Drivers Ryan Blaney and Carson Hocevar will not be penalized for the post-race fight that followed Saturday night’s Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway, NASCAR said Monday.
Monday’s news came from a pair of podcasts, NASCAR CEO Steve O’Donnell announcing on Kevin Harvick’s show that the drivers will avoid penalties, and Blaney saying on Denny Hamlin’s podcast that “I went over there and got my ass kicked, for sure.”
Hocevar and Blaney tangled on pit road after their cars were involved in a late-race crash at Bristol. Blaney charged Hocevar as Hocevar stood beside his car on pit road, pushing and grabbing him. Hocevar responded with a hard right to Blaney’s face, and the fight continued as NASCAR officials and crew members from both teams moved in.
Although the drivers won’t be penalized, NASCAR continues to investigate the incident and hasn’t ruled out penalties for crew members.
“Drivers need to handle their business outside the car,” O’Donnell said. “We don’t want crew members jumping in. Drivers are going to handle their own business. We’re not going to encourage fighting, but we are going to encourage passion.”
On Hamlin’s podcast, Blaney apologized in general for his post-race actions.
“I try to act a certain way to what a kid would want to look up to, and I look back on those things, and I definitely regret the way I acted,” he said. “That’s really unlike me, but I was just frustrated, and you just do these things.”
Blaney said he approached Hocevar planning on having a “stern conversation. I wasn’t planning on throwing any. I just really wanted to grab him and pretty much yell at him and show my displeasure.”
Chris Graythen//Getty Images
Ryan Blaney says he shares the blame for the incident.
Blaney said both he and Hocevar can be blamed for the on-track incident, a view shared by some.
“I don’t think he’s 100 percent to blame,” he said. “I’m not 100 percent to blame. I think it was two guys fighting for the bottom (of the track) at Bristol.”
After smoke cleared from the fight, Hocevar said, “I understand why he’s (Blaney) upset. That’s probably his championship. So I understand 100 percent. And I’d probably be mad at me, too. Whether it was his mistake, my mistake, my fault or not, I’d be pretty pissed if I was him.”
Blaney said he doesn’t plan to talk to Hocevar this week about the fight.
The Chase moves on to Kansas Speedway this weekend, and repercussions from Saturday night are certain to be a topic in and around the Cup garage.
BASS PRO SHOPS NIGHT RACE—RACE RESULTS
Bristol Motor Speedway—Bristol, Tennessee, September 19, 2026
Pos/Driver/Team/Laps(Status)/Pts
1. Joey Logano (C), Shell Pennzoil Ford, Running (500 laps), 73
2. Kyle Larson (C), HendrickCars.com Chevrolet, Running (500 laps), 47
3. Carson Hocevar (C), Zeigler Auto Group Chevrolet, Running (500 laps), 41
4. Christopher Bell (C), DeWalt Toyota, Running (500 laps), 39
5. Ty Gibbs (C), M&M’s Kyle Busch Tribute Toyota, Running (500 laps), 47
6. Josh Berry, WURTH Ford, Running (500 laps), 38
7. Bubba Wallace (C), OUTLAW LIGHT Toyota, Running (500 laps), 36
8. Denny Hamlin (C), National Debt Relief Toyota, Running (500 laps), 37
9. William Byron (C), Raptor Chevrolet, Running (500 laps), 31
10. Ryan Preece (C), Body Guard by Fastenal Ford, Running (500 laps), 27
11. Austin Cindric (C), Menards/Richmond Water Heaters Ford, Running (500 laps), 30
12. Ross Chastain, Moose Fraternity Chevrolet, Running (500 laps), 32
13. Chris Buescher (C), Kroger/Kool-Aid/Little Bites Ford, Running (499 laps), 25
14. Daniel Suarez (C), Cal Ripken Sr. Foundation Chevrolet, Running (498 laps), 23
15. Brad Keselowski, BuildSubmarines.com Ford, Running (498 laps), 24
16. Noah Gragson, Rush Truck Centers/Cummins Ford, Running (498 laps), 21
17. Austin Dillon, Bass Pro Shops/Winchester Patriotic Chevrolet, Running (498 laps), 20
18. Tyler Reddick (C), SiriusXM Toyota, Running (497 laps), 19
19. Todd Gilliland, Love’s Travel Stops Ford, Running (497 laps), 18
20. Shane Van Gisbergen, SuperFile Chevrolet, Running (497 laps), 17
21. Michael McDowell, RCA Chevrolet, Running (497 laps), 16
22. AJ Allmendinger, Suburban Propane Chevrolet, Running (497 laps), 15
23. Chase Elliott (C), NAPA Gold Filters Chevrolet, Running (497 laps), 14
24. Connor Zilisch, Red Bull Chevrolet, Running (496 laps), 13
25. John Hunter Nemechek, Pye-Barker Fire & Safety Toyota, Running (495 laps), 12
26. Cole Custer, Texas A&M University Chevrolet, Running (495 laps), 11
27. Chase Briscoe (C), Bass Pro Shops Toyota, Suspension (494 laps), 10
28. Zane Smith, Aaron’s Rent To Own Ford, Running (494 laps), 9
29. Austin Hill (i), Rebel Bourbon Chevrolet, Running (494 laps), 0
30. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. Chef Boyardee Chevrolet, Running (490 laps), 7
31. Cody Ware, Rocket Doctor Chevrolet, Running (489 laps), 6
32. Erik Jones, Dollar Tree Toyota, Running (483 laps), 5
33. Ryan Blaney (C), WABASH Ford, Accident (457 laps), 19
34. Riley Herbst, Monster Energy Toyota, Suspension (432 laps), 3
35. Alex Bowman, Ally Chevrolet, Accident (428 laps), 2
36. Ty Dillon, Grizzly Nicotine Pouches Chevrolet, Running (402 laps), 1
37. Josh Bilicki (i), Flair Spirits Ford, Suspension (338 laps), 0
Fastest Lap: Kyle Larson (No. 5 Chevrolet) — Lap 8, 15.337 seconds.
Time of Race: 3 hours, 2 minutes, 20 seconds
Average Speed: 87.697 mph
Margin of Victory: 1.248 seconds
Stage 1 Top 10: Joey Logano, Kyle Larson, Denny Hamlin, Ross Chastain, Ty Gibbs, Ryan Blaney, Austin Cindric, Carson Hocevar, Brad Keselowski, Bubba Wallace.
Stage 2 Top 10: Ryan Blaney, Ty Gibbs, Joey Logano, Josh Berry, Christopher Bell, Bubba Wallace, Carson Hocevar, William Byron, Kyle Larson, Chris Buescher.
Race Winner: Joey Logano, No. 22 Shell Pennzoil Ford. Logano won the Bass Pro Shops Night Race for his 40th NASCAR Cup Series victory.
Race Notes: This was Logano’s third victory and 12th top-10 finish of 2026, and his third victory and 13th top-10 finish in 33 races at Bristol Motor Speedway. Kyle Larson finished second for his 16th top-10 finish of 2026 and 15th top-10 at Bristol. Carson Hocevar finished third for his third top-10 at Bristol. Connor Zilisch was the highest-finishing rookie in 24th. Kyle Larson leads the point standings by one point over Denny Hamlin.
Caution Flags: 10 cautions for 78 laps.
Lead Changes: 13 among six drivers.
Next Race: September 27, 2026—Kansas Speedway.
NASCAR CUP SERIES DRIVER STANDINGS
After the Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway
Pos/Driver/Points
1. Kyle Larson (C), 2206
2. Denny Hamlin (C), 2205
3. Joey Logano (C), 2190
4. Christopher Bell (C), 2189
5. Ty Gibbs (C), 2164
6. Ryan Blaney (C), 2154
7. Tyler Reddick (C), 2145
8. Carson Hocevar (C), 2121
9. Chase Briscoe (C), 2119
10. Bubba Wallace (C), 2114
11. Austin Cindric (C), 2090
12. Chase Elliott (C), 2089
13. William Byron (C), 2085
14. Ryan Preece (C), 2082
15. Chris Buescher (C), 2082
16. Daniel Suarez (C), 2072
17. Shane Van Gisbergen, 647
18. Brad Keselowski, 615
19. Ross Chastain, 592
20. Michael McDowell, 570
21. Erik Jones, 549
22. Todd Gilliland, 520
23. AJ Allmendinger, 514
24. Josh Berry, 501
25. Austin Dillon, 494
26. Zane Smith, 477
27. John Hunter Nemechek, 465
28. Alex Bowman, 456
29. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. 450
30. Riley Herbst, 415
31. Noah Gragson, 376
32. Cole Custer, 370
33. Ty Dillon, 324
34. Connor Zilisch, 317
35. Cody Ware, 223
36. Casey Mears, 13
37. Kevin Magnussen, 11
38. Jimmie Johnson, 9
39. Katherine Legge, 8
40. BJ McLeod, 4
41. Corey Heim (i), 0
42. Harrison Burton (i), 0
43. Austin Hill (i), 0
44. JJ Yeley (i), 0
45. Justin Allgaier (i), 0
46. Daniel Dye (i), 0
47. Jesse Love (i), 0
48. Chad Finchum (i), 0
49. Joey Gase (i), 0
50. Anthony Alfredo (i), 0
51. Josh Bilicki (i), 0
52. Timmy Hill (i), 0
53. Gray Gaulding (i), 0
54. Corey LaJoie (i), 0
55. Chandler Smith (i), 0
Points Leader: Kyle Larson leads the NASCAR Cup Series standings with 2,206 points, one point ahead of Denny Hamlin.
Mike Hembree has covered auto racing for numerous media outlets, including USA Today, NASCAR Scene, NBC Sports, The Greenville News and the SPEED Channel. He has been roaming garage areas and pit roads for decades (although the persistent rumor that he covered the first Indianapolis 500 is not true). Winner of numerous motorsports and other media awards, he also has covered virtually every other major sport. He lives near Gaffney, South Carolina and can be convinced to attend Bruce Springsteen concerts if you have tickets.