Austin Dillon

Austin Dillon

Born (1990-04-27) April 27, 1990
Lewisville, North Carolina, U.S.
Achievements 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Champion
2013 NASCAR Nationwide Series Champion
Awards 2008 K&N Pro Series East Rookie of the Year
2010 Camping World Truck Series Rookie of the Year
2011 Camping World Truck Series Most Popular Driver
2012 NASCAR Nationwide Series Rookie of the Year
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series career
84 races run over 5 years
Car no., team No. 3 (Richard Childress Racing)
2015 position 21st
Best finish 20th (2014)
First race 2011 Hollywood Casino 400 (Kansas)
Last race 2015 Ford EcoBoost 400 (Homestead)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 9 1
NASCAR Xfinity Series career
98 races run over 8 years
Car no., team No. 2 (Richard Childress Racing)
2015 position 81st
Best finish 1st (2013)
First race 2008 Emerson Radio 250 (Richmond)
Last race 2015 Ford EcoBoost 300 (Homestead)
First win 2012 Feed the Children 300 (Kentucky)
Last win 2015 Drive for the Cure 300 (Charlotte)
Wins Top tens Poles
6 70 16
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series career
66 races run over 6 years
Truck no., team No. 33 (GMS Racing)
No. 31 (NTS Motorsports)
2015 position 82nd
Best finish 1st (2011)
First race 2009 Lucas Oil 200 (Iowa)
Last race 2015 Careers for Veterans 200 (Michigan)
First win 2010 Lucas Oil 200 (Iowa)
Last win 2015 UNOH 175 (New Hampshire)
Wins Top tens Poles
7 45 13
NASCAR Pinty's Series career
1 race run over 1 year
Best finish 45th (2012)
First race 2012 NAPA Autopro 100 (Montreal)
Wins Top tens Poles
0 1 0
Statistics current as of November 22, 2015.

Austin Dillon (born April 27, 1990)[1] is an American professional stock car racing driver. He is the son of former driver and RCR general manager Mike Dillon, brother of Ty Dillon and grandson of Richard Childress. He currently drives the No. 3 Chevrolet SS for Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, he also drives the No. 2 Chevrolet Camaro for Richard Childress Racing in the Xfinity Series on a part-time basis.

After winning Rookie of the Year in the Camping World Truck Series in 2010, Dillon won the Truck Series championship in 2011, and later the Nationwide Series Championship in 2013, also one year after his ROTY title in 2012. He holds the record for most consecutive poles in the Nationwide Series with four.

Racing career

2008: Camping World East Series

Dillon was the 2008 Sunoco Rookie of the Year in the NASCAR Camping World East Series after one win at Greenville-Pickens Speedway, one Pole and ten top-10s in 13 races.[2] In 2008 and 2009, he drove the #2 Chevrolet Impala part-time for Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR Nationwide Series with sponsorship from Chevrolet. His career best finish was 4th at Memphis Motorsports Park in 2008.

2009–2011: Camping World Truck Series

He made his first Camping World Truck Series start at Iowa Speedway, driving the #3 truck. This was the first time that the No. 3 had appeared in any of the three major series since Dale Earnhardt, Jr. used it in the Nationwide Series back in 2002. Dillon was supposed to start the Mountain Dew 250 at Talladega Superspeedway during the 2009 Camping World Truck Series season, but the truck failed track inspections, thus his time was removed and was not allowed to race. Dillon would drive the #3 truck full-time in 2010 for Rookie of the Year, with sponsorship from Bass Pro Shops. Despite crashing out early at Daytona, Dillon got his first career pole at Texas Motor Speedway in June and finished 3rd and led 20 laps. On July 11, 2010, Dillon scored his first career NASCAR victory in the Lucas Oil 200 at Iowa Speedway in the Camping World Truck Series and won a Truck Series race in a truck wearing the No. 3 for the first time since Bryan Reffner won for Team Menard in 2000 at Texas Motor Speedway.

Dillon would win his record setting 5th pole the most for a rookie in series history. Along with the pole he would lead over 92 laps of 146 to claim his 2nd win of the season at Las Vegas and the second of his career. Dillon was also rookie of the year ending the season with 2 wins 7 top 5s and 16 top 10s.

In 2011, Dillon scored his first win of the year at Nashville Superspeedway. Dillon scored his second win of 2011 at Chicagoland Speedway, beating Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch. After rain shortened the season finale at the Homestead-Miami Speedway, Dillon was crowned 2011 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Champion. He also won the 2011 CWTS Most Popular Driver Award. In 2012 he moved up to the Nationwide Series full-time, driving the #3 for RCR.

2011–present: Sprint Cup Series and Xfinity Series

Dillon made his first career start in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series on October 9, 2011, in the Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway. He finished 26th in his No. 98 Camping World Curb/Agajanian Racing Chevrolet Impala.[3]

On November 4, 2011, Richard Childress Racing announced that Dillon would be moving up to the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2012, driving the No. 3 that Dale Earnhardt made famous, with sponsorship from AdvoCare and American Ethanol.[4][5]

Dillon's 2012 Nationwide Series car

Dillon scored top-five finishes in each of the first two races of the 2012 Nationwide Series season.

2012

Dillon competed in the Sprint Cup Series on a limited basis in 2012, starting at Michigan International Speedway in June, driving the No. 33 Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing.[3][6]

On June 29, 2012, Dillon recorded his first Nationwide series win at Kentucky Speedway; he dominated the race by leading all but 8 laps and won by over 9.8 seconds over second place. However, NASCAR officials announced the car had failed post-race inspection because the rear ride heights were too low.[7] The penalty cost Dillon six points and the championship lead. Dillon won the pole at the Subway Jalapeno 250 at Daytona, but again failed inspection and was stripped of his starting spot. Dillon nearly won the race until a last-lap spin lowered him to fourth.

Dillon also participated in one race in the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series at Circuit Gilles-Villeuneuve in Montreal in August 2012. Dillon finished 7th while driving the no. 4 car for Fitzpatrick Motorsports.[8]

2013

Dillon announced in August 2012 that he would continue to drive full-time in the Nationwide Series for 2013, along with running seven Sprint Cup Series races that year, including the 2013 Daytona 500.[9] In January 2013 it was announced that some of Dillon's Sprint Cup races that season would be in Phoenix Racing's No. 51 Chevrolet.[10]

Dillon returned to the Truck Series for the inaugural Mudsummer Classic at Eldora Speedway, leading a race-high 63 laps,[11] and won after a green-white-checker finish.[12] The truck, the trophy and the famed piece of dirt track are on display at NASCAR Hall of Fame. Later in the year Dillon substituted for the ailing Brennan Newberry in the Truck Series race at Chicagoland Speedway.[13]

2013 championship car

In early August 2013, it was announced that Dillon would substitute for Tony Stewart in the No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet at Michigan due to Stewart's leg injury;[14] he would also drive the car at Talladega Superspeedway in October.[15] In Dillon's run at Talladega, he performed well during the event, and was running in the top five for most of the day; at the white flag, Dillon was third behind Jamie McMurray and Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and was about to give Earnhardt, Jr. a push for an attempt to make a winning pass when he was turned by Ricky Stenhouse, Jr., slammed the backstretch wall, then was sent airborne when struck head-on by Casey Mears.[16]

On November 16, 2013, Dillon won the NASCAR Nationwide Series Championship with a 12th-place finish in the season finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Dillon's series championship was unusual because he did not win any races during the season; this marked the first time in any of NASCAR's three national series that a season champion went winless.[17]


2014

On December 11, 2013, it was announced by RCR that Dillon will drive the #3 in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series with Cheerios and The Dow Chemical Company as the primary sponsors. It would be the #3 car's first Sprint Cup appearance in 13 years.[18]

During 2014 Daytona 500 qualifying, Dillon clinched the pole position with a speed of 196.019 miles per hour (315.462 km/h).[19] Dillon had a rather fast start to 2014, posting an 9th place finish in the Daytona 500 and two consecutive 11th place finishes at Bristol and Fontana.

After a long streak of bad finishes, Dillon rebounded in the 2014 Pocono 400. He qualified 11th and ran in the top ten during the first half of the event. However any chance at a top ten finish or win had ended on lap 106 when Dillon was penalized for changing lanes before the restart. After going down 3 laps, Dillon recovered for 17th. Dillon returned to Daytona, the site of his most notable Daytona 500 pole, with a career best finish of 5th, when the race was shortened due to rain. Dillon then earned another top 10 finish at Indianapolis. Dillon then won his 6th truck race at Pocono, his first win since Eldora. Dillon ended the 2014 Cup season as one of only two drivers to have been running at the finish of every race during the season, the other being Jeff Gordon. He finished second in the rookie of the year standings to Kyle Larson.[20]

2015

Dillon's 2015 Sprint Cup season started with a 14th place finish in the Daytona 500. At Atlanta, Dillon cut a tire early and finished 39th place. This was followed by a 20th place finish at Las Vegas, 15th place at Phoenix, and 16th place at Auto Club. At Martinsville, he was involved in an early incident and finished 41st. He rebounded with a 20th place finish at Texas, and his first top 10 of the year came as a 10th place finish at Bristol. This was followed by a 27th place finish at Richmond.

At Talladega, Dillon was running up front when his car caught fire on lap 157, relegating him to a 35th place finish.

On the heels of his poor finish at Talladega, Dillon took a 22nd place finish at Kansas, followed by a 15th place finish in the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte. At Dover, he was caught up in a late race crash and finished 33rd. This was followed by a 19th place finish at Pocono, 20th place at Michigan, and 17th place at Sonoma.

In the summer return to Daytona, Dillon had an up and down weekend. In the Xfinity race, he won after the dominant car of Brian Scott crashed out of the race late in the going. In the Coke Zero 400 on July 5, Dillon started on the outside of the front row after qualifying was rained out and the starting lineup was set according to practice speeds. After leading the first eight laps, he faded into the middle of the pack later in the going. Coming to the checkered flag, Dillon was hit in the left front tire by the spinning car of Denny Hamlin, causing him to flip into the catchfence over two rows of cars. Dillon climbed out of the car unharmed, save for a bruised tailbone and a bruise on his forearm, but five fans were injured by flying debris. Dillon was credited with a seventh-place finish.


In the second race at Michigan, Dillon earned a career best 4th place finish after a change in pit strategy. During the lap 21 competition caution, Dillon's crew chief Slugger Labbe told him to stay out on the track. On the next restart, Dillon was running in the first position and was able to stay out front and lead laps 23-40.

At the Chicagoland race, Dillon was running 8th on lap 198 when he blew a right front tire and finished 43rd.

At Kansas, Dillon was running in the top 10 when he blew another right front tire and finished 41st.

Personal life

Dillon is attending High Point University on a part-time basis.[21] Dillon also played in the 2002 Little League World Series in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania.[22]

Dillon is a born-again Christian. Dillon said whenever he wins he thanks the Lord for blessing him.

He is currently in a steady relationship.

Dillon is also the co-chair of the Reagan Foundation's National Youth Leadership Committee.

Motorsports career results

NASCAR

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

Sprint Cup Series

Daytona 500
Year Team Manufacturer Start Finish
2013 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet 8 31
2014 1 9
2015 30 14
2016

Xfinity Series

Camping World Truck Series

* Season still in progress
1 Ineligible for series points

ARCA Racing Series

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

See also

References

  1. ↑ Driver's stats at racing-reference.info
  2. ↑ Driver's bio at teamdillonracing.com
  3. 1 2 "Austin Dillon Event Preview: Michigan 400". Richard Childress Racing. June 12, 2012. Retrieved 2012-06-13.
  4. ↑ Bromberg, Nick (November 4, 2011). "Austin Dillon to drive No. 3 in Nationwide Series in 2012". From the Marbles. Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved 2012-03-04.
  5. ↑ "American Ethanol to sponsor Austin Dillon, Richard Childress Racing in 2012". AutoWeek. January 22, 2012. Retrieved 2012-03-04.
  6. ↑ "American Ethanol Launches Public Awareness Campaign". Hoosier Ag Today. June 8, 2012. Retrieved 2012-06-11.
  7. ↑ Rookie Dillon's car fails postrace inspection after dominating Nationwide win in Kentucky
  8. ↑ "NCATS Montreal 8/18/12 Results". Nascar. Retrieved 2012-08-18.
  9. ↑ Turnbull, Doug (August 11, 2012). "Dillons’ NASCAR future paved in gold (or black)". WSB Radio. Atlanta, GA. Retrieved 2012-08-11.
  10. ↑ Newton, David (January 11, 2013). "Austin Dillon to drive 51 car at Vegas". ESPN. Retrieved 2013-01-11.
  11. ↑ DiZinno, Tony (July 24, 2013). "Austin Dillon wins NASCAR Trucks’ inaugural Mudsummer Classic". NBC Sports. Retrieved 2013-07-24.
  12. ↑ "Austin Dillon wins on dirt at Eldora". Sports Illustrated. July 24, 2013. Retrieved 2013-07-24.
  13. ↑ "Former champ Dillon to drive Truck". Fox Sports. September 13, 2013. Retrieved 2013-09-13.
  14. ↑ Bromberg, Nick (2013-08-12). "Austin Dillon subbing for Tony Stewart at Michigan". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved 2013-08-12.
  15. ↑ "Tony Stewart to miss rest of season because of broken bones in his leg". Washington Post (Washington, DC). August 19, 2013. Retrieved 2013-08-19.
  16. ↑ Gluck, Jeff (October 20, 2013). "Austin Dillon goes on wild ride in last lap at Talladega". USA Today (McLean, VA). Retrieved 2013-11-19.
  17. ↑ Olson, Jeff (November 16, 2013). "Austin Dillon wins Nationwide title in celebrated No. 3". USA Today.
  18. ↑ Racing, RCR (December 11, 2013). "RCR announces lineup for 2014". Richard Childress Racing. Retrieved December 11, 2013.
  19. ↑ Fryer, Jenna (February 16, 2014). "Austin Dillon puts No. 3 on pole for Daytona 500". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved February 16, 2014.
  20. ↑ Gluck, Jeff (November 17, 2014). "NASCAR inside the numbers: Sprint Cup's top 30 drivers". USA Today. Retrieved November 18, 2014.
  21. ↑ Haynes, Pam. "HPU's Austin Dillon Races To Another Success In NASCAR World Truck Series". High Point University. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
  22. ↑ Pockrass, Bob (2013-08-16). "Austin Dillon used to pressure after playing in Little League World Series". Sporting News. Retrieved 2013-09-25.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Austin Dillon.
Sporting positions
Preceded by
Ricky Stenhouse, Jr.		 NASCAR Nationwide Series Champion
2013 		Succeeded by
Chase Elliott
Preceded by
Todd Bodine		 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Champion
2011 		Succeeded by
James Buescher
Achievements
Preceded by
Timmy Hill		 NASCAR Nationwide Series Rookie of the Year
2012 		Succeeded by
Kyle Larson
Preceded by
Johnny Sauter		 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Rookie of the Year
2010 		Succeeded by
Joey Coulter
Awards
Preceded by
Narain Karthikeyan		 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Most Popular Driver
2011 		Succeeded by
Nelson Piquet, Jr.
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