Austin Cindric's playoff hopes hit by Carson Hocevar incident at Martinsville

Austin Cindric's NASCAR playoff position took a blow at Martinsville Speedway after an incident with Carson Hocevar on lap 214 of the Xfinity 500. The contact left Cindric 36th in the 37-car field and dropped him from eighth to 11th in the standings with one race remaining. Cindric declined to speak to the media about the incident before leaving the track.

Hocevar described the incident as "just Martinsville" and said it was a normal part of a short-track race, with drivers making moves and hitting one another on restarts. He finished 21st, two laps down to winner William Byron. Hocevar also dismissed suggestions over his earlier spin on lap 199, which had caused a caution period, saying he had been driving hard to stay in touch with Byron.

After the race, Ty Gibbs holds sole possession of eighth in the standings, with Cindric 11th and Hocevar 12th, four points behind him.