Erik Jones out at Dover with back injury, Corey Heim in
Legacy Motor Club confirmed Corey Heim will fill in for Erik Jones this Sunday in the NASCAR Cup Series at Dover Motor Speedway.
Heim races full-time in the Craftsman Truck Series and is the reserve driver for LMC. Sunday will mark his Cup Series debut.
It comes as Jones has a compression fracture in a lower vertebra. The injury stems from a crash Sunday on lap 157 of 188 of the GEICO 500 at Talladega Superspeedway.
Jones was checked and released from the infield care center. Then, after returning there post-race, they took him to the hospital.
Doctors released him from the hospital Sunday night. While back home in North Carolina, Jones met with specialists who diagnosed the injury.
“Erik’s long-term health is our number one priority,” said Jimmie Johnson, the co-owner of LMC. “It will be great to see him at the track Sunday and we intend to give him the time it takes to recover properly. I know Corey will do a great job behind the wheel for the CLUB. In the meantime, our thoughts are with Erik and his wife Holly – they have our total support.”
Through seven NCTS races, Heim has five top-3 finishes, including a win, and finishes of sixth at Bristol and 10th at Martinsville.
While Jones won’t be in the car at Dover, he will be at the track. There is no word on a timeline for his return.
NASCAR immediately granted Jones a medical waiver for the playoffs.
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Jonathan Fjeld View All
Jonathan Fjeld is the co-owner of the The Racing Experts, LLC. He has been with TRE since 2010.
A Twin Valley, MN, native, Fjeld became a motorsports fan at just three years old (first race was the 2002 Pennsylvania 500). He worked as a contributor and writer for TRE from 2010-18. Since then, he has stepped up and covered 24 NASCAR race weekends and taken on a larger role with TRE. He became the co-owner and managing editor in 2023 and has guided the site to massive growth in that time.
Fjeld has covered a wide array of stories and moments over the years, including Kevin Harvick's final Cup Series season, the first NASCAR national series disqualification in over 50 years, Shane van Gisbergen's stunning win in Chicago and the first Cup Series race at Road America in 66 years – as well as up-and-coming drivers' stories and stories from inside the sport, like the tech it takes for Hendrick Motorsports to remain a top-tier team.
Currently, he resides in Albuquerque, N.M., where he works for KOB 4, an NBC station. He works as a digital producer and does on-air reports. He loves spending time with friends and family, playing and listening to music, exploring new places, being outdoors, reading books and writing among other activities. You can email him at fjeldjonathan@gmail.com