Austin Hill’s Daytona win should’ve been a moment of pure celebration for his family. But for his wife, Ashlyn, it reopened a wound that never fully healed. The couple has lived side by side for nearly their entire lives, meeting as kids at the racetrack, dating through their teens, getting engaged in high school, and becoming parents by the time Ashlyn was 21. Though she tends to stay private, she’s always stood firmly behind Hill through the chaos of NASCAR life. But with every new wave of hostility aimed at her husband, the toll becomes harder to ignore, and this latest victory proved it all over again.

Celebration quickly turns sour for NASCAR winner Austin Hill

Austin Hill once again proved he’s the king of Daytona, delivering a commanding performance in the February 14, 2026, O’Reilly Auto Parts United Rentals 300 race. On the final race restart, Hill launched from the inside lane with Sammy Smith to his outside.

The two fought side-by-side until Carson Kvapil surged forward on the backstretch, disrupting the outside lane and dropping both Smith and Jesse Love out of contention. Hill, unbothered and unchallenged, cruised to the white flag with Brennan Poole and Justin Allgaier trailing behind, never once giving up control of the race.

When the checkered flag waved, Hill secured his fourth Daytona win in five years, leading a staggering 78 of 120 laps. He swept both Stage 1 and Stage 2, the latter marking his seventh stage win in the last 14 Daytona stages. His superspeedway résumé has now become almost surreal:

• 11 wins in his last 15 superspeedway starts
• Most superspeedway wins (11) in the stage-racing era
• Most laps led (887)
• Most stage wins (18)
• Second-most stage points (328)

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Pure dominance. No debate.

Yet, for all that success, the tone surrounding Hill’s victory shifted almost immediately. Instead of praise, fans online began voicing their frustration (read: anger) toward the race winner, Austin Hill. His reputation as a polarizing figure, combined with claims that drivers simply “avoid racing him,” due to his aggressive driving, once again fueled the negativity.

And considering his wife’s emotional past admission about the toll of hateful comments, the backlash surrounding this win felt especially heavy… setting up the fan reactions that followed.

Fan fury erupts as old wounds reopen

Austin Hill may have dominated at Daytona, but the reaction online was anything but celebratory. Instead of praise, social media spiraled into frustration, sarcasm, and outright disgust. Many fans felt the field offered little resistance in the final laps, handing Hill yet another superspeedway victory without a meaningful challenge.

“Honestly, a pathetic showing from the O’Reilly field. On that last lap, it went from a head scratcher to completely perplexing…” one fan wrote, echoing hundreds of similar frustrations. Another added, “I don’t understand how this is ‘the best race of the weekend’ when it’s just a guaranteed Austin Hill win.” Others didn’t hold back their relief for entirely different reasons: “The greatest thing about this win is I don’t have to hear about Austin being in the playoffs. Awww I’m so excited about this season.”

For Hill’s wife, Ashlyn, this kind of backlash is far from new and far from harmless. In a deeply emotional appearance on Samantha Busch’s Certified Oversharer podcast recently, she revealed just how far the hate reached. The breaking point came not from strangers online, but from their child.

“Mom, why are people calling my dad a murderer? And why are people saying this stuff about my dad?” the child asked. These were strong words that Ashlyn said changed everything. “She was really angry at that point,” Ashlyn recalled. “I didn’t necessarily give a **** what people thought, but you feel differently when your kids feel different, you know? So like, I didn’t care until it affected my kid.” Ashlyn essentially admitted that Austin’s “villain” reputation is a heavy burden for the family.

The uproar had stemmed from Hill’s infamous clash with Aric Almirola at Indianapolis Motor Speedway last year. With 10 laps to go in the Pennzoil 250, Almirola bumped Hill, briefly unsettling the RCR driver. After Almirola passed him, Hill appeared to retaliate, right-rear hooking the No. 19 into a section of wall without a SAFER barrier. NASCAR responded swiftly. They parked Hill for five laps before issuing a one-race suspension.

Now, despite a clean and commanding Daytona win, the hostility hasn’t cooled. For many fans, Hill’s dominance only rekindled old bitterness, fueling fresh waves of criticism. Even in victory, the noise around him remains as loud as ever, proving Ashlyn’s worst fear true. For some people, no performance will ever silence the hate. And Austin will always remain a villain.