During the brawl between Ryan Blaney and Carson Hocevar at Bristol, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Ty Gibbs had a small contribution of his own, one that initially went unnoticed. As the two drivers traded punches, Gibbs tossed a water bottle toward the crowd, inadvertently putting himself in the hot seat over whether his actions could warrant a penalty. NASCAR now has an answer.
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Official Mike Forde revealed on the Hauler Talk podcast that Gibbs would escape a penalty. But that doesn’t mean they’re completely letting him off the hook either.
“He probably thought it was just a funny thing just to add to the moment … but obviously that could be dangerous,” Forde, who said that they would have a discussion with the #54 driver soon, said on the podcast.
This doesn’t come as a big surprise, considering neither Blaney nor Hocevar will be fined for their roles in the altercation either. The situation stemmed from an on-track tussle between the two drivers, which saw Blaney spin out and ultimately DNF with 43 laps remaining. He was classified 33rd as a result and dropped to sixth in the Chase standings, adding to his frustration and prompting him to confront Hocevar as soon as the Spire driver climbed out of his car.
However, what was supposed to be an aggressive confrontation quickly turned into the most physical fight of 2026, with Hocevar landing two big punches on the No. 12 driver’s face. Since it was a “heat-of-the-moment” incident between two drivers caught up in the intensity of the moment, though, NASCAR ultimately decided not to punish either of them.
Gibbs, however, was seen as the outside element in the brawl. The bottle he threw also struck Frontstretch director Michael Massie, who was recording the Blaney-Hocevar incident. Massie later revealed that the impact broke his phone, leading some members of the NASCAR media to call for Gibbs to be held accountable.
All said and done, Gibbs had a reason to be upset with Hocevar even before the moment he flung the bottle his way. The two were engaged in a heavy battle for the lead after the final restart and made contact several times. Gibbs came out on the losing end, dropping to fifth, while Hocevar finished third behind winner Joey Logano and Kyle Larson. After the checkered flag was waved, while entering the pit lane, Hocevar tried to take a swipe at Gibbs’ No. 54 Toyota.
Forde, speaking on the Hauler Talk podcast, acknowledged that Gibbs might have had a bone to pick with the No. 77 driver, who has become one of the more controversial figures in the garage in recent times. However, he noted that had the bottle struck someone in the wrong way, things could have taken a much uglier turn.
“If the cap portion of that water bottle hit someone in the eye, that could be a dangerous situation. So we plan to have a conversation this weekend in Kansas with Ty Gibbs, but no penalty,” Forde said.
Emotions were running high in the immediate aftermath of the race, and regardless of Hocevar’s increasingly menacing reputation, Blaney admitted that he didn’t want the situation to spiral out of control during a conversation with Denny Hamlin on his Actions Detrimental podcast.
“I wasn’t planning on throwing anything. I just really wanted to grab him and just kinda pretty much yell at him, and show my displeasure,” the Team Penske driver said. “But I look at it as, well, if someone comes up to me and then, granted, I kinda pushed him in the chest and kinda grabbed him pretty aggressively, you’re probably going to defend yourself. And he rightfully did.”
Hocevar, being Hocevar, milked the situation to his advantage. The eyes of the motorsports world were on him after Bristol, and he used the attention to promote his merchandise, offering fans a 12% discount for 12 hours as a small swipe at Blaney. It wasn’t the first time he had done something similar this season, either. He pulled the same stunt after wrecking Brad Keselowski at Darlington in the Chase opener, offering a 6% discount to his fans.
Blaney will likely not take the matter any further. But as Hamlin warned on his podcast, if Hocevar continues to disrespect his rivals off the track, this may not be the last fight he finds himself involved in.