Carson Hocevar won the last NASCAR Cup Series race at Talladega Superspeedway. The Spire Motorsports driver earned his first career Cup win in the Jack Link’s 500 on April 26.
He heads back to Talladega for Sunday’s YellaWood 500, the eighth race of the Chase, the postseason for NASCAR’s top motorsports series.
Qualifying was rained out in April, and Hocevar started 12th. He led 19 of the final 37 laps and held off the field on three late restarts.
One of those restarts followed a Lap 182 caution. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. made contact with Hocevar, who was sent into Erik Jones, according to NASCAR.com.
On the last lap, Hocevar got a push from Alex Bowman and passed Chris Buescher. He beat Buescher to the line by 0.114 seconds.
Bowman finished third, Chase Elliott was fourth and Zane Smith was fifth.
A 26-car crash on Lap 115 began when Ross Chastain made contact with leader Bubba Wallace. It brought out a red flag of about 10 minutes.
Wallace, Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano were among the drivers who could not continue. Christopher Bell led a race-high 31 laps and finished 17th.
Hocevar celebrated by riding around the track on his car’s door sill. He also brushed the outside wall during his burnout and climbed onto the roof to cheer with the crowd, according to NBC Sports.
“This is the biggest dream I’ve ever thought of,” Hocevar said after the race, according to NASCAR.com. He added, “Hopefully, my grandfather is watching.”
The No. 77 carried the Chili’s scheme that day. This weekend, Hocevar will drive the No. 77 Spectrum Chevrolet.
“I already enjoyed going to Talladega, but coming back after winning will be a really fun experience,” Hocevar said in the release.
He also pointed to a goal tied to his childhood favorite driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr. “Dale, Jr., was my favorite driver as a kid, and he swept the races in 2002,” Hocevar said. “It would be really cool if I could join him on that list.”
Hocevar has one win and three top-10 finishes in six career Cup starts at Talladega, according to Spire.
The fall race at Talladega has a different defending winner. Chase Briscoe won the October 2025 YellaWood 500 in overtime, beating Todd Gilliland by 0.145 seconds.
Hocevar arrives after a late-race run-in with Zane Smith at Phoenix, where he finished 12th. The YellaWood 500 is set for Sunday, Oct. 25.