Jennifer Jo Cobb spent more than two decades building a name for herself in NASCAR.
Now, a jury verdict involving another couple with deep ties to the sport has put the former Truck Series driver’s personal life under a very different spotlight.
A Davidson County, North Carolina, jury found Cobb liable in a civil lawsuit brought by Tracey Hughes, who accused Cobb of having an affair with her then-husband, longtime NASCAR spotter Clayton Hughes.
Following a three-day trial, the jury awarded Hughes $850,002 in damages.
The verdict has renewed interest in a complicated relationship history that also includes Cobb’s marriage to NASCAR crew chief Eddie Troconis.
So, who did Cobb marry, what was alleged about her relationship with Hughes and what did the jury actually decide?
Jennifer Jo Cobb Married NASCAR Crew Chief Eddie Troconis in 2015
Long before the latest court case, Cobb’s personal and professional lives were already intertwined with NASCAR.
Cobb married Eddie Troconis in 2015. Troconis, a longtime figure in motorsports himself, had previously served as Cobb’s crew chief during her NASCAR career.
The two were still legally married but separated by January 2022, according to reports at the time.
Exactly when their separation began is important given the allegations that would later emerge involving Clayton Hughes. Public reporting does not clearly establish whether Cobb and Troconis separated before or after the relationship alleged in Tracey Hughes’ lawsuit began.
There is also no reliable current reporting establishing that Cobb and Troconis have finalized a divorce.
That means Troconis is best described as Cobb’s estranged husband, rather than her ex-husband, based on the publicly available information.
Cobb’s Relationship With Clayton Hughes Became the Center of a Lawsuit
Clayton Hughes was hardly a stranger to Cobb or to NASCAR.
A longtime NASCAR spotter, Hughes worked with Cobb during her racing career. He was married to Tracey Hughes for approximately 17 years before the couple separated in January 2021.
Tracey Hughes eventually took the matter to court.
In a lawsuit filed in January 2024, she accused Cobb of becoming involved with Clayton while the Hugheses were still married. The complaint alleged that the relationship continued for several months before the couple separated and that Cobb intentionally interfered with their marriage.
Cobb denied the allegations and sought to have the case dismissed.
The case ultimately proceeded to a three-day trial in Davidson County Superior Court in September 2026.
That distinction matters. This was a civil lawsuit, not a criminal prosecution. Despite its name, criminal conversation is a civil claim under North Carolina law.
On Sept. 24, the jury sided with Tracey Hughes.
Jurors found Cobb liable for both alienation of affection and criminal conversation. Hughes was awarded $50,000 on the alienation-of-affection claim and $800,000 on the criminal-conversation claim.
The jury also awarded $1 in punitive damages on each claim, bringing the total verdict to $850,002.
Cobb and Hughes Were Publicly Linked by 2022
Cobb and Clayton Hughes’ relationship became public years before the civil case reached a jury.
By January 2022, Hughes was reported to be dating Cobb. At the time, Cobb and Troconis were described as separated.
That relationship received additional attention after an altercation between Troconis and Hughes.
The episode connected three people who were already fixtures around NASCAR, but the later civil lawsuit brought an entirely different level of scrutiny to the timeline.
Importantly, the September 2026 verdict does not establish Cobb’s current relationship status or whether she and Hughes remain together today.
What it does establish is that a Davidson County jury found Cobb liable on both of Tracey Hughes’ civil claims.
Cobb has disputed the case against her. Following the verdict, she indicated that the legal matter was not finished and noted that a judgment had not yet been entered.
That makes the distinction between the allegations, the jury’s findings and Cobb’s position particularly important.
Cobb married Troconis in 2015 and was later publicly described as separated from him. Hughes was reported to be dating Cobb by early 2022. What is not publicly established is precisely when Cobb and Troconis separated or what Cobb’s current relationship status is.
For a driver whose NASCAR career stretches across more than two decades, the $850,002 verdict has now brought an intensely personal chapter of her life back into public view.
Inside Jennifer Jo Cobb’s Complicated Relationship History After $850K Affair Verdict