NASCAR has suspended the 18-year-old Conner Jones for one race after his decision to intentionally wreck Matt Mills last weekend left his rival hospitalized. Jones was battling for 17th in the Homestead Truck race when he let his frustrations overcome him. Entering Turn 3, Jones drove into the back of Mills in an attempted bump-and-run. However, Mills’ truck snapped hard to the right and slammed the wall, quickly erupting into flames.

Mills, who climbed from the fiery wreckage under his own power, spent two nights at a local hospital due to smoke inhalation. Jones was held two laps after the incident during the Truck race at Homestead. 

After the race, Jones released a statement expressing regret and apologizing for his actions, saying: “I underestimated the impact my actions would have on Matt, and I deeply regret the consequences that followed. I would like to extend my sincerest apologies to Matt, Niece Motorsports, NASCAR, and my entire ThorSport Racing team for my unsportsmanlike behavior.”

The two drivers have had run-ins before. In a video message posted by Mills after being released from the hospital with a self-described ‘raspy’ voice, thanking everyone for their support and made it clear that he will be racing this weekend. “Definitely a scary situation,” he said, but he never mentioned Jones.

Jones was slated to compete this weekend at Martinsville. ThorSport will instead put veteran driver Johnny Sauter behind the wheel of the No. 66 machine. The 2016 Truck Series champion has over 300 starts in his career and previously competed for ThorSport.

There are plenty of positives Arrow McLaren driver Pato O’Ward sees with the IndyCar Series returning to Texas in March 2026 with the inaugural Grand Prix of Arlington, but it’s also not without its concerns.

The event was announced by the series earlier this month, in partnership with the National Football League’s Dallas Cowboys and REV Entertainment, the official entertainment partner of Major League Baseball’s Texas Rangers. The 2.73-mile temporary street circuit, will run around Cowboys’ AT&T Stadium and Rangers’ Globe Life Field, as well as through the sports and entertainment district that sells more than 1.6 million tickets to spectators for various events annually. So far, it has received plenty of praise, with several drivers in the paddock noting its similarities to something seen in Formula 1. 

The Lone Star State is familiar territory for O’Ward, who is a native of Monterrey, Mexico, but also grew up in San Antonio, Texas. He also won his first career IndyCar race at Texas Motor Speedway (TMS) in 2021. IndyCar competed at TMS from 1997-2023.

Overall, O’Ward is hoping the event will push the sport to new heights. 

Arlington Grand Prix track map

Photo by: Penske Entertainment

“I think that event is going to be a big test to what new markets and what we can ultimately reach in terms of a bit more upscale than some of the other tracks, other events that we have on the calendar,” O’Ward told Motorsport.com. 

“The venue looks really cool. Jerry Jones (Cowboys owner) is a very well-known name and he owns one of the most insane franchises in the NFL; one of the teams in the NFL that obviously draws a lot of eyes, a lot of public (interest). I don’t know, man. Until we do that first event, we’ll really see what that can ultimately bring to the series. Texas is a huge market. We were missing out on that market and I’m glad that it’s back on the calendar. I think it’ll be huge for the series but also a test on just having an idea on how much further we can go in terms of experiences, what are people willing to pay for that experience?”

And the cost factor is where O’Ward, who has seven career IndyCar victories, remains apprehensive.

“I think there’s a lot of questions to be asked if that event is a massive success and I think that can ultimately elevate the series to a different level,” O’Ward said. “But, there’s always the possibility of having it the other way and that’s definitely something we don’t want. I’m a bit worried on the pricing of everything. I’ve spent thousands of dollars of my own money to create experiences for people and sometimes a lot of those do come out at a loss because in IndyCar’s market, people aren’t willing to pay over $1,000 for a paddock ticket. And there definitely is the market to do that because people pay $10,000 to $15,000 in Formula 1, but can we tap into that market? I don’t know.”

Homestead-Miami Speedway was a microcosm of Kyle Larson‘s entire season. A fast car, shocking setbacks, unforced errors and remarkable comebacks — and in the end, it was all for naught. 

A surprise cut tire put Larson in the wall and out of contention for the majority of Sunday’s race. Just as he was making a little headway, the spun car of Chris Buescher forced him to come to a complete stop on pit road. No one expected to see him near the front again, and yet, he did make his way back through the field. Closing in on Ryan Blaney for the race lead in the final 15 laps of the race, he tried to shoot the gap up the middle as they lapped Austin Dillon, only to spin out.

To his credit, Larson did save it and was still scored third on track, but a slow stop to fix the diffuser flap left him mired in the middle of the pack. He ended the day as the seventh worst playoff driver in 13th place. It just seemed destined to end poorly for him, and that’s kind of been the story of his year at some of these races.

Kyle Larson, Hendrick Motorsports, HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro

Photo by: Nigel Kinrade / NKP / Motorsport Images

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Although, this season, no driver can even touch Larson in laps led and he has double the race wins of the closest competition, but there were so many ‘almost’ wins that didn’t materialize either. It seems like the same cycle again and again with the driver of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. Fast car, dominant showing, bad luck and/or unforced error, sometimes followed by an impressive comeback, but almost always too little too late. 

It’s much like his attempt at ‘The Double’ where it was all going splendidly until he landed himself a speeding penalty during his final stop at the Indianapolis 500. Despite the disappointment, he still got on a plane and made haste for Charlotte, determined to be the first driver to complete this challenge in a decade. He arrived just in time for rain to prematurely end the Coke 600.

Kyle Larson, Hendrick Motorsports, HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro, Chris Buescher, RFK Racing, Fifth Third Bank Ford Mustang, Todd Gilliland, Front Row Motorsports, Grillo’s Pickles Ford Mustang, Christopher Bell, Joe Gibbs Racing, Rheem Toyota Camry wreck

Photo by: Nigel Kinrade / NKP / Motorsport Images

The inconsistency and volatile nature of his season is part of the reason why he lost the regular season championship. Missing the 600 didn’t help, but there was a mountain of points left on the table beyond that and he only lost out to Tyler Reddick by a single point. Those handful of bonus points may come back to haunt him in a few days.

But could it really happen? Is Larson’s 2024 title run about to mimic his attempt to win at Homestead, his missed opportunity at the regular season title or his pursuit of the double, ultimately slipping through his fingertips no matter how hard he tries?

It wouldn’t be the first time the ‘best’ driver of the year didn’t even get a shot at Phoenix. Kevin Harvick in 2020 comes to mind, as he looked unstoppable before failing to earn one of those four coveted spots in the finale. It was an abrupt end to a championship-worthy season and it felt strange to crown the champion with that year’s dominant force on the sidelines. And here it could happen again.

With Joey Logano and Reddick leapfrogging everyone with their impressive Round of 8 wins, Larson now enters the penultimate race of the year seven points below the cut-line. Yes, he can points race William Byron and maybe advance that way, but a win is likely needed. At Homestead, three drivers in what was essentially a must-win situation were running 1-2-3 on the final lap. Looking at the standings, the three drivers below Larson in the standings are going to be at the sharp end of the field this weekend.

Regarding Martinsville, Larson himself admitted that “it’s not my best track,” and the driver he’s chasing [Byron] happens to be the most recent winner there. Funnily enough, Larson was second in that race. That may be little consolation though. Denny Hamlin has more wins at the Virginia short track than any active driver, Ryan Blaney has the highest average-finish, Chase Elliott is always one to watch at Martinsville and all are below Larson in the standings entering the Round of 8 elimination race.

It’s certainly beginning to feel like we’re destined to watch this format doom the season of yet another driver worthy of fighting for the championship. But hey, if we’re going to commit to looking at the trends  … the Round of 12 and Round of 16 elimination races this year were won by the same driver and his name was Larson — dominating both.

06:00

Circuit Closed

06:30 ~ 07:00

Circuit Inspection

07:45 ~ 08:30

Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix – 56th Edition – Free Practice

09:15 ~ 09:55

Macau Grand Prix – FIA FR World Cup – Free Practice 1

10:15 ~ 10:45

Macau Guia Race – Kumho FIA TCR World Tour Event of Macau – Free Practice 1

11:05 ~ 11:35

Macau GT Cup – FIA GT World Cup – Free Practice 1

12:15 ~ 12:45

Greater Bay Area GT Cup (GT 4) – Free Practice

13:00 ~ 13:30

Macau Roadsport Challenge- Free Practice

13:45 ~ 14:15

Macau Guia Race – Kumho FIA TCR World Tour Event of Macau – Free Practice 2

14:35 ~ 15:05

Macau GT Cup – FIA GT World Cup – Free Practice 2

15:25 ~ 16:05

Macau Grand Prix – FIA FR World Cup – Qualifying 1

16:25 ~ 16:55

Macau Roadsport – Macao SAR Establishment Cup – Free Practice

18:00 ~ **

Circuit Opened

06:00

Circuit Closed

06:30 ~ 07:00

Circuit Inspection

07:45 ~ 08:30

Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix – 56th Edition – Qualifying 1

09:20 ~ 10:00

Macau Grand Prix – FIA FR World Cup – Free Practice 2

10:15 ~ 10:45

Macau Roadsport Challenge- Qualifying

11:00 ~ 11:30

Greater Bay Area GT Cup (GT 4) – Qualifying

12:10 ~ 12:40

Macau Roadsport – Macao SAR Establishment Cup- Qualifying

12:55 ~13:25

Macau Guia Race – Kumho FIA TCR World Tour Event of Macau – Qualifying 1

13:30 ~ 13:45

Macau Guia Race -Kumho FIA TCR World Tour Event of Macau – Qualifying 2

14:05 ~ 14:35

Macau GT Cup – FIA GT World Cup – Qualifying

14:55 ~ 15:35

Macau Grand Prix – FIA FR World Cup – Qualifying 2

16:15 ~ 17:00

Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix – 56th Edition – Qualifying 2

18:00 ~ **

Circuit Opened

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has insisted the “biggest challenge” for Formula 1’s reigning constructors’ champions at the upcoming Brazilian Grand Prix weekend will be to match McLaren’s end-of-stint pace.

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have consistently outperformed rivals as tyre stints go on in races in recent months, often hanging back and preserving their tyres before going on the attack late in the race.

That again became prevalent as Norris chased down Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari for second in Mexico last weekend, clinching a result that helped slash Max Verstappen’s lead in the drivers’ title race.

The Dutchman complained about his tyres across both the medium and hard stints, with a lack of grip cited for his inability to recover to the top five after a pair of 10-second penalties.

When suggested to him that the race pace was again lacking compared to the one-lap qualifying effort that saw Verstappen take second on the grid, Horner replied: “I think that is the biggest thing that we need to take away from here. More so on the hard tyre, we just didn’t have the same pace.

“Max had no grip, we didn’t feel we could switch the tyres on. So that’s the biggest challenge in the next four days, to understand what caused that.

Christian Horner, Team Principal, Red Bull Racing, in the team representatives press conference

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

“Obviously, Brazil is a very different challenge to this circuit, but it’s a pattern that, particularly at the end of stints, you see the McLaren is very strong – particularly at the end of grands prix.”

Carlos Sainz’s victory and Leclerc’s third place to follow up on the 1-2 finish in Austin, as well as Sergio Perez’s poor form, mean that Red Bull has been leapfrogged by the Scuderia into second in the constructors’ standings.

Asked how he saw the battle for the team’s title shaping up, Horner conceded: “I think it will be very difficult. We never give up. We’ll fight very hard. We need both cars, obviously, scoring.

“Ferrari had another big score here and as far as the constructors’ is concerned, we’re certainly on the back foot.”

Additional reporting by Erwin Jaeggi and Stuart Coddling