NASCAR is not penalizing anyone for the Bristol fight, and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. responded to that news with a single emoji on X. He has reason to notice. Stenhouse was fined $75,000 for throwing a punch in 2024.
NASCAR CEO Steve O’Donnell confirmed Monday on Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour podcast that neither Carson Hocevar nor Ryan Blaney would be punished for their pit-road fight at Bristol Motor Speedway. The fight has dominated motorsports coverage all week.
“If drivers are going to handle their own business, the way we looked at that, how it played out, we’re not going to encourage fighting, but what we are going to encourage is passion, right? And those are two guys, Blaney’s showing his passion, showing his fire.”
“So no, there’s nothing coming from us in terms of [penalties]. We’ll obviously watch what happens the rest of the way, but nothing in terms of post-race penalties.”
NASCAR said Monday it was still reviewing crew members who joined the scrum. It closed that door Tuesday and announced that no penalties would come from the Bristol weekend at all.
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Why Stenhouse Paid and These Two Did Not
Stenhouse’s fine came after the 2024 All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway, where Kyle Busch wrecked him early. Stenhouse waited at Busch’s hauler until the race ended, then punched him in the side of the face as both teams scuffled. It stood as NASCAR’s largest fine for a fight.
The difference NASCAR drew was timing. Officials said drivers could not wait hours after a race and then start a fight. The Bristol fight started seconds after the checkered flag, with Hocevar still sitting in his car on pit road.
There is precedent for that split. NASCAR took no action in 2023 when Noah Gragson and Ross Chastain fought right after the Kansas race, which officials also treated as a heat-of-the-moment reaction.
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None of that changes what Bristol cost Blaney. He led a race-high 202 laps before the contact with Hocevar put him in the wall. His 33rd-place finish dropped him to sixth in the Chase standings, 52 points behind leader Kyle Larson. Hocevar finished third and sits eighth, 85 points back and 33 behind Blaney.
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