Last week in Atlanta, Carson Hocevar put a spotlight and maybe a target on himself with the way he raced on the track. Hocevar had the ire of Kyle Busch, Ryan Blaney, Ross Chastain, and possibly even Hendrick Motorsports.

Connor Zilisch had just crossed the finish line at Circuit of The Americas (COTA), claiming a dramatic victory in the Focused Health 250. The post Not Ready to Be “NASCAR’s Villain” Himself, 18 YO Connor Zilisch Passes 7 Worded Sly Dig at Carson Hocevar appeared first on EssentiallySports.

The 22-year-old NASCAR driver will be starting up front in another Cup Series race after earning a Top Five finish.

The NASCAR Cup Series is headed to the storied Austin track, Circuit of the Americas, this week. The road course has plenty of drama on its own, but changes to the track this year, some bubbling beef in the garage and an 18-year-old phenom’s debut make this Sunday’s race a must-see event.

Shane van Gisbergen (circled) spins after being hit by Tyler Reddick. Image: Fox Sports Returning to the scene of his

1. Joey Logano, 126. 2. Austin Cindric, 106. 3. Josh Berry, 56. 4. Kyle Busch, 55. 5. Ross Chastain, 25.

Carson Hocevar produced his career-best NASCAR Cup finish Sunday in Atlanta Motor Speedway’s Ambetter Health 400, but while the 22-year-old may have been happy, there were some drivers who were not happy with him.

3. Tyler Reddick, 111. 4. Christopher Bell, 95. 8. Michael McDowell, 85. 10. Ricky Stenhouse Jr, 80. 11. Austin Cindric, 80.

18. Shane Van Gisbergen, 2. 21. Christopher Bell, 1. 21. Carson Hocevar, 1. For more than a century, Times Union photographers have been documenting the Capital Region’s fascinating people ...