Hocevar Takes Talladega, NASCAR'S future under Steve O'Donnell + Responding to Stephen A. Smith
4/28/202654 min
Kevin Harvick and Will Buxton take you around the world for the ultimate weekly breakdown of the global motorsports landscape. From the high-banked chaos of NASCAR’s Talladega to the high-tech precision of Formula 1, SPEED delivers expert analysis, unfiltered opinions, and inside access you won't find anywhere else.In this episode, the racing world is reeling from a massive corporate shakeup: Jim France is out as NASCAR CEO, and Kevin Harvick gives us the exclusive breakdown of what the Steve O’Donnell era means for the future of the sport.The guys also dive deep into: Talladega Chaos: Carson Hocevar’s maiden Cup win and the 26-car "Big One." The Athlete Debate: Will & Kevin fire back at Stephen A. Smith’s controversial comments regarding NASCAR drivers' athleticism. The Cleetus Effect: Cleetus McFarland nearly pulls off the upset of the century in ARCA. Global Speed: New F1 regs, NHRA records, Ken Roczen’s Supercross surge, and Katherine Legge’s Indy 500 news. Replay Review: From SVG’s dog relieving himself in the Talladega infield to Jason Kelce joining a pit crew, we review the wildest highlights of the week. Chapters:0:00 Intro0:40 Hot Topics0:50 NASCAR'S New CEO3:00 Under The Hood: NASCAR's New Leadership4:45 FIA Announces Changes To Regulations In F17:58 Turkish Grand Prix Returns8:30 AUDI Appoints Allan McNish9:00 Carson Hocevar Wins At Talladega12:30 Cleetus McFarland Finishes 2nd16:15 Corey Day Wins At Talladega17:00 NHRA Recap17:30 Supercross17:53 MotoGP18:15 Rest of Hot Topics20:20 Driver Of The Week25:40 Buxton's Breakdown: Responding To Stephen A. Smith34:00 The Racing Line42:00 Replay Review46:32 Final Lap50:16 Wrecks of the Week Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsKevin Harvick· Host0:00
With Steven A. Smith, this guy has no clue about racing. If you don't know anything about racing, just keep your opinion to yourself.
Will Buxton· Host0:06
Rally drivers are a different breed. Bravery beyond bravery.
Kevin Harvick· Host0:10
The crowd reaction for Cletus McFarland was unbelievable.
Will Buxton· Host0:14
Why does he divide the fan base?
Kevin Harvick· Host0:17
There is a showman piece of what you are responsible for. You can either lean into that, or you can just be one of the other guys.
Will Buxton· Host0:24
I like that we're always on the same wavelength with this.
Kevin Harvick· Host0:27
I love it.
Will Buxton· Host0:27
[upbeat music] Welcome to Speed with Harvick and Buxton, fueled by POET.
Kevin Harvick· Host0:36
Let's talk racing, Will.
Will Buxton· Host0:38
A lot of news, uh, going on in NASCAR this weekend. Aside from what was going on on track, you've had a massive shakeup in NASCAR right at the top of the sport.
Kevin Harvick· Host0:50
Yes. Uh, Steve O'Donnell, uh, has been named CEO of, of NASCAR with Jim France stepping down as, as CEO and still chairman of the board. Uh, Ben Kennedy, uh, will be the COO, uh, of NASCAR. So quite the change, uh, at, at the top of the leadership from, from the NASCAR side. Steve O'Donnell, uh, has been around the sport for 20-some years, 30-some years. Uh, been there a long time. And I, and I think when you look at the direction that our sport has gone over, over the last, uh, 10 years and, and, you know, with, with everything that we're doing from a perception standpoint, marketing standpoint to, to try to, uh, get back