Heated moments and hard racing are part of NASCAR; some might debate that they even make things interesting in the sport. However, there has to be a line drawn between what’s acceptable and what’s not! And what Conner Jones did at the recent Homestead Miami Truck race, by no means, should be acceptable. While battling for the 17th position, Jones bummed in the rear of Matt Mills; Mills hit the wall violently, and his car caught fire. Mills was immediately taken to the hospital and was only recently released after having trouble with the smoke.

It was later revealed from the radio conversation with Jones that he intentionally wrecked Mills for blocking him in some of the past truck races. This left the entire NASCAR community enraged, as Mills could have faced dire consequences owing to Jones’s aggression. Even Freddie Kraft shared some not-so-kind words for the youngster.

Jones has been driving part-time in the Truck Series for ThorSport Racing since last year. He made nine starts in 2023, and his recent run at Homestead Miami was his 12th of this year. The 18-year-old’s best finish so far came at Charlotte Motor Speedway in 2024, when he finished 11th. Before debuting in the Truck Series, Conner Jones raced in the ARCA Menards series, ending his 2023 season in 15th place. He also drove in the CARS Tour, most recently winning the CARS Tour season finale race at North Wilkesboro. The Virginia native has shown promise but has anger issues.

Recently, NASCAR spotter Freddie Kraft, who’s been following the youngster, has been left disappointed. Kraft believes Jones has the talent but lacks the on-track demeanor required in NASCAR. Kraft, furious at Jones, said, “He’s a race-winning race car driver. He wins CARS Tour races, that takes a lot of talent. He is not mentally prepared to be racing in the Truck Series right now. You can hear that in his meltdown on the radio that he went off for two laps.”

What probably further angered Kraft is how the youngster did not even own up to his mistake. An apology was issued on his behalf long after the incident. “Then he gets out of the truck, makes smug remarks credited media memebers Jordan, and Bob standing outside of his hauler waiting for a comment. He tries to slip outside the side door and get out of there so that he doesn’t have to talk to them. And then you commission a PR firm to put out a statement for you on your behalf because too chicken (expletive) to give your own comment. Listen, it’s just an awful look.”

Conner Jones hasn’t faced any major backlash from drivers or NASCAR yet, but, “If he keeps driving the way he does, he’s gonna get one (good old fashioned (expletive) whooping).”

• The homestead incident is one of the many instances where the 18-year-old has been aggressive on track. At the Bristol spring race, Jones had not one but two instances of reckless driving.
• First, he ran in the back of Mason Maggio after the #21 did not let Jones pass, putting him several positions down in the race.
• And then at the end of stage 2, in an attempt to stay on the lead lap, he shot at the apron, wrecking Keith McGRee in his debut race in the series. Jones’s driving was so aggressive that he was called in for a chat at the NASCAR hauler post-race. Jones has been making a name for all the wrong things in NASCAR.
• Earlier, he also locked horns with Daniel Dye in the Charlotte race. He also did not mention his suspension at the CARS Tour for rough driving, which came at the South Boston Speedway.
• Even in his ARCA days, he was involved in several conflicts. His scuffle with Christian Rose comes to mind when he spun Rose at Indianapolis Raceway Park. If the youngster wants to grow in stock racing, he probably needs to get a hold of his emotions.

Conner Jones has yet to face the consequences

After declining to comment after the incident, Jones later issued an apology over X; he wrote, “I have not yet had the chance to personally apologize to Matt for the incident that took place during today’s race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, but I intend to do so. Matt and I have encountered several on-track incidents this season, 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.”

Precedence has shown that NASCAR hasn’t been kind to intentional wrecking. This year, Austin Dillon‘s playoff berth was snatched for wrecking Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin at the Richmond Cup Series race. So far in the case of  Jones, the only penalty has been a 2-lap hold-off during the race. But maybe something harsher is coming.

Recently, NASCAR Cup Series managing director Brad Moran said, “The radio communication was not acceptable and the race director made that decision, which is well within the rule book, but we’re going to go back and look at it as well today to see if any further action needs to be taken. Certainly, probably a mistake young drivers make and so on, but we can’t have it. It was over the line, there is a line there, and that crossed it.”

The part-time Truck driver is scheduled to appear at Martinsville while the NASCAR community calls for his suspension. The Truck Series is a developmental series responsible for shaping up young drivers as they enter the top divisions. Naturally, such track demeanor should be corrected early on, and a precedent must be set.

“As we know, the Truck Series is a development series and we want our drivers coming through there to race on Sunday. As you saw on Sunday, our drivers did not run over each other and we need to prevent that from happening in the lower divisions. I think there have been some discussions earlier in the season with Conner Jones and unfortunately, what happened on Saturday was not acceptable,” Moran added.

What do you think the consequences should be for Conner Jones?