The 2024 Cup season has been hard on one of the rookies at Spire Motorsports. While Carson Hocevar stands 22nd in the driver’s rankings, his teammate Zane Smith is in a dismal 34th place. The Craftsman Truck champion secured a decent 13th-place finish in Daytona, and after that, it had been downhill for Smith. Now he is reeling under the pressure of a wreck at the ‘Too Tough to Tame’ Darlington Raceway, and fans are none too sympathetic.

Zane Smith attracts the ire of fans after repeat failures

Starting 27th in the race, Zane Smith could not get into the good books of the ‘Lady in Black’. Instead of improving his chances, the Spire rookie lost track position. Then, with 21 laps to go in the second stage, Smith spun out of turn 4 while running 31st on lap 164 of the Goodyear 400 race.  He lost control of the wheel and slammed the inside wall. The No. 71 Chevrolet sustained damage to the front end and cut both right-side tires.

NASCAR fans instantly took to Twitter to bash Smith’s disposition. Referring to his frequent encounters with wrecks, one fan said, “Zane smith every weekend just becomes a crash test dummy”. In recent events, Smith had collided with Kaz Grala at a Dover practice race. Another fan echoed the repetitive feeling: “Zane Smith’s stock goes down every race.”

Others passed a verdict on his freefalling fortune. After Smith’s Craftsman Truck victories, he is taking longer to adjust to the Cup tracks. So a fan said this year might not be for Smith. “This year may make Zane Smith lose most of his reputation as a good stock car driver. I know he could still be good in the lower series, but damn he’s is absolutely horrid this year”.

Hence, unless the No. 71 Spire team gets to work on a war footing, Zane Smith’s season might be bleak.