KALAMAZOO, Mich. — On Monday, Zeigler Auto Group held a press conference at Zeigler Motorsports to announce it will sponsor Spire Motorsports No. 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 with Michigan native Carson Hocevar handling the driving chores in nine NASCAR Cup Series races, beginning with the 66th running of the Daytona 500.
Zeigler.com and Zeigler Auto Group will be showcased as the team's primary sponsor in seven NCS races and co-primary sponsor in two events in 2024.
"We are excited to partner once again with Spire Motorsports for 2024. We know Carson will do a phenomenal job representing Zeigler Auto Group on and off the track. Having Carson behind the wheel of the new Zeigler.com No. 77 Camaro was a perfect fit with him being from Michigan, our home state for Zeigler," said Aaron J. Zeigler, president and CEO of Zeigler Auto Group and Zeigler Racing.
The easily recognized yellow and black Zeigler paint scheme will be featured aboard Hocevar's No. 77 Chevy Camaro at the following NCS races in 2023:
- Daytona International Speedway – February 18 (Co-Primary)
- Talladega Superspeedway – April 21
- Charlotte Motor Speedway – May 26
- World Wide Technology Raceway – June 2
- Nashville Superspeedway – June 30
- Chicago Street Race – July 7
- Indianapolis Motor Speedway – July 21
- Michigan International Speedway – August 18 (Co-Primary)
- Homestead-Miami Speedway - October 27
Zeigler Automotive Group is one of the largest privately-owned dealer groups in the U.S. with 84 franchises across 41 locations in Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan. Vehicle brands represented include all the domestic and majority of the imported manufacturers. The family-owned and -operated organization has been a regular on the NCS tour since 2019, previously partnering with Spire Motorsports and the No. 77 team for 15 races in 2022.
Hocevar, 20, is a Portage, Mich. native and four-time NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series (NCTS) race winner. He made his NCS debut for Spire Motorsports June 4 at World Wide Technology Raceway and has since competed eight more times in NASCAR's premier division.
He earned an impressive career/series best 11th-place finish at the Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol (Tenn.) Motor Speedway in just his fourth start. He earned a berth in the 2023 NCTS Championship 4 and ultimately finished fourth in the season-ending point standings.
"It's pretty exciting to be able to partner with Zeigler Auto Group and be able to show some hometown pride in 2024," said Hocevar. "It's a dream come true for a kid from Michigan to be supported and sponsored by a company from Kalamazoo. I grew up in Portage, just a few miles south of Zeigler's headquarters, so that makes the partnership personal. I can't thank Aaron Zeigler enough for the opportunity and for taking a chance on me. We're going to do our very best to make everyone from Zeigler proud."
In addition to his NCS debut, Hocevar made four NASCAR Xfinity Series starts for Spire Motorsports in 2023, with a pair of top-10 finishes coming in May at Darlington Raceway (sixth) and Charlotte Motor Speedway (eighth).
"This is a big moment for Spire Motorsports and Carson Hocevar," said Spire Motorsports co-owner Jeff Dickerson. "It's important to have partners that can identify with their driver and vice versa. I think we've found exactly that. It feels like the perfect match. I got to know Aaron Zeigler and his team when we worked together in 2022 and we've become great friends. They see the same potential in Carson that we do."
The 66th running of the Daytona 500 will be televised live on FOX, Sunday, February 18 beginning at 2:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. The first of 36 races on the 2024 NCS schedule will be broadcast live on the Motor Racing Network and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.
Spire Motorsports is a NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series race team co-owned by long-time NASCAR industry executives Jeff Dickerson and Thaddeus "T.J." Puchyr. In 2024, Spire Motorsports will campaign the Nos. 7, 71 and 77 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1s in the NASCAR Cup Series with drivers Corey LaJoie, Zane Smith and Carson Hocevar, respectively.
Spire Motorsports earned its inaugural NASCAR Cup Series victory in its first full season of competition when Justin Haley took the checkered flag in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway on July 7, 2019. Less than three years later, William Byron drove Spire Motorsports' No. 7 Chevrolet Silverado to its inaugural NASCAR CRAFTSMAN Truck Series win on April 7, 2022, at Martinsville Speedway. The team's most recent win came on May 20, 2023, when Kyle Larson took the checkered flag in the Tyson 250 at North Wilkesboro Speedway.
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