Carson Hocevar has left a positive review for Cleetus McFarland’s top-5 ARCA finish at Talladega. The Spire Motorsports driver was captured supporting McFarland on Saturday afternoon’s Alabama Manufactured Housing 200.
Driving the No.30 Ford, McFarland began on the tenth row and two spots behind his YouTube collaborator, George Siciliano. The Nebraska native chased down the field and entered the top 10 with the guidance of his spotter, Kevin Hamlin.
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The race’s first restart saw him battling for the lead with polesitter Giovanni Ruggiero, and a timely push from Daniel Dye made him the race leader. McFarland reached the front row once again during the final lap, but his tussle with Gus Dean opened the door for Andy Jankowiak to take the checkered flag.
Hocevar caught the action from the sidelines and was cheering for McFarland the whole way. Under a NASCAR post dedicated to McFarland’s result, the Cup Series driver wrote,
“Was fun to watch.”
Cleetus McFarland and Carson Hocevar have been friends for a while now. The two were last spotted in NASCAR’s promo for the 2026 season.
Saturday’s result marks Cleetus McFarland’s second top-5 ARCA finish this season. The 30-year-old logged a P4 result at Rockingham earlier. Notably, McFarland was denied approval to compete in the O’Reilly race at Talladega.
The sanctioning body wanted him to gain more experience in short tracks before making the jump to superspeedways. CEO Steve O’Donnell called it the right call on NASCAR’s part.
However, McFarland is cleared for all Truck Series races.
Cleetus McFarland gets emotional after Talladega top-5
Cleetus McFarland shared an emotional message after his runner-up result at Talladega. During his post-race interview, McFarland proclaimed that he ‘gained a lot of confidence’ and ‘learned a lot about drafting’.
“What an insane day of racing and the greatest race I’ve ever been a part of in my life right there…..honestly the most fun I’ve had with clothes on,” McFarland said.
“I did get a smidge emotional, because I was just like, when we were under caution, I was sitting there thinking, like, ‘Oh man, I’m at the front of the stamp pack’”, he added, “I know a lot of people are supporting me. And like, I just saw some guys with their sleeves cut off in the crowd; just like the third time we’ve gone by under costume, they were just like this. And I was like, man, so I’m so lucky, dude.”
Cleetus McFarland is slated for another ARCA race at Michigan International Speedway and an O’Reilly Auto Parts Series race at Nashville.
Fans can watch the Nashville race on CW. The 188-lap event is scheduled for Saturday, May 30, at 7:30 PM ET. The Michigan ARCA race is scheduled a week later on June 5.
Edited by Vignesh Kanna
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