday's 17th-place finish at New Hampshire marked Hocevar's 10th top-20 finish of the season in the 18th race of 2024 — already double that of Ty Dillon's 2023 mark when he drove Hocevar's No. 77 car. 

Hocevar's recent consistency has been especially impressive as the 21-year-old driver has top-17 finishes in the last four races. On Sunday, he proved he can still finish in the top half of the field even when presented with unorthodox circumstances. Running the final 82 laps of Sunday's USA Today 301 on wet-weather tires, Hocevar managed his track position and kept his Camaro pointed in the right direction.

With top-10 runs at Texas and St. Louis, Hocevar has also proven that he can compete with the top drivers in the series when given a chance. And with his only DNF coming in the season-opening Daytona 500, he's completed 96 percent of the laps run through the first half of the year. 

When looking at Hocevar's performance compared to that of his teammates, it's Hocevar who gets the gold star at Spire Motorsports. Veteran Corey Lajoie currently sits 29th in points while fellow rookie Zane Smith is 34th, the last of all full-time drivers and the only driver in the field who hasn't notched a top-10 finish through the first half of 2024. 

Hocevar showed flashes of potential when called upon to substitute in 2023, but he's taken the next step in 2024. If the No. 77 team continues to run inside the top 20, the top-10 runs will start to come — and maybe even a shot at Hocevar's first Cup Series victory.