HOMESTEAD, Fla. — Matt Mills, driver of Niece Motorsports’ No. 42 Chevrolet, was taken to a local hospital for further observation after a violent wreck in Saturday’s (Oct. 26) NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, the team announced afterward.
Mills will stay at the hospital overnight.
The wreck, which occurred in turn 3 on lap 77, was triggered when Mills was hit from behind by Conner Jones in ThorSport Racing’s No. 66 Ford as they raced on the bottom lane of the track.
Mills’ truck shot up the track and slammed into the outside wall. Flames erupted from his truck and could be seen in the cockpit. Mills was able to exit the truck but he appeared shaken.
Mills did not emerge from the infield medical center before the end of the 134-lap race. A team spokesperson said at one point he was receiving fluids.
Right after the accident, Jones was caught on his team radio screaming, “This is all [expletive] year! All [expletive] year he’s [expletive] with me. …. I’m tired of it. I’m [expletive] tired of it.”
NASCAR issued a two-lap penalty to Jones. He went on to finish the race 25th.
After the race, Jones was approached by media and asked if he had a moment to comment.
“Should I, or do you think I’ll say something stupid?” Jones asked a team member before saying “not right now.”
He later left the garage without providing comment.
Jones issued a statement a few hours later, saying he extended his “sincerest apologies” to Mills, Niece Motorsports, NASCAR and “my entire ThorSport Racing team for my unsportsmanlike behavior.”
He began the statement by saying that he hadn’t had “the chance to personally apologize” to Mills, “but I intend to do so.
“Matt and I have encountered several on-track incidents this seasons, and I let my frustration get the best of me. I underestimated the impact my actions would have on Matt, and I deeply regret the consequences that followed.”
Jones, an 18-year-old from Virginia, has raced part-time for ThorSport since 2023. In a total of 21 truck starts, he has a best finish of 11th and an average finish of 23.7.
Before that he competed full-time in CARS in 2021 and made part-time ARCA starts with Venturini Motorsports from 2021-23, recording a handful of top fives and top 10s with no wins.
Various NASCAR drivers took to Twitter in the wreck’s aftermath to comment on it and Jones.
That included former driver Kenny Wallace.
This isn’t Jones’ first time under the microscope.
He was involved in a post-race confrontation in an ARCA race in 2023 that saw him throw water in the face of another driver’s crew chief.
Last October, Jones received a one-race suspension from the CARS Tour after he violated his probation in a race at South Boston Speedway.
After this season’s spring Truck Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway, Keith McGee criticized Jones’ aggressive driving, saying he should have been penalized.
Daniel McFadin is a 10-year veteran of the NASCAR media corp. He wrote for NBC Sports from 2015 to October 2020. He currently works full time for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and is lead reporter and an editor for Frontstretch. He is also host of the NASCAR podcast "Dropping the Hammer with Daniel McFadin" presented by Democrat-Gazette.
You can email him at danielmcfadin@gmail.com.
Sounds like Jones needs to spend some time on the sidelines until he grows up.
Have to admit, the apology his agent wrote for him almost seems authentic and sincere.
So all kinds of tweets and videos of peoples reactions but no video of the incident in the article? Do better!