BROOKLYN, Mich. (AP) — Carson Hocevar grew up 80 miles west of Michigan International Speedway, where he attended his first race at the age of 5.
As a kid in Portage, he dreamed of becoming a NASCAR driver that people talked about.
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Kyle Larson is introduced to fans prior to a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 25, 2025, in Concord, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)
Ryan Blaney celebrates after winning a NASCAR Cup Series auto race Sunday, June 1, 2025, in Lebanon, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
Carson Hocevar steers down the front stretch during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 25, 2025, in Concord, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)
Driver Carson Hocevar attends a NASCAR press conference in Brooklyn, Michigan on Saturday, June 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Larry Lage)
The 22-year-old Hocevar got his wish.
He knocked Ricky Stenhouse Jr. out of last week's race at Nashville and his aggressive style has created a buzz in a sport that traditionally has young drivers trying to find the line between aggressive and reckless driving.
“It's cool to be talked about,” Hocevar said Saturday, a day ahead of the FireKeepers Casino 400. “Obviously, you want to be talked about maybe in a different light.
"But I mean, at least they’re talking, right? And, I think that’s big for me.”
Hocevar called Stenhouse earlier in the week to discuss their contact on Lap 106 of 300 at Nashville, where Stenhouse was bumped from behind and sent into a wall. Both said the conversation was productive.
“I don't think he crashed me on purpose,” Stenhouse said. "But I think he was super impatient.
“We've never had any issues. He's had plenty of issues with other people.”
Hocevar, in his second full Cup season, was behind only winner Ryan Blaney at Nashville to match the career-best, second-place finish he had earlier this year.
At the race in Atlanta, several drivers complained about Hocevar over the radio or some addressed their concerns face to face in pit lane. Blaney, who got turned by Hocevar in the final stage of the race, and Ross Chastain confronted him in February.
Chastain sounded frustrated that Hocevar, who drives the No. 77 Chevrolet for Spire Motorsports, has not appeared to learn from his mistakes.
His latest move was reckless, Chastain said.
“Yeah, 47 spun off his front bumper,” he said. “Been there, done that.”
Blaney has, too.
“You can say you’re sorry all you want, but if you don’t learn from them and make a change, then everyone thinks you’re lying,” Blaney said.
NASCAR’s “In-season Challenge” will begin seeding drivers Sunday and at the following two races in Mexico City and at Pocono. The results will create a field of 32 drivers, who will race for a $1 million prize over a five-race competition starts June 28 at Atlanta.
Single elimination will reduce the field to 16 in Chicago, eight at Sonoma, four in Dover and the final two on July 27 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
The NBA has had success with a similar format.
“It’s like the March Madness bracket,” said Blaney, whose No. 12 Ford finished first last week at Nashville. "You want to do well to seed yourself against an easier opponent.
"It could be big. It could grow. I think it’s a great idea. Why not try it? You’re still going to have racing. It’s just going to be a race within the race between all the guys.”
Denny Hamiln is prepared to leave his No. 11 Toyota behind this weekend to join his fiancé, Jordan, who is due to give birth to a baby boy — their third child — at any time.
Hamlin, who is also juggling his role as the co-owner of a team suing NASCAR, said he would skip next week's race in Mexico City if necessary to witness the birth of his boy.
Hendrick Motorsports has won a record 316 Cup races, but hasn't finished first at Michigan in more than a decade.
Jeff Gordon's third win on the track was the team's ninth and that was way back on Aug. 17, 2014.
“It's just kind of surprising because I don’t feel like it’s a track that we struggle at by any means,” said Kyle Larson, who drives the No. 5 Chevrolet for Hendrick. "Every time we've been here, we’ve been one of the fastest and up front.
“It’s not a track like Nashville, where where we struggle.”
Larson at +300 is the betting favorite to win Sunday, according to BetMGM Sportsbook, followed by points leader William Byron (+375), defending race champion Tyler Reddick (+500) and Christopher Bell (+550).
AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
Kyle Larson is introduced to fans prior to a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 25, 2025, in Concord, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)
Ryan Blaney celebrates after winning a NASCAR Cup Series auto race Sunday, June 1, 2025, in Lebanon, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
Carson Hocevar steers down the front stretch during a NASCAR Cup Series auto race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Sunday, May 25, 2025, in Concord, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt Kelley)
Driver Carson Hocevar attends a NASCAR press conference in Brooklyn, Michigan on Saturday, June 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Larry Lage)
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran wants to negotiate with Washington after his threat to strike the Islamic Republic over its bloody crackdown on protesters, a move coming as activists said Monday the death toll in the nationwide demonstrations rose to at least 544.
Iran had no immediate reaction to the news, which came after the foreign minister of Oman — long an interlocutor between Washington and Tehran — traveled to Iran this weekend. It also remains unclear just what Iran could promise, particularly as Trump has set strict demands over its nuclear program and its ballistic missile arsenal, which Tehran insists is crucial for its national defense.
Meanwhile Monday, Iran called for pro-government demonstrators to head to the streets in support of the theocracy, a show of force after days of protests directly challenging the rule of 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranian state television aired chants from the crowd, who shouted “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!”
Trump and his national security team have been weighing a range of potential responses against Iran including cyberattacks and direct strikes by the U.S. or Israel, according to two people familiar with internal White House discussions who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
“The military is looking at it, and we’re looking at some very strong options,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday night. Asked about Iran’s threats of retaliation, he said: “If they do that, we will hit them at levels that they’ve never been hit before.”
Trump said that his administration was in talks to set up a meeting with Tehran, but cautioned that he may have to act first as reports of the death toll in Iran mount and the government continues to arrest protesters.
“I think they’re tired of being beat up by the United States,” Trump said. “Iran wants to negotiate.”
He added: “The meeting is being set up, but we may have to act because of what’s happening before the meeting. But a meeting is being set up. Iran called, they want to negotiate.”
Iran through country's parliamentary speaker warned Sunday that the U.S. military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if America uses force to protect demonstrators.
More than 10,600 people also have been detained over the two weeks of protests, said the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has been accurate in previous unrest in recent years and gave the death toll. It relies on supporters in Iran crosschecking information. It said 496 of the dead were protesters and 48 were with security forces.
With the internet down in Iran and phone lines cut off, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll. Iran’s government has not offered overall casualty figures.
Those abroad fear the information blackout is emboldening hard-liners within Iran’s security services to launch a bloody crackdown. Protesters flooded the streets in the country’s capital and its second-largest city on Saturday night into Sunday morning. Online videos purported to show more demonstrations Sunday night into Monday, with a Tehran official acknowledging them in state media.
In Tehran, a witness told the AP that the streets of the capital empty at the sunset call to prayers each night. By the Isha, or nighttime prayer, the streets are deserted.
Part of that stems from the fear of getting caught in the crackdown. Police sent the public a text message that warned: “Given the presence of terrorist groups and armed individuals in some gatherings last night and their plans to cause death, and the firm decision to not tolerate any appeasement and to deal decisively with the rioters, families are strongly advised to take care of their youth and teenagers.”
Another text, which claimed to come from the intelligence arm of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, also directly warned people not to take part in demonstrations.
“Dear parents, in view of the enemy’s plan to increase the level of naked violence and the decision to kill people, ... refrain from being on the streets and gathering in places involved in violence, and inform your children about the consequences of cooperating with terrorist mercenaries, which is an example of treason against the country,” the text warned.
The witness spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity due to the ongoing crackdown.
The demonstrations began Dec. 28 over the collapse of the Iranian rial currency, which trades at over 1.4 million to $1, as the country’s economy is squeezed by international sanctions in part levied over its nuclear program. The protests intensified and grew into calls directly challenging Iran’s theocracy.
Nikhinson reported from aboard Air Force One.
In this frame grab from video obtained by the AP outside Iran, a masked demonstrator holds a picture of Iran's Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi during a protest in Tehran, Iran, Friday, January. 9, 2026. (UGC via AP)
In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran shows protesters taking to the streets despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026.(UGC via AP)
In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran showed protesters once again taking to the streets of Tehran despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (UGC via AP)
