Coming into the Toyota Owners 400, Austin Dillon had finished outside P20 in all but one race at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where he finished a meager P16. Richard Childress Racing’s prodigal “grandson,” driving the iconic #3 Chevy Camaro Zl1, did not look like a favorite at Richmond by any means when he qualified at P22 alongside Corey LaJoie of Spire Motorsports. Dillon only added to his dismal tally starting under the lights (and rain) at Richmond after the Stage 2 restart had Dillon fuming from the #3 seat, starting in the 33rd position.

Frustrations boil over for Richard Childress’ grandson in the #3 at Richmond

Richard Childress’ grandson won his last victory on an asphalt short-track at Texas Motor Speedway back in 2020. His next victory came two years later in the Coke Zero Sugar 400, where he notched up his first Daytona 500 victory in almost a decade for RCR. These frustrations boiled over in Richmond, as was recently reported by SiriusXM’s NASCAR Radio host Davey Segal in an update from his official Twitter handle. According to Segal, Dillon had some scathing words to spew over the radio, as he stated, “We have dumb**s strategy every f*cking week! We’re indecisive, we don’t know what to do!“

This outburst made Richard Childress himself “chime in” and grab a hold of his grandson over the radio. The 5x championship car owner swiftly retorted as the voice of reason, saying, “Settle down, drive the car and focus here. It ain’t doing no good talking. Just focus.“

A dismal day for RCR

Nevertheless, the #3 team continued to consistently finish outside the top 20, as Dillon finished in P24 while being a lap down. On the other side, Goodyear’s debut of the Wet Weather tires made all the noise for race winner Denny Hamlin, who claimed his second victory this season while checking off the 53rd Cup Series win of his 19-year-long career.

The RCR contingent was dismal overall, as even Kyle Busch just made the top 20, following up on his 2024 woes in the #8 Chevy. However, the real question emerges: Can Austin Dillon finally break himself into the top 10 with a change of fortunes this season?

Read More: NASCAR Richmond Lineup: Richard Childress’ Demoted Grandson Makes Cup Series Return, Matt DiBenedetto to Headline Xfinity Show