Home

NASCAR

NASCAR’s Vegas Lineup Deems Spire Motorsports’ Rookie Ineligible for Championship Run as Fans Question Glaring Slip-Up

Published 02/27/2024, 1:03 AM EST

Follow Us

via Imago

Last September, the word got out that Zane Smith inked a sweet deal with Trackhouse Racing to join the big leagues in the Cup Series. But it was made clear that he’s not going to be behind the wheel for Trackhouse in 2024. Instead, he’d be heading over to Spire Motorsports, which is beefing up its squad to three cars thanks to snagging a charter (that’s NASCAR talk for a team slot) from Live Fast Motorsports.

To add to the buzz, in the first week of February 2024, McAnally-Hilgeman Racing threw in a shocker by announcing Zane’s going to hit some of the races in the 2024 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series on a part-time basis. Now, with NASCAR accidentally fumbling the details, fans are scratching their heads, trying to piece together where Zane’s really going to be a regular and where he’s just dropping in for a cameo.

NASCAR’s mess gets cleared up by the Fox reporter

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

Fox’s own Bob Pockrass recently hit Twitter to straighten out a NASCAR mix-up that had fans scratching their heads. He laid out who’s in the running for championship points in the big league, along with a shoutout to the truck racing crew. Normally, drivers not gunning for points get an “(i)” by their name, but whoops – there it was, sitting next to Zane Smith of Spire Motorsports on the Cup Series roster, suggesting he was out of the points race in Vegas. Talk about a typo!

Now, Zane’s no stranger to the NASCAR Cup series; he’s raced nine times, even snagging a 13th at last year’s Daytona 500 and a top 10 in the Coca-Cola 600. He’s even eyeing the Rookie of the Year title this year.

But when it came to the NASCAR Truck Series list, Zane’s name was missing that crucial “(i)”, leaving fans in a tizzy. Pockrass cleared the air with that Truck Series line-up Tweet, pointing out Zane should indeed have an “(i)” for the Truck Series since he’s chasing Cup points, not truck ones. He wrote, “32 trucks entered for Vegas. 1-Bell 7-Busch 45-Mosack 66-CJones 91-ZSmith (and he should have an (i) next to his name since he earns Cup points).” Last year, Zane made some noise in the Truck Series, winning races and consistently finishing strong.

But the confusion didn’t stop fans from flooding Pockrass’s comments, all bewildered over why Zane was marked as points-ineligible in the NASCAR Cup list. Looks like a little typo caused a big stir!

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

Puzzled fans ask the insider about Zane Smith’s status in the series

Trending

Get instantly notified of the hottest NASCAR stories via Google! Click on Follow Us and Tap the Blue Star.

Follow Us

Fans were totally scratching their heads over Zane Smith’s racing scene, hitting up Fox’s Bob Pockrass with a storm of questions. One fan was straight up like, “Bob, can you break it down for me why Zane Smith can’t snag championship points?” Meanwhile, others were tossing out their own puzzled thoughts, with gems like “Why is Zane smith ineligible,” “Zane smith not full time?,” and “Is Zane eligible for driver points.”

Then, there was the fan who thought they cracked the code, saying, “Zane needs a ! On this one and take off cup one.” Another chimed in, hoping to clear the air, “The (i) next to zane is a mistake, right?”

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

But hey, this is NASCAR we’re talking about – a little mix-up now and then is just part of the thrill. Chances are, folks will brush off this hiccup and zoom their focus on the next big race lighting up in Kyle Busch‘s neck of the woods, Las Vegas.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE :

Written by:

Neha Dwivedi

1,196Articles

One take at a time

Neha Dwivedi is a NASCAR Writer at EssentiallySports. As a journalist, she religiously believes in the power of research, which allows her readers to dive deep into her stories and experience the detailed nuances of the sport like never before. Being proficient with Core Sport and Live Event Coverage, she has written multiple copies on the top entities of Stock Car Racing, like Denny Hamlin, Chase Elliott, and Tony Stewart.
Show More>

Edited by:

Joyita Das