This past month I had the pleasure of chatting with Holly Jones, née Shelton, about what life is like as the wife of a NASCAR Cup Series driver, while also balancing being a new mom. This might be one of my favorite interviews I’ve done yet! Holly was super easy to talk to, down to earth and funny, too. I hope y’all enjoy a little look into her life as much as I enjoyed the interview.
Some of you may know of Holly because she is wife to Erik Jones, driver of the LEGACY MOTOR CLUB no. 43 Toyota Camry; However some of you may know her from the days she was behind the wheel of a midget car on weekends racing to win. Holly, a California native, began racing at a young age and by twelve years old she was racing outlaw karts. In 2016, Holly began racing for Toyota Racing development in the National Midget Series through the 2018 season while simultaneously working towards earning a degree in criminal justice from California State University, Sacramento.
Right around the time her 2018 season finished up, Holly met Erik. The way they met she described is a “funny” story and I would add cute! She had been competing with a “friend” from Facebook on the Words with Friends app, but the name wasn’t one she was familiar with because Erik goes by a different name on Facebook. Once he slid into her DM’s trash talking, her curiosity peaked and she soon found out who she had been playing this harmless game of Words with Friends with. The friendly banter continued and soon she went to Texas to join him for Toyota Motorsports Day, had their first date on Halloween and the rest is pretty much history. A year after that Holly said she “went to North Carolina and never came home”. They were engaged in December 2022 before officially tying the knot in August 2023.
Now, Holly is Erik’s number one supporter as he races to win on Sundays. Having the knowledge and experience within racing herself has been a positive of their relationship. Having the understanding of what all it takes every week to compete at a high level gives her insight into how to show up for him on the good days and bad. She knows to stay quiet until he is ready to talk about it, although she commented that he is “really good about not bringing it home with him”. In previous seasons, she would normally sit on the pit box watching the race from that perspective, but these days she is typically in the 5th wheel listening to the race on the radio with their 7-month-old son, David.
The Jones’ are enjoying this new season of parenthood together, even if it makes things a little busier or shifts the dynamic a bit on race days especially. From Holly’s perspective, Sundays are really busy as she tries to be at all the appearances and media agendas for Erik while caring for David. One thing they do before each race is make sure to have some quiet time together. She describes her days might look a “little different” than a lot of race wives sharing, “20 minutes before driver intros I’ve woken up from a nap with David, throw on a Target or Amazon dress, eyeliner and maybe run a brush through my hair”. She went on to say, “I’m there to support Erik and keep it light”. So far this season, even with a new baby, she has been to every race except for Vegas and Phoenix (big shout-out to David for being the best baby traveler).
She and Erik are hopeful to add two or three more children to their family eventually, so when I asked Holly if she hopes to get back into racing at some point in the future she was quick to share she had no interest. Though she has always loved racing, it was never one of those things she wanted to do as a career. In fact, she told herself she’d never marry anyone in the racing industry but sometimes plans change for the better. She is happy now living vicariously through Erik while raising their son, along with taking care of their dog, Oscar and bunny, Biscuit.
Holly is in a good groove out here in North Carolina and feels “really blessed” for what racing has brought to their lives. Though a California native, she definitely feels at home here in North Carolina after being out here for nearly 7 years. Thankfully most of her family followed her out here as well so between them and Erik’s family, little David Jones is enjoying all the love! I loved this conversation with Holly and found so much of what she shared to be relatable, which we love. I can’t wait to continue cheering for Erik on Sundays and rooting for the whole family in whatever they take on next!
Full throttle,
Clair Crow
