Brandon Jones Reaches Out After Xfinity Series Wreck at COTA

Getty Brandon Jones sparked some angry comments after the Pit Boss 250.

Members of Alpha Prime Racing expressed displeasure with a driver from Joe Gibbs Racing. Brandon Jones spun Josh Bilicki during the Pit Boss 250 NASCAR Xfinity Series race and prompted some strong words on Twitter.

Both Bilicki and team GM Tommy Joe Martins both made comments about the incident featuring the driver of the No. 19 in the immediate aftermath of the race. Martins first mentioned that he had mixed emotions about the race due to being in position for two top-20 finishes before the spin. Bilicki then weighed in with a shot at Jones’ pace during the road course race.

“Dude used his bumper on me multiple times and pushed me off track when we were side by side,” Bilicki continued on Twitter. “I use my bumper on him, didn’t even come close to spinning him, and he retaliates by dumping me on a straight. Pathetic! Sadly I don’t have a daddy that can pay for the damage like him.”

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Three days after the race, the issue appears to be over. Bilicki confirmed that Jones and his team had reached out and attempted to reconcile the situation. The APR driver explained that he appreciated the move.

Martins Provided Further Context About the Incident

Missing out on a top-20 finish took away some crucial points from Alpha Prime Racing, which will help during future qualifying sessions. It also caused some other issues for the two-car Xfinity Series organization.

Martins provided further information about the consequences on Twitter. He explained that the difference between an 18th-place finish and a 35th-place finish is $7,600 in purse money. Additionally, there is the added cost and time required to repair the damage from the contact on the track.

“I never hit someone intentionally because I knew A) how much it cost B) how hard it was to build C) I could get hit back even worse,” Martins continued. “The risk/reward for racing hard isn’t the same for everyone. I’m jealous, honestly. I wish I had THAT chance. What a luxury to never have to care.”

Alpha Prime Racing will move forward with the rest of the Xfinity Series schedule after the incident at Circuit of the Americas. Bilicki will not be in the No. 45 during the trip to Richmond Raceway. Instead, Howie DiSavino III will make his season debut in the stock car while Rajah Caruth makes his own debut in the No. 44 Chevrolet. Bilicki’s next race will not take place until Darlington Raceway.

Bilicki Will Attempt to Rebound During Another Race

While Bilicki will not return to the No. 45 Chevrolet until the race at Darlington, he will have more starts on his schedule. Next up is the Cup Series race at Circuit of the Americas when he drives the No. 77 for Spire Motorsports.

The Wisconsin native will not have an easy path to a top-10 finish at Circuit of the Americas. He will start 34th overall, and he will line up on the 17th row next to Petty GMS Motorsports driver Ty Dillon.

Bilicki will also enter the race without an engineer available due to the No. 77 failing pre-race inspection twice. There were five entries that failed inspection at least two times. The No. 6, the No. 50, and the No. 66 all lost crew members but passed on the third try. The No. 78 failed three times, forcing Andy Lally to take a pass-through lap after the green flag waves.

Bilicki has made three starts in 2022 for Spire Motorsports. He made his debut at Auto Club Speedway before returning to the entry at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Atlanta Motor Speedway. The race at the reconfigured 1.54-mile track was Bilicki’s best run of the year as he finished 16th overall.

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