Back in 1991, peer pressure had a noticeable effect on NASCAR Cup Series driver Ernie Irvan.
By the time the series arrived at Talladega Superspeedway for the July 28 Diehard 500, the Salinas, California, driver already had earned the nickname “Swervin’ Irvan”—undeniably talented but overly aggressive in the eyes of his fellow competitors.
Before the race, drivers Darrell Waltrip and Richard Petty—representing the Cup competitors—held an informal “intervention” with Irvan, counseling him on how to improve his standing inside and outside the garage.
In the subsequent drivers’ meeting, Irvan apologized to his peers and vowed to try to harness his aggressive tendencies.
RFK Racing owner/driver Brad Keselowski, who spun off Carson Hocevar’s front bumper in last Sunday’s Chase opener at Darlington Raceway, doesn’t think the Irvan approach would work in contemporary NASCAR racing.
After the race, Keselowski asserted, “His day is coming. It’s coming hard. Watch out, Carson Hocevar.”
Though Hocevar has been involved in incidents with the majority of Cup drivers this season, Keselowski believes attempted peer pressure would prove fruitless.
“We’re in a different day and age, which is greater than our sport,” Keselowski said Saturday before Cup practice for Sunday’s Enjoy Illinois 300 at World Wide Technology Raceway (3 p.m. ET on USA, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio).
“It transcends our society as a whole, where that level of social interaction is not valued the same way it was valued 10, 20, 30 years ago. At some point, everybody just has to touch a hot stove and learn.”
As to the future of the rivalry, which was promoted on posters at WWT Raceway—pitting Hurricane Hocevar vs. Bad Brad Keselowski—the RFK co-owner/driver said, “You live and you figure it out in the moment, and it’ll play out however it plays out.”
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