(born
July 23 ,
1970 in
Monticello, Georgia ), is an
Auto Racing driver who has competed in
NASCAR and
Sprint Cars . He currently runs in the
USAR Hooters Pro Cup Series .
Jones earned the nickname "
Buckshot " from his grandfather after he ran into a table and showed no signs of pain or agony. His racing career began as a hobby during his studies at the
University Of Georgia , where he earned a business degree. Jones originally wanted to race
Motocross , but his dad suggested
Stock Cars since they were safer.
After his sixth race Jones went out to dinner with his father, where he told him that he wanted to be a
NASCAR champion. He and his father then developed a five-year plan that would allow Jones to move up the ladder and begin to fulfill his dream.
In
1995 , Jones moved to the NASCAR
Busch Series with his own team called ''Buckshot Racing''. After a disappointing rookie campaign where his best finish was a ninth at
South Boston Speedway , Jones hired
Ricky Pearson , son of the legendary
David Pearson , as his crew chief. Jones won two races over the next three years, winning the Most Popular Driver award in
1998 . In
1999 , after marrying his long-time girlfiend Jina, he made the jump to
Winston Cup driving the ''00''
Pontiac , with Ricky's brother
Larry Pearson taking over his Busch ride.
Crown Fiber Communications was the major sponsor of the car. Jones failed to qualify several times in his rookie year, including the first two races of the season. On the occasions in which he did make the field, a DNF was the typical result. After nine starts, he decided to end his bid for
Rookie Of The Year and returned to the Busch Series. During his Busch campaign of
2000 , he had one pole, three top-tens, and finished 21st in points.
In
2001 he returned to the Cup Series, driving the number 44
Georgia-Pacific Dodge Intrepid for
Petty Enterprises . Unfortunately, the results were only slightly better than his previous races and he was released midway through the
2002 season.
Buckshot has since sold his team and temporarily retired from racing. He last appeared in a NASCAR sanctioned race in
2004 , when he ran two Busch Series events. He currently works in land development and real estate in
Gwinnett County, GA . He returned to auto racing in the
Snowball Derby in
December 2006 but finished last after being caught in an early accident. He runs the #00 Chevrolet for
DMT Motorsports in the Southern Division of the
USAR Hooters Pro Cup Series .
