MARTINSVILLE, Va.: Virginian Matt Mills was ready to return to action on Friday following a fiery shunt in the Craftsman Truck Series at Homestead-Miami Speedway last weekend.
The Lynchburg native, who turns 28 in two weeks, was hospitalized for smoke inhalation at after he was punted by Conner Jones 75 laps into the Baptist Health 200. Mills’ No. 42 Niece Motorsports Chevrolet Silverado burst into flames. The sensation of heat caused the driver to panic and Mills said his labored breathing exacerbated the situation.
After spending two nights at Jackson South Medical Center in Kendall, Fla., Mills flew home on Monday and was cleared to race by NASCAR.
“I’m feeling a lot better,” Mills said. “Each day I feel like five times better. It’s good to be progressing so fast this week. I’m grateful to everyone at Jackson South Hospital in Miami, the NASCAR medical team and everybody who has supported me through this thing. It’s definitely helped me progress.
“I feel good. I feel normal. It’s definitely been a recovery process, but going to the simulator last night, everything felt great. I’m ready to get back in the race car and move on from everything.”
NASCAR initially penalized Jones two laps for “reckless driving.” On Wednesday, the sanctioning body suspended the 18-year-old racer from this weekend’s activities, citing Sections 4.3.A; 4.4.B: NASCAR Member Code of Conduct.
“It’s been all (expletive) year, all (expletive) year,” said Jones, a part-time driver of the No. 66 ThorSport Ford, over the team radio immediately after the incident. “He (expletive) drove through me…I’m tired of it. I’m (expletive) tired of it.”
While Mills is not “a vengeful person” he hopes his fellow competitor learns a lesson from the suspension. Still, he doesn’t understand the basis for Jones’ retaliation.
“It was a couple of laps after the restart and me and Conner and a couple of other people, we had been crossing each other up,” Mills said. “I felt like we had been faster than him all day. I got tight behind someone, he crossed me up. He slid up in front of me, I gave him a little push going down the backstretch then I slid off of his bumper—which got him a little free.
“I can understand, maybe he was a little aggravated, but he wasn’t close to wrecking. He didn’t hit the wall. It was just a racing deal…I heard him lift halfway down the back straghtaway and he got behind me. My spotter (TJ Majors) warned me, ‘You’re going to get wrecked. Be careful.’ So I sent it off down into Turn 3 as hard as I could—and he sent it off even harder. He seemed pretty committed to getting to me.”
Mills said he overcorrected due to the speed he was carrying, and the truck lost grip entering Turn 3. But through the course of their time together on the track last Saturday and in previous races, Mills never felt his racing triggered Jones’ level of response.
“I’ve never had any problems with him that I know of,” Mills said. “I’ve never spoken to the kid. But I’ve never had any incidents leading up to this.”
Jones reached out to Mills via phone and text. However, given how hectic the week has been—including the need for Mills to replace his safety equipment which was compromised in the wreck—he doesn’t feel ready for a “healthy conversation” yet.
Mills is currently 23rd in the truck standings. In September, Niece Motorsports announced the veteran will return to the No. 42 truck for his second full season on the tour in 2025. Although he has competed in both the NASCAR truck and Xfinity tours, Mills has never experienced an incident like his Homestead-Miami wreck.
“When I got out of the truck, I dropped because I was gagging for air,” Mills said. “Everything I inhaled, my face was hot, it felt like it was on fire even though it wasn’t. I don’t have any burn marks or anything, it’s just kind of how it felt. Then, being in the care center, it was just immediately putting me on oxygen. They noticed my levels were low. They told me I’d have to go to the hospital.
“Everything was handled great by the NASCAR staff and everyone at the hospital I went to. But I knew I’d have to got to the hospital. It really wasn’t my decision to go to the hospital but NASCAR thought it would be in my best interest.”
Mills followed up with a specialist on Thursday “just to be safe and ease everyone’s minds.” He performed lung capacity tests to ensure he was fit to return to competition at Martinsville Speedway. He credited Josh Wise’s training and conditioning program for expediting his recovery.
“I was normal or above normal for all of my tests,” Mills said. “I feel great. It definitely helped to be in shape for this one. Just ready to move on to tonight.”
Follow Lee Spencer on Twitter @CandiceSpencer or email her at: [email protected].
