Spire Motorsports now has an arm in all three NASCAR national divisions. On Tuesday, the team announced they will begin fielding the #77 Chevrolet Camaro in the Xfinity Series for series newcomer Carson Hocevar, complementing their two-car full-time operation in the Cup Series and part-time Craftsman Truck Series programme.
The #77’s first race will be at Dover Motor Speedway on 29 April followed by Charlotte Motor Speedway (27 May), Nashville Superspeedway (24 June), Michigan International Speedway (5 August), Darlington Raceway (2 September), and Bristol Motor Speedway (15 September).
Hocevar is currently in his third full season of Truck Series racing for Niece Motorsports. While he has yet to win a race, he has established himself as a quick driver who has come close to victory on several occasions; he has four runner-up finishes including three in 2022 en route to a tenth-place points run.
He finished twelfth at Dover in his lone Truck start there in 2020. At Charlotte, he was second in 2021 and led the most laps the following year before late contact dropped him out of the top ten. His 2022 Nashville race ended in third. Another runner-up came at the 2022 Darlington race, a year after he finished third and eleventh in two races. He finished sixth at Bristol in 2021, while also having a second in its dirt configuration in 2022.
“Carson Hocevar is a rising talent who earned the opportunity to compete in the NASCAR Xfinity Series,” said Spire Motorsports co-owner Jeff Dickerson. “Spire Motorsports prides itself on identifying talented race drivers who are still in the early stages of their career and pairing them with veterans who can help get the most out of that talent. Carson fits the bill perfectly. We’re eager to provide him with the opportunity to showcase his talent and work with Bono, Mike Greci, and the group from JR Motorsports.”
The effort will be supported by Xfinity stable JR Motorsports. Spire manager Mike Greci and crew chief Kevin “Bono” Manion, who also oversee the Truck division, will once again lead the programme.
“We’re looking forward to supporting Spire Motorsports and Carson for these six Xfinity Series races,” JRM Senior Vice President of Motorsports L.W. Miller said. “This is a great opportunity for Carson to take another step up the racing ladder while getting next-level experience with a solid team.”
Spire fields the #7 and #77 in the Cup Series for Corey LaJoie and Ty Dillon, respectively. In the Truck Series, Spire’s #7 won at Martinsville in 2022 with William Byron in just the vehicle’s third start. Much of the Truck team’s races during their maiden season that year were driven by drivers from Hendrick Motorsports, an ally of JRM and Spire. LaJoie drove the #7 truck in the 2023 opener at Daytona.
