Richard Childress notes the pressure from fans comes after taking over the Dale Earnhardt ride
Austin Dillon drove to his first win in 88 Cup Series events.
Both Richard Childress Racing cars elected to stay out in the final pit stop of the event. Together, they locked out the front row on multiple restarts and held off the field, on older tires.
The call to stay out didn’t come from the pit box. Instead, that call was made from the Command Center back at RCR. They noticed that new tires didn’t make that much of a differance and perhaps they could get a win out of the call.
But, it wasn’t easy. The race saw multiple late race cautions. Reddick and Dillon traded the lead but held off the field at the same time.
“Not bad for a silver spoon kid, right? I’ll take that,” Austin Dillon said as he climbed from his car at the start/finish line.
Dillon on this win vs previous wins
“We took it from them, it feels good,” Dillon stated of the win.
“I’ve said it to my grandfather, I said, ‘Man, the other two races we won were fuel mileage and one was the Daytona 500 that played out.’ Either way, we had to make it happen.”
“They’re both big wins in my career. But, this one, we had to make it happen multiple times on older tires. It feels great.”
“I’ve been given a lot of shit, actually, from all my friends about restarts, how I restart. For a long time.”
“I don’t ever wanna let them down. I had some dang good restarts at Kentucky, from like 8th. Give me something I can drive and I can restart.”
“I’ve definitely made mistakes in the past. But, I feel like in the right situation, I make it happen. That was one of those situations where I had to clutch it.”
Austin Dillon vs haters
Do you deserve more credit from fans? Why don’t you get more credit from fans?
Dillon stated, “I don’t know. Sports are sports, you gotta have somebody you don’t like.”
“Maybe it’s just my background and where I come from. But, I got a lot of people that love me too. So, it doesn’t bother me at all, really.”
“That can either get on the bandwagon and love me. Or, it’s ok. Haters gonna hate sometimes. We’ll be alright.”
Previously, Dillon has stated that he likes the silver spoon reference, noting that it motivates him.
Related: Austin Dillon gets ‘pumped up’ when he hears the phrase ‘silver spoon’
Richard Childress on the silver spoon kid
“You get in the #3 car behind Dale Earnhardt and people say, ‘Well, your granddaddy gives you this.’ But, he had to earn it, no different than Ty Dillon.”
“They had to earn their right to drive these cars. I told them that. That might be a little bit of it.”
“We haven’t given him the cars that he needed. I’ll never forget ’98 when Dale Earnhardt came and said, ‘I want to retire, it’s me.’ I said, ‘No, it isn’t Dale. We’re not giving you the cars.’ “
“We haven’t given him the cars that he needs, until this year. Tyler Reddick will win a race before the year’s over.”
Related: Dale Earnhardt race car sold at auction by Richard Childress Racing
RCR Teammates
RCR finished finished 1st and 2nd for the first time since 2011. That might not be a fluke as the new driver combination are pushing each other.
Dillon said, “As much as I hate to say it, I’ve got a lot of experience now, in the Cup Series.”
“For a long time, I was looked at a younger, Young Gun. I still feel young. The biggest thing is I’ve had to step up in the role that I’m in because we brought Tyler in who’s absolutely crushed it from the Xfinity Series, with two championships.”
“He brought something to push me. I think that’s something everybody needs, competition.
“When I first came in the Cup Series, I thought I was going to have Kevin Harvick as my teammate, to learn from. And, he left.”
Related: Kevin Harvick vs Ty Dillon; ‘Punk Ass Kids’ comment
“Me and Newman started our deal out. Newman was really great for a long time. We just didn’t have what we needed last year.”
“Reddick, bringing him in, it really changed the dynamic this year, as far as the competition. My grandfather has made some great calls on putting some people in the right places. Even though I’ve argued with him multiple times on it.”
“We run a family organization back home at RCR. When you cross those railroad tracks, there’s a sign to get in there. I can’t wait to get home because I know it’s going to say on that sign, ‘RCR goes 1-2.”
“He’s super talented. He’s going to be great for RCR, for a long time. A lot of potential, and he shows it, week in and week out.”
“He pushes me and shows me some things from time to time. Every now and then, I can show him a couple things.”
Richard Childress on Dillon and Reddick
“He’s got a teammate that he’s really working good with.”
“Austin driver off of being competitive. Now, he’s got somebody that’s going to push him. Both of them are going to do well.”
“I was hoping they didn’t wreck each other. But, it was pretty cool to see RCR at the front racing.”
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Austin Dillon | Tyler Reddick | Richard Childress Racing | Texas Motor Speedway | NASCAR
