Austin Dillon Reveals How He Rallied to a Second Place Finish After Suffering a Hefty Penalty

Austin Dillon suffered a horrible start to the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington. It was the 1st playoff race. The Richard Childress Racing No. 3 group had to begin at the back of the grid.

The team made an unapproved change on pit lane an hour prior to the beginning of the race. They had their tires on in reverse. The team was in peril yet again when they had to pit for a flat tire.

Austin Dillon found his way up to eighth before Stage 2 came to an end. He was able to get into the Top-5 in the last 30 laps. It was when Chase Elliott and Martin Truex Jr. were involved in an accident.

The two were fighting for the lead when they hit the wall with only 15 to go. Truex had to pit after the incident, and Elliott was not able to keep up with the pace of his rivals.

Elliott finished twentieth, while Truex dropped to 22nd after suffering a puncture as a result of the impact.

Austin Dillon moved from fourth to second and was behind Kevin Harvick, hustling for the victory. He completed the race in the second position. It is one of the best recoveries in NASCAR in recent times.

“We did not take off very good. The first 25 laps, Justin made a great adjustment, really went at it. In the next run, we took off and I felt we were pretty good. The good Lord blessed us because we caught a lot of breaks truthfully,” Dillon said.

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In an interview with Bob Pockrass, Austin Dillon said it was fun starting from the back. He emphasized the team’s motto of Forget It & Drive On.

He said, “We gained a lot of track positions because we were on good tires and the caution fell for us in a good spot. That’s what we wanted, and it did which helped us keep our track position and ultimately gave us a shot at a Southern 500. So close to one of the crown jewels again.”