Carson Hocevar, Cleetus McFarland win LeMullets again
NXTbets Pro | Published On: November 15, 2026
LeMullets repeat
Carson Hocevar and YouTuber-racer Cleetus McFarland won the Black Rifle 2.4 Hours of LeMullets at Freedom Factory in Bradenton, Florida, and backed up last year’s run with a second straight victory in the event. The race brought a mix of racing names into a field that included several NASCAR drivers, among them Denny Hamlin, and it was run in modified Ford Crown Victorias. The format gave the event its own feel. McFarland started the race before handing the car to Hocevar, and that driver change set up the closing stretch that decided the race. The win added another strong showing for the pairing in a race that has quickly become a showcase for drivers from different corners of the motorsports world. It also put Hocevar back in the spotlight after he played the lead role in a frantic fight for position late in the race, one that drew in Preece, Ty Dillon and Hamlin and turned the final laps into a test of patience and control. For Hocevar and McFarland, the hard part was handling the traffic. The bigger task was keeping the car intact through the chaos and bringing it home first.
Lead battle
The handoff put the race in Hocevar’s hands for the finish, and that move put the race in the hands of a driver who was willing to lean into the fight at the front. Hocevar, Ryan Preece and Ty Dillon spent the decisive part of the event locked in a chaotic battle for the lead, and none of them gave an inch for long. Hocevar made the move that mattered most on the final lap, easing Dillon aside before Dillon ran wide entering the chicane. That sequence opened the door for Hocevar to settle the outcome and keep the race under control in the final moments. Preece also made his presence felt near the front before the battle ended in trouble for him, spinning into the backstretch tires after challenging near the front. The race did not hand out space, and the modified Crown Victorias made every move matter. Drivers had to thread traffic, guard their lines and react fast when the pace tightened. Hocevar did that best when the finish arrived. He stayed aggressive without losing the car, and the result showed it. The battle at the front was the kind that could have gone several ways, but Hocevar’s timing on the last lap made the difference and let the Hocevar-McFarland entry keep its grip on the event.
Hamlin reaction
Denny Hamlin and Alex Presley finished third after their own run through the disorder, and Hamlin described the race as chaotic. He said the car’s radiator was knocked out near the finish, and he also said a right rear tire blew close to the end. That left him fighting the car as much as the competition, but he still came away with a podium finish as the closing laps turned ugly. Hamlin summed up the day after the race on X with a line that fit the scene: “Hit everything but the lottery.” Hocevar, for his part, called the race “a lot of fun.” Preece said it was the most fun he had had in a long time. Those reactions matched the tone of the event, which mixed speed, contact and constant pressure from start to finish. Hocevar and McFarland handled it best, but the final laps still left damage and spins in their wake. Hamlin’s comments captured that reality, and Preece’s did too. For the drivers who stayed in the fight, the race delivered exactly what the name suggested, a rough-edged, high-energy battle that demanded attention every lap and gave Hocevar and McFarland another victory to celebrate.
