Hocevar Wins Trucks at Texas, Then Goes Out and Takes the Cup Pole
Friday, May 1, 2026
Carson Hocevar won the SpeedyCash.com 250 in overtime when Giovanni Ruggiero got loose in turn two on the final lap, and then went out Saturday and took the Cup pole at 191.340 mph.
The Short Version
Hocevar wins his second race in eight days — Talladega Cup last Sunday, Texas Trucks on Friday — after Ruggiero led out of the final caution and lost the car on the last lap. Ben Rhodes led 42 laps and finished fifth. Kaden Honeycutt third. The win sets up a weekend sweep attempt in Sunday’s Würth 400, where Hocevar starts from the pole.
What Happened
Ben Rhodes dominated the first 80 laps. He led 42 of them — more than anyone else in the race — won Stage 1, and built a gap that made the No. 99 look like the class of the field. The kind of performance that should convert.
It didn’t convert because Texas in 2026 produces cautions, and cautions reset everything. Eight of them across 172 laps. Hocevar worked his way forward through the cycles — won Stage 2, absorbed a lengthy pit stop issue on the right front at lap 75 that dropped him to fourth on the restart, then rebuilt from there.
The decisive sequence came at lap 156 when Stewart Friesen spun off turn four and backed into the wall. The red flag came out for cleanup. The field reset. Ruggiero, who had been quietly building toward the front all afternoon, cycled to the lead.
Overtime: Ruggiero leads from the inside, Hocevar outside. Both run side-by-side through turns one and two. Ruggiero edges ahead briefly in turn three. Then he gets loose. Hocevar clears off turn four. Final lap. Ruggiero gets sideways in turn two and drops back. Hocevar wins by 0.730 over Kyle Busch.
The Defining Moment
Ruggiero’s slide in turn two on the final lap. He had the lead, the position, and 64 laps of overtime track management behind him. Turn two took it away. Hocevar was alongside in the right place and cleared when the gap opened. The result went from Ruggiero’s to Hocevar’s in the span of one corner.
The One That Got Away
Ben Rhodes. He led 42 laps — more than Hocevar’s 76? No — Hocevar led 76. Rhodes led 42 and won Stage 1. He was the story of the first half. He finishes fifth. The dominant car doesn’t always win at Texas — not when the caution count hits eight and the pit cycles reshuffle the field three times in the final stage.
Numbers That Matter
- Winner: Carson Hocevar — No. 77 · Chevrolet
- Margin of Victory: 0.730 seconds
- Cautions: 8 for 39 laps
- Lead Changes: 14 among 9 leaders
- Stage 1: Ben Rhodes | Stage 2: Carson Hocevar
- Laps Led: Hocevar — 76 | Rhodes — 42 | Jones — 16 | Ruggiero — 22 | others — 16
- Fastest Lap: Jake Garcia — 182.834 mph (Lap 2)
Take
The streak is real. Talladega Cup win on April 26. Texas Trucks win on May 1. Whether that sequence changes how you watch the No. 77 Sunday is up to you — but it’s not a coincidence, and it’s not a superspeedway fluke. You don’t take the pole at a 1.5-mile intermediate by being lucky.
The question for Sunday is whether the Trucks result informs the Cup result or is simply a separate event. The track is the same. The tire wear patterns are the same. What Hocevar’s team learned about setup across 172 laps on Friday doesn’t disappear by Sunday morning.
Rhodes finishing fifth after leading the most laps early is the kind of result that reads worse than it was. He was the best truck in the first half. Texas just doesn’t protect that.
Notes
- Ruggiero led 22 laps and finished 14th — the overtime slip cost him a top-five. He had the pace to run with Hocevar all day.
- Busch finishes second — ran well throughout the final stage after a lap 18 flat right front sent him to pit road early.
- Honeycutt third — consistent presence at the front of the Trucks field all season.
- Frankie Muniz finishes 23rd, 168 laps completed — the novelty angle is losing steam; the results are what they are.
- The red flag at lap 158 reset a race that Ruggiero looked poised to win. That’s the moment the trajectory changed.