Carson Hocevar has never shied away from attention.
Most of this season, however, that attention has come because of aggressive racing, heated rivalries and headline-grabbing moments on the track.
On Thursday night, the conversation shifted entirely.
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The 23-year-old Spire Motorsports driver traded his firesuit for a tailored black suit as he attended the TIME100 Sports Gala in New York City, where he became the first NASCAR driver recognized in TIME Sports’ Leaders category. Throughout the evening, Hocevar shared moments with some of the biggest names in sports and entertainment, including LeBron James and Prince Harry, highlighting just how far his profile has grown beyond NASCAR’s traditional audience.
Carson Hocevar’s celebrity-filled night in New York
Hocevar attended the gala alongside content creator Tabitha Swatosh before documenting the evening across social media.
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Among the highlights were photos with NBA legend LeBron James and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex. NASCAR’s official social media account even shared a recap of Hocevar’s evening, jokingly asking whether the song from Swatosh’s viral TikTok was “still stuck in your head.”
The celebrity encounters were more than just quick photo opportunities.
Speaking Friday at North Wilkesboro Speedway, Hocevar admitted he almost talked himself out of approaching James.
“I walked over and he was at his table,” Hocevar said. “I sat at a table far away from him and some guy came up to ask for a seat. He happened to know who I was and I knew him. He was like, ‘hey, I’m taking this seat over to LeBron, why don’t you walk over?’”
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What happened next surprised even Hocevar.
“And so, I walked over and you could tell his security guards just started to swarm in, and then all of a sudden, the guy put his hand up and that’s when LeBron stood up, took his glasses off and then we talked for a while. And then I was like, ‘man, I have to get a photo.’ It was cool.”
The conversation became even easier after James revealed an unexpected NASCAR connection.
According to Hocevar, one of James’ trainers has a son who currently races in North Carolina, immediately giving the two something to talk about beyond basketball.
His meeting with Prince Harry carried a more personal meaning.
Hocevar said his mother is a longtime admirer of Princess Diana and the royal family, making the opportunity impossible to pass up.
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“I think I was like, ‘man, I wouldn’t make my mom proud if I didn’t ask for a photo.’ That’s who she loves.”
Prince Harry happily obliged and even asked Hocevar to pass along his best wishes to his mother.
Hocevar says the recognition still feels surreal
For Hocevar, the evening represented far more than celebrity selfies.
Just a decade ago, he was a kid being told he was too young to race at his local short track. Now, he’s attending one of sports’ most exclusive events after becoming the first NASCAR driver selected for TIME Sports’ Leaders list.
Even he admits he still hasn’t fully wrapped his head around it.
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“Yeah, it’s great for me,” Hocevar said Friday. “You know, like I say all the time, my favorite driver was Dale (Earnhardt) Jr. I saw him everywhere, right? You saw him on MTV, the music awards and doing all these really cool things, so I just always thought that’s really what NASCAR drivers do. In the 2000s, it was probably a lot more realistic that they all do it.”
He also acknowledged that the invitation caught him by surprise.
“There’s a lot of times where I’m like, I don’t understand why I’m invited to these, but I’m definitely taking advantage of it, enjoying it, embracing it and just trying to have as much fun with it as possible, knowing that obviously it’s a really cool and once-in-a-lifetime experience for me at a lot of these events. But also, too, it’s obviously great for the sport.”
Despite the newfound mainstream attention, Hocevar says his priorities haven’t changed.
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Winning races remains the goal.
“Obviously, I want to win more, but I think it’s been proven a lot within the sport that you can win multiple races in a row and that doesn’t make your (name) outside the NASCAR bubble, right? If our viewership was based off the racing production, we’d have 10 million live viewers for Atlanta every single time, I think.”
For now, though, the TIME100 Sports Gala offered another reminder that Hocevar’s profile is growing well beyond NASCAR. Whether he was chatting with LeBron James, posing with Prince Harry or representing stock car racing on one of sports’ biggest stages, the evening underscored just how quickly one of NASCAR’s youngest stars is becoming one of its most recognizable faces.
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