Carson Hocevar explains meaning behind flipping off Layne Riggs at Kansas

You know, Carson Hocevar might be a NASCAR Cup Series driver, but he still has a little bit of maturing to do on and off the track. Tonight, after contact with Layne Riggs on the final lap, Hocevar let his middle finger fly out of the window for the final stretch of the race.

Look, it’s NASCAR, middle fingers happen. Carson Hocevar gave Layne Riggs the middle finger after the two drivers fought hard for the lead on the final lap at Kansas. A lot of emotion and adrenaline were flowing at the time.

While Riggs mentioned it post-race, he didn’t seem too bothered by the middle finger. But Hocevar still had to talk about it when he went to the media center after his celebration in Victory Lane.

“It was somewhat friendly, right? It was just kind … yeah, I don’t, I don’t remember what I really did to be honest,” Hocevar said, via Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports. “No, if anything, I just wanted to remind him, really, of just like, hey, I still won, I guess. I don’t know. But at the end of the day, he did a really good job.

“He’s super, super talented. That group built a really fast truck. I remember watching Zane [Smith] go on to win against us in that truck. It’s all harm, no foul, and I’m sure my bird is real small to just hit and contact. So, it’s all friendly, and when I see him, I’m sure we’ll laugh about it.”

In other words, I got excited and don’t know why I did it. That’s pretty much what he’s saying. My bad, shouldn’t have done it, but whatever.

Carson Hocevar says no harm, no foul. I tend to agree with that. However, it’s up to Layne Riggs to decide that at this point. Perhaps Riggs is more satisfied that he brought a Cup Series driver to the point of reacting like Hocevar did. I know I would be.

The middle finger is whatever. It’s funny, dramatic, and is a viral moment. It also shows more of that fiery personality from the 22-year-old. But the real story from tonight is how damn good Riggs is.

If you didn’t know who was driving that truck and only saw the 34 riding the wall inches from it to make a last-lap pass attempt for the lead, you would think it was Larson, Reddick, or Bell. No, it was Layne Riggs.

Congratulations to Riggs. A fantastic finish, and he once again went head-to-head with a Cup Series driver. While he fell short again, finishing P2, he pushed one of the sport’s best to his limit today, and it showed.