Dale Earnhardt Jr supports NASCAR villains and troublemakers, and this stance shook up the racing world after his recent defense of Spire Motorsports driver Carson Hocevar. Last weekend in Kansas City, following a hotly contested Craftsman Truck Series race, Hocevar sparked controversy when he flashed the middle finger out of his window, flipping off the crowd after besting Layne Riggs. He later said he only wanted to make the show more entertaining, but the reactions—both in the stands and throughout the sport—were immediate and divided. In the midst of the uproar, Dale Earnhardt Jr made his position clear: NASCAR needs personalities like Hocevar to keep the sport alive and unpredictable.
In a discussion on his Dale Jr. Download podcast, Dale Earnhardt Jr did not shy away from defending those drivers who step outside the strict moral lines often drawn by corporate sponsors and team owners. He argued,
“Having a wild card out there, or two or three or four or five, who you’re not sure what kind of f****** decision they’re going to make down in the next corner is kind of good.”
He stressed the importance of having a mix of competitors, saying,
“You’ve got to have the good guy, the villain, and the f*** up. You have gotta have the guy who can’t get it right. You gotta have the guy who is stupid fast but a terrible decision maker. You need to have all these different people with all these different variables and throw them all in the bucket. Put them in the cage! See what happens.”
While many in the garage and sponsor suites prefer drivers to toe the company line, Dale Earnhardt Jr supports NASCAR villains and troublemakers precisely because they defy expectations and inject the sport with genuine emotion. Hocevar, for his part, has been testing the boundaries of acceptable conduct on the racetrack, unsettling his peers and frustrating competitors, but remaining within the rulebook. To Junior and much of the fan base, that’s exactly what keeps NASCAR from becoming stale. Trackhouse Racing’s Ross Chastain is another recent example, recognized for rattling competitors and engaging fans, at least until corporate pressure forced him to tone down his approach.
Fans quickly voiced strong agreement with Junior’s perspective. Reactions poured in on social media, with one fan posting,
“Good take on it. I agree.”
Another echoed, “Jr. is not wrong,” and others praised the “edginess” and “confidence” of troublemakers in the field:
“I dig the edginess 2. The wearing it and owning it ‘tude. Confident. Brazen. No hiding it. Out there. Damn I’m good… that style.”
The sentiment reflected an enthusiasm for characters who refuse to conform, a rare but treasured presence in today’s sanitized NASCAR paddock.
Cases like Ross Chastain reinforce Dale Earnhardt Jr’s point. Chastain was long known as one of the sport’s most aggressive drivers until a 2023 phone call from Rick Hendrick handed him a stark ultimatum to respect the unwritten rules or face the consequences. After that, Chastain became less outspoken, a transformation the fans have noticed and often lament. One social media user highlighted this shift, arguing,
“Mr. Hendrick should have never made that call to Chastain! Stay in your lane, Sir! Fans love the ‘bad boys”
! They shake things up, and that is exactly what NASCAR needs – back to old school!”
Hocevar himself has not openly admitted to flipping off the Kansas crowd, and Dale Earnhardt Jr acknowledged his caution, hinting that any open endorsement of such defiance could provoke disciplinary action from NASCAR. Junior explained,
“I think that drivers have kind of been programmed to never own up to doing anything wrong or nefarious over the last several years.”
This programming, he implies, is stifling the authenticity that once made the sport magnetic.
It’s not just Dale Earnhardt Jr who is advocating for more troublemakers in the ranks; other respected names like Kyle Petty and Kevin Harvick also believe that the aggression and bold personalities displayed by drivers like Hocevar are crucial for raising the excitement level of the sport. Despite the clear risks—both to the racers themselves and the expensive machinery they battle for control of each week—the push for NASCAR to retain its rough edges continues to resonate through much of the fan base.
The defense of NASCAR’s troublemakers by Dale Earnhardt Jr sends a strong and controversial message. By standing behind drivers like Hocevar and Chastain, he challenges NASCAR leadership and sponsors to rethink their approach to driver image and competition. If Junior’s support inspires more drivers to drop their pre-rehearsed façade, the sport could see a wave of renewed energy and suspense. The impact on NASCAR’s culture and fan engagement could be significant, but only time will tell whether the sport will embrace this call for authenticity or double down on order and compliance.
