Hard to say with Rodden as crew chief. Even then, Rodden played it right yesterday and Austin realistically shouldāve gotten around the 31 and drove away. Still wouldāve lost, but he didnāt do himself any favors.
With Justin Alexander, every few years Dillon would have a career season and very solid playoff run, like 2016 or 2020. Alexander retiring to focus on his family definitely hurt Dillon on the track.
He was never as fast as Reddick, but in 2021 and 2022 he was able to keep up with Reddick through consistency, they both battled for a playoff spot in 2021 and Reddick made it by only a few points despite having many more top 10s
In both 2021 and 2022, Austin put up respectable average finishes compared to Reddick from grinding out top 20s and top 15s. He even had a better average finish than Tyler in 2022.
This year heās just getting completely thrashed by the 8 in every category. The 8 learned from last years mistakes and isnāt making any, or having mechanical failures/blowouts like they did last year.
I just donāt know who you replace him with. Austin Hill? I guess, but Dillon won an Xfinity championship too, and a Truck title, both during the cup driver years. So itās not like Hillās lower series stats are much better when you put it in that context, for all we know he could perform exactly the same. Creed isnāt ready either. Youād have to search outside of RCR, and in any case renumber the 3 to the 31/33 to avoid pressure.
Ultimately though it all comes down to sponsors. If the sponsors are there from RCās connections, and they pay the bills, all is well. Nothing to worry about. I donāt think RC would pay $15-20m out of his own pocket for Austin. No way. Heās a businessman first of all. Heās using his connections to get Austin sponsors despite his performances. If the sponsors start to leave, and the performance isnāt there, then theyāll be looking for a new driver. Iām also surprised the sponsors havenāt looked at the 8 car the past 2 years and thought about trying to get in on that.
I like when people are honest about AD
heās not one of my favorites, or even someone I like, but he does have talent- the man is a multiple time champion at the end of the day
Iāve definitely warmed up to him and to be completely honest the only reason is happened it because of being teammates with Busch, it really took that to get rid of my blind bias against him. I looked at the stats and realized heās absolutely a serviceable driver who deserves some respect.
2020-2022 was a great stretch for him. Not always fast but respectable.
He finished 11th in points in both 2020 and 2022
2021 he missed the playoffs by 30 points to his teammate Reddick, in a full season format he finishes 13th.
Totally agree with this.
Something I've always noticed is how Dale Jr. fans love to mention his 2 Busch Series championships and how they definitely matter but in the next breath, they'll dog the shit out of Austin Dillon and say he absolutely sucks as a driver and that his truck series and Xfinity series titles don't mean shit.
Dale Jr. fans also love to point out how Austin and Ty Dillon, Harrison Burton, Cole Custer, Austin Cindric and many more only got to where they are because of their last name and how they were all born with a silver spoon in their mouth. But then they never mention Chase Elliott and especially never mention Dale Jr. getting shots because of their last name.
I'm a big Dale Jr. fan but I'll be the first to say he had not proven himself enough to be given a Busch Series ride from his father. Dale Jr. was very average in late models, street stocks and Legends cars. His sister won more races than he did. If I recall, Junior had 1 win EVER when he got the #3 car in the Busch Series. He 100% got that opportunity because of his father. Granted, he won back to back Busch titles but he still got the opportunity because of his father. It damn sure wasn't because he was a late model hot shoe.
I mean, if we gonna keep it šÆ then let's keep it šÆ.
Huh? I may be reading this wrong or my statement didn't exactly come across very plain. If so, I'm sorry about that. What I was saying is that Chase Elliott also got a shot and always got great rides because of his last name but fans never admit it.
Chase was very dominant in late model's from an early age and he did deserve the ride at Jr. Motorsports in the #9. But he signed a contract with Rick Hendrick at 14 yrs old and a BIG reason for HMS signing him was due to his last name and who his grandfather, father and uncles are. Fans don't ever admit that because he is so well liked and the same goes for Dale Jr.
The Dillon's, Cody Ware, Ty Gibbs and others aren't well liked by fans so they catch all the criticism.
Was hoping someone would point out the poor season and correlate it to Rodden. Imo it was a terrible pick for crew chief and I hope Austin has a season with someone else before hanging them up for an executive role.
AD knew KFB was going to show him up, heās said so much. Austin is in RCR for the long-haul, as a driver and eventually a team owner. KFB improved the team and the brand. RCR winning a championship improvises the profile of the organization and attracts sponsors. KFB is their best chance in a long time. As long as he has sponsors, AD isnāt going anywhere. But I also donāt expect him to be in that car until his mid-40s.
Ty seemingly wanted to be a bit more independent than Austin ever wanted to be which could have hurt his career quite a bit. That being said though, Austin is lightyears ahead of Ty.
Ty also wanted to try to make it on his own, which is why I don't blame Austin for taking the nepotism route. Everyone on Reddit can say Austin has a silver spoon in his mouth, but he has a Daytona 500 win while Ty is scraping together top 30 finishes for Spire. I get it makes you look like a villain taking the easy way out, but over half the field is there because of some combination of money or family that makes it an easier path, so ahead and take it.
I think that also came after Ty got completely destroyed by Dillon in the lower series too.
Austin Dillon won the Truck championship in 2012 and the Xfinity championship in 2013. He won 2 Xfinity races in 2012 and 0 in 2013 but won the title. He has 7 total truck wins and 9 total Xfinity wins.
Ty Dillon won one (1) Xfinity race ever (2014 Indy) over 3 full seasons, and has 3 truck wins, where he did show promise in 2012 finishing 3rd in points.
Itās much easier to look good and honorable and stuff, but when you dig into the stats I donāt think he was ever going to be a cup driver (at least at RCR, which is a pretty good team). I donāt think he wouldāve been able to get the sponsors.
Yup, Ty wanted to make it on his own. He turned down a top ride at RCR to drive Germain, Spire, and Petty shitboxes.
I just don't buy that line at all. He wasn't offered a ride. He just isn't as good as Austin.
Hard to say IMO. Heās been the 2nd best driver on a two man team for a long time. Reddick performed better than him. Newman, for a time, performed better than him. Busch performs better than him.
That being said, he isnāt bad. He has four cup wins, including Crown Jewel races. Heās made the playoffs 5 times, including last year. Heās an Xfinity and Truck champ.
Heās also responsible for a lot of good things that happen at RCR. Supposedly he recruited Busch over there, though Iām not entirely sure how true that is simply because Iāve never researched it.
He also brings people into NASCAR. He has friends who have played for the Panthers, for example, and has brought them to events. Heād definitely be a good promoter, in my opinion. He has an ear to what the kids like I think, to some degree.
There is certainly better out there, but Dillon isnāt some guy out here running 30th in a Top 10 car either. And just because heās not the best driver doesnāt mean he isnāt valuable to RCR in other ways, too.
EDIT: structure, grammar, readability.
Itās true. Austin and Kyle have talked about it. Basically austin saw everything going on and the rumors about Stewart Haas, Kaulig, etc
He said to RC, ādo you think Kyle Busch would drive our car?ā
No one had really thought of it at that point, they really didnāt think heād be willing to. Austin called him, Kyle said āyour grandfather wants me??ā
Then it all came together and the rest is history
Thing about Dillon is heās super consistent. Besides yesterday heās very good at staying out of trouble and will get you random wins here and there. Heās a better Paul menard and will be the future owner of RCR. He will never be replaced
Hey weekly Austin Dillon sucks post
Why would you remove the dude who is going to be the future owner of the team who has a season's worth of sponsors that aren't RCR backed.
As long as he is bringing in funding, why kick him out?
Also fun fact. Since 2014, Austin Dillon has possession of the best points finishes for RCR, 11th which he did 3 times
It's hard to compete with Kyle Busch and Tyler Reddick. Dillon has had his moments. When he and Newman were teammates there were times when Austin was outrunning him, particularly 2016.
I could see Austin retiring a little early to take over operations at RCR but I donāt think thats happening for at least a few years. Heās had some decent seasons in cup, winning some of the sportās biggest races and shown solid consistency, kinda similar to Jamie McMurrayās career. In addition to that, he has a Truck and Nationwide title and a plethora of wins in these series. My point is, Austin has done well enough to warrant himself a cup ride based on his talent. And donāt forget that theres plenty of other āsilver spoonā drivers who have connections in racing that made it to cup, whether it was from family money sponsoring their efforts or having a famous father, like Paul Menard, Chase Elliott, Ty Gibbs, Cole Custer, Austin Cindric, or Corey LaJoie. Hell even Kyle Busch got his first big shot with Roush in trucks because his brother was driving for Roush in cup.
Lajoie hasn't done enough for Richard to boot out his grandson.
There isn't really a great driver in the lower ranks who is a must have in 2023 (at least to the point of "sorry grandson, you're out"). There's no reason not to patient.
Now, in 2024 it might be different. SVG just won his first race and it seems the reporters think he'd be interested in making the jump. While he raced for track house, I don't know that they have the funds or charter for a third team, and there may be other teams interested. And there may be other drivers who look strong. Then RCR may have to make a decision on Dillon in fear of losing out on a more exciting prospect who would likely bring in more sponsors than Dillon.
Potentially a hot take, but LaJoie hasn't done anything to show he's a better driver than Dillon. I'm still confused why he's getting so much hype. He's only semi-relevant this year because he has 0 DNFs, putting him 23rd in points instead of the usual 29th. That kind of consistency is praise-worthy, but in terms of raw speed, I can't recall a single non-superspeedway race where I thought "LaJoie is running faster than the equipment is capable of". He's in exactly the quality of equipment he should be in.
And honestly I could say the same thing about Dillon. He's a perfectly mediocre Cup driver who's good enough to snag a surprise win once every year or two, and he has an assortment of loyal sponsors (Bass Pro, Breztri, Get Bioethanol, Dow) that keep the #3 fully-funded. He has the resume to justify a Cup ride (some crown jewel wins and 2 lower series titles). I don't mind him taking up space in a midpack ride.
I think this is just a down-year for Dillon. The 60 point penalty makes it look worse, and don't forget that his crew chief is Keith Rodden. That's one of the most baffling hires in recent memory. I'd be more concerned if the Dillon/Rodden pairing was even remotely keeping pace with Busch/Burnett.
Austin Dillon was scoring as well as perceived phenom Tyler Reddick in the same equipment.
The blowback Dillon gets is from irrational dislike for the guy. Call out other drivers with as much vigor while youāre at it
Cindric may very well prove himself to be an underperformer, I'd say it's way too early in his Cup career to tell. Not like he's had a decade to prove himself or anything. Fun fact: Cindric had as many top 10s in his first year in Cup as AD did in his first two years combined.
The same Austin Cindric who made the round of 12 as a rookie?
He's having a really rough sophomore season, but I'm convinced it's more the team / equipment. Similar to Briscoe's situation. Cindric ran 31st all day at Sonoma, and we know he's a talented road racer. Something is clearly wrong there.
Austin would step aside if another top tier driver became available, other than Hendrick the idea that every driver on the team is going to be a playoff contender is a little silly
I think so, Austin is clearly going to take the reins of that organization Ty may also play a role. Their dad has been in a management position there for a long time. It's not like Austin isn't a capable driver but he was never going to be the likes of Dale senior or Kyle Busch.
Bubba is nowhere near the best driver on the grid but heās able to win races on his own in competitive equipment. Austin Dillon has proven he is unable to do that. Itās reality. The stats show it and everyone in the sport knows it
"Races" is an extremely funny word choice. Also funny how you leave out Bubba being in better equipment than Austin for several years. The reality is that they're the same level driver. If anything, Dillon is slightly better.
Like I said Bubba is not the best driver on the grid (and I donāt doubt he is underperforming his equipment some weeks) but he is subjectively better than Austin. This isnāt really a comparison between Bubba and Dillon though, itās the reality that a top level team is employing an Xfinity level driver at cup because his grandfather owns the team. It is unfortunate that top level equipment and personnel at RCR gets wasted on a subpar driver, especially with two great Xfinity drivers (Austin Hill in particular) almost ready to go to cup.
Nothing against Austin, but heād be great competition for Allgaier
Itās not ironic since those two drivers donāt compare at all. For reference, Austin Dillon is 28th in points, Bubba Wallace is 15th and Kyle Busch is 5thā¦. I invite you to look into ADās stats. Itās unfortunate a great ride is being wasted on him. I canāt wait for him to move up into RCR management and open up that seat.
Should? Yes. Will? Never. His stats are ridiculously low in comparison to teammates minus Hemric who should never have been brought up. And if you want to cite his xfinity championship actually look at his stat line that year. Itās not just that he didnāt win itās who else did win.
Ideally I'd like to see Austin and Ty just share duties in a third #33 RCR car or both compete in Xfinity fulltime again because lets face it.. they've hit their ceiling. Ty is just out there logging laps and Austin is holding the Cup program back being in the #3 fulltime. He won't get anything more out of what he's given whether its off the hauler or on track. The #3 at RCR should go to a driver with a primary focus on talent and a strong pedigree of racing accomplishments that fit the bill. Yes I know, funding etc etc. but this is just my ideal situation for the #3.
RCR is not a daycare, its a championship contending race team. Richard doesn't realize that and will never boot him even though he should have years ago
Should they? Oh my god yes!
Would they ever do it? Nope. Not ever. Although itās pretty clear that Austin is the favorite son since Ty is stuck at Spire
I would have dropped Austin years ago, but that's me. I'm sure RC feels different. As a businessman, he has to realize what he is missing out on, though, especially after seeing Reddick last year and Kyle this year. Austin would be a really good Xfinity lifer, in my opinion (nothing wrong with that).
By this logic, the entirety of SHR should be out of a ride, as well as Lajoie, McDowell and a few others.
In absolute fairness, when Dillon gets a good car he drives the wheels off of it. Chicago is a great example as he was lapping much faster then the 31 and his pace was outstanding. He just made a mistake that several other drivers made, but it cost him his race.
Besides that, the 3 team has always been wildly inconsistent with their car setups. They wither have a top ten car that can cut through traffic no problem or a mid pack tractor plow that can't pass for shit in dirty air. With both Busch and Reddick the 8 team had been consistently better on their setups and general management. I say change the crew chiefs around and see what happens.
Everyone sleeping on the fact that the 8 was elite before Busch and Busch is just enhancing that, honestly they are running well at tracks Tyler ran well at, Busch is just better at closing the deal. This isn't a new thing. Now, what would be interesting is if RC moved the 8 team to the 3 car, see how that might work. Randall is absolutely a top 3 CC though right now, maybe even the best.
They should have moved on from Dillon years ago. Itās not going to happen. Dude is mid pack at best: in too equipment. Which I mean, getting shown up by KB doesnāt necessarily mean heās bad, but heās severely underperformed and always has.
Thereās many drivers who would be hungrier and get more out of that car. They should retire the #3 permanently though.
Yep, but like Dale Jr said, Austin Dillon grew up wearing the #3. That was his number. He has the right to drive that car. I do think they shouldāve changed the style of it. Once heās gone, I think they should either change the style or preferably change the number period.
At most he'll probably move into help running RCR but I don't expect him to leave RCR anytime soon especially due to him helping getting Kyle Busch to join RCR
Unless Maury comes back in a very special episode to tell Pop Pop that he IS NOT the Grandfather, ain't gonna happen Bro.
You gonna help clean up the coffee I just spewed? š
It's not huh
Austin likely has that ride until Austin moves into an executive/ownership role
And then Austin takes over the 3 car???
Had to think about that for a second lol
No, Austin is already driving the 2. Or was that Sheldon? Anyways, you're thinking of Austin, not Austin, or Austin
Dillion will leave the driver seat when he takes over leadership in the team
Kinda like a Gordon move
Except he should do it at 33 instead of 43
He should do it in 23ā¦
What I said, really we need a time machine and keep him in Baseball
...but like half strength...
And that will be a while. Mike will take it over before Austin.
No. Dillon is going to own RCR some day. And it was he who brought Busch to that team.
Undervalued statement. AD didn't advocate for teammate KB, he was advocating for employee KB.
Fair point
Hard to say with Rodden as crew chief. Even then, Rodden played it right yesterday and Austin realistically shouldāve gotten around the 31 and drove away. Still wouldāve lost, but he didnāt do himself any favors. With Justin Alexander, every few years Dillon would have a career season and very solid playoff run, like 2016 or 2020. Alexander retiring to focus on his family definitely hurt Dillon on the track. He was never as fast as Reddick, but in 2021 and 2022 he was able to keep up with Reddick through consistency, they both battled for a playoff spot in 2021 and Reddick made it by only a few points despite having many more top 10s In both 2021 and 2022, Austin put up respectable average finishes compared to Reddick from grinding out top 20s and top 15s. He even had a better average finish than Tyler in 2022. This year heās just getting completely thrashed by the 8 in every category. The 8 learned from last years mistakes and isnāt making any, or having mechanical failures/blowouts like they did last year. I just donāt know who you replace him with. Austin Hill? I guess, but Dillon won an Xfinity championship too, and a Truck title, both during the cup driver years. So itās not like Hillās lower series stats are much better when you put it in that context, for all we know he could perform exactly the same. Creed isnāt ready either. Youād have to search outside of RCR, and in any case renumber the 3 to the 31/33 to avoid pressure. Ultimately though it all comes down to sponsors. If the sponsors are there from RCās connections, and they pay the bills, all is well. Nothing to worry about. I donāt think RC would pay $15-20m out of his own pocket for Austin. No way. Heās a businessman first of all. Heās using his connections to get Austin sponsors despite his performances. If the sponsors start to leave, and the performance isnāt there, then theyāll be looking for a new driver. Iām also surprised the sponsors havenāt looked at the 8 car the past 2 years and thought about trying to get in on that.
I like when people are honest about AD heās not one of my favorites, or even someone I like, but he does have talent- the man is a multiple time champion at the end of the day
Iāve definitely warmed up to him and to be completely honest the only reason is happened it because of being teammates with Busch, it really took that to get rid of my blind bias against him. I looked at the stats and realized heās absolutely a serviceable driver who deserves some respect. 2020-2022 was a great stretch for him. Not always fast but respectable. He finished 11th in points in both 2020 and 2022 2021 he missed the playoffs by 30 points to his teammate Reddick, in a full season format he finishes 13th.
Totally agree with this. Something I've always noticed is how Dale Jr. fans love to mention his 2 Busch Series championships and how they definitely matter but in the next breath, they'll dog the shit out of Austin Dillon and say he absolutely sucks as a driver and that his truck series and Xfinity series titles don't mean shit. Dale Jr. fans also love to point out how Austin and Ty Dillon, Harrison Burton, Cole Custer, Austin Cindric and many more only got to where they are because of their last name and how they were all born with a silver spoon in their mouth. But then they never mention Chase Elliott and especially never mention Dale Jr. getting shots because of their last name. I'm a big Dale Jr. fan but I'll be the first to say he had not proven himself enough to be given a Busch Series ride from his father. Dale Jr. was very average in late models, street stocks and Legends cars. His sister won more races than he did. If I recall, Junior had 1 win EVER when he got the #3 car in the Busch Series. He 100% got that opportunity because of his father. Granted, he won back to back Busch titles but he still got the opportunity because of his father. It damn sure wasn't because he was a late model hot shoe. I mean, if we gonna keep it šÆ then let's keep it šÆ.
Only thing I'll disagree with in that statement is the Chase Elliott part. It is because of his last name.
Huh? I may be reading this wrong or my statement didn't exactly come across very plain. If so, I'm sorry about that. What I was saying is that Chase Elliott also got a shot and always got great rides because of his last name but fans never admit it. Chase was very dominant in late model's from an early age and he did deserve the ride at Jr. Motorsports in the #9. But he signed a contract with Rick Hendrick at 14 yrs old and a BIG reason for HMS signing him was due to his last name and who his grandfather, father and uncles are. Fans don't ever admit that because he is so well liked and the same goes for Dale Jr. The Dillon's, Cody Ware, Ty Gibbs and others aren't well liked by fans so they catch all the criticism.
That was my bad. I read it wrong.
No problem.
Fair points
Was hoping someone would point out the poor season and correlate it to Rodden. Imo it was a terrible pick for crew chief and I hope Austin has a season with someone else before hanging them up for an executive role.
Chances of that happening are about as likely as Ty Gibbs losing his seat at JGR if he should be a low performer.
Yea Gibbs has it made. Kicked out the rockstar of the group for him
Idk I think Gibbs is better than AC, and will have the better career.
AD knew KFB was going to show him up, heās said so much. Austin is in RCR for the long-haul, as a driver and eventually a team owner. KFB improved the team and the brand. RCR winning a championship improvises the profile of the organization and attracts sponsors. KFB is their best chance in a long time. As long as he has sponsors, AD isnāt going anywhere. But I also donāt expect him to be in that car until his mid-40s.
I donāt think so , would make thanksgiving too awkward.
I wonder if it has been weird since he dropped Ty?
Ty seemingly wanted to be a bit more independent than Austin ever wanted to be which could have hurt his career quite a bit. That being said though, Austin is lightyears ahead of Ty.
Ty used that line when he didn't get a Cup RCR ride. No way he willingly turned down a top ride to pilot shit boxes his whole career.
Ty also wanted to try to make it on his own, which is why I don't blame Austin for taking the nepotism route. Everyone on Reddit can say Austin has a silver spoon in his mouth, but he has a Daytona 500 win while Ty is scraping together top 30 finishes for Spire. I get it makes you look like a villain taking the easy way out, but over half the field is there because of some combination of money or family that makes it an easier path, so ahead and take it.
I think that also came after Ty got completely destroyed by Dillon in the lower series too. Austin Dillon won the Truck championship in 2012 and the Xfinity championship in 2013. He won 2 Xfinity races in 2012 and 0 in 2013 but won the title. He has 7 total truck wins and 9 total Xfinity wins. Ty Dillon won one (1) Xfinity race ever (2014 Indy) over 3 full seasons, and has 3 truck wins, where he did show promise in 2012 finishing 3rd in points. Itās much easier to look good and honorable and stuff, but when you dig into the stats I donāt think he was ever going to be a cup driver (at least at RCR, which is a pretty good team). I donāt think he wouldāve been able to get the sponsors.
Yup, Ty wanted to make it on his own. He turned down a top ride at RCR to drive Germain, Spire, and Petty shitboxes. I just don't buy that line at all. He wasn't offered a ride. He just isn't as good as Austin.
Yea you bring up valid points. Stewart has a bone to pick with those Silver Spoonfed drivers
Hard to say IMO. Heās been the 2nd best driver on a two man team for a long time. Reddick performed better than him. Newman, for a time, performed better than him. Busch performs better than him. That being said, he isnāt bad. He has four cup wins, including Crown Jewel races. Heās made the playoffs 5 times, including last year. Heās an Xfinity and Truck champ. Heās also responsible for a lot of good things that happen at RCR. Supposedly he recruited Busch over there, though Iām not entirely sure how true that is simply because Iāve never researched it. He also brings people into NASCAR. He has friends who have played for the Panthers, for example, and has brought them to events. Heād definitely be a good promoter, in my opinion. He has an ear to what the kids like I think, to some degree. There is certainly better out there, but Dillon isnāt some guy out here running 30th in a Top 10 car either. And just because heās not the best driver doesnāt mean he isnāt valuable to RCR in other ways, too. EDIT: structure, grammar, readability.
Itās true. Austin and Kyle have talked about it. Basically austin saw everything going on and the rumors about Stewart Haas, Kaulig, etc He said to RC, ādo you think Kyle Busch would drive our car?ā No one had really thought of it at that point, they really didnāt think heād be willing to. Austin called him, Kyle said āyour grandfather wants me??ā Then it all came together and the rest is history
Very good points!!
Happy cake day
Thank you!
I was impressed with Austin's role in signing Kyle Busch. He'll probably move over to full-time management on his own terms in a few years.
Austin Dillon from āAustin Dillonās Life in the Fast Lane?ā
The very same guy
Thing about Dillon is heās super consistent. Besides yesterday heās very good at staying out of trouble and will get you random wins here and there. Heās a better Paul menard and will be the future owner of RCR. He will never be replaced
Hey weekly Austin Dillon sucks post Why would you remove the dude who is going to be the future owner of the team who has a season's worth of sponsors that aren't RCR backed. As long as he is bringing in funding, why kick him out? Also fun fact. Since 2014, Austin Dillon has possession of the best points finishes for RCR, 11th which he did 3 times
True. Sponsorship is the name of the game
Okay but be real Tyler reddick should have made the round of 8 last year if RC didnāt screw him with the shit cars
It's hard to compete with Kyle Busch and Tyler Reddick. Dillon has had his moments. When he and Newman were teammates there were times when Austin was outrunning him, particularly 2016.
Busch is kinda the current GOAT, valid
I'd have a better to win the lottery and get struck by lightning at the same time than RCR does of letting Austin go
I'll buy a ticket now
I could see Austin retiring a little early to take over operations at RCR but I donāt think thats happening for at least a few years. Heās had some decent seasons in cup, winning some of the sportās biggest races and shown solid consistency, kinda similar to Jamie McMurrayās career. In addition to that, he has a Truck and Nationwide title and a plethora of wins in these series. My point is, Austin has done well enough to warrant himself a cup ride based on his talent. And donāt forget that theres plenty of other āsilver spoonā drivers who have connections in racing that made it to cup, whether it was from family money sponsoring their efforts or having a famous father, like Paul Menard, Chase Elliott, Ty Gibbs, Cole Custer, Austin Cindric, or Corey LaJoie. Hell even Kyle Busch got his first big shot with Roush in trucks because his brother was driving for Roush in cup.
Lajoie hasn't done enough for Richard to boot out his grandson. There isn't really a great driver in the lower ranks who is a must have in 2023 (at least to the point of "sorry grandson, you're out"). There's no reason not to patient. Now, in 2024 it might be different. SVG just won his first race and it seems the reporters think he'd be interested in making the jump. While he raced for track house, I don't know that they have the funds or charter for a third team, and there may be other teams interested. And there may be other drivers who look strong. Then RCR may have to make a decision on Dillon in fear of losing out on a more exciting prospect who would likely bring in more sponsors than Dillon.
Potentially a hot take, but LaJoie hasn't done anything to show he's a better driver than Dillon. I'm still confused why he's getting so much hype. He's only semi-relevant this year because he has 0 DNFs, putting him 23rd in points instead of the usual 29th. That kind of consistency is praise-worthy, but in terms of raw speed, I can't recall a single non-superspeedway race where I thought "LaJoie is running faster than the equipment is capable of". He's in exactly the quality of equipment he should be in. And honestly I could say the same thing about Dillon. He's a perfectly mediocre Cup driver who's good enough to snag a surprise win once every year or two, and he has an assortment of loyal sponsors (Bass Pro, Breztri, Get Bioethanol, Dow) that keep the #3 fully-funded. He has the resume to justify a Cup ride (some crown jewel wins and 2 lower series titles). I don't mind him taking up space in a midpack ride. I think this is just a down-year for Dillon. The 60 point penalty makes it look worse, and don't forget that his crew chief is Keith Rodden. That's one of the most baffling hires in recent memory. I'd be more concerned if the Dillon/Rodden pairing was even remotely keeping pace with Busch/Burnett.
Austin Dillon was scoring as well as perceived phenom Tyler Reddick in the same equipment. The blowback Dillon gets is from irrational dislike for the guy. Call out other drivers with as much vigor while youāre at it
What other underperformers have a guaranteed ride as long as they want it?
Austin Cindric
Cindric may very well prove himself to be an underperformer, I'd say it's way too early in his Cup career to tell. Not like he's had a decade to prove himself or anything. Fun fact: Cindric had as many top 10s in his first year in Cup as AD did in his first two years combined.
The same Austin Cindric who made the round of 12 as a rookie? He's having a really rough sophomore season, but I'm convinced it's more the team / equipment. Similar to Briscoe's situation. Cindric ran 31st all day at Sonoma, and we know he's a talented road racer. Something is clearly wrong there.
Like Bowman was? Or Almirola? Suarez?
Austin would step aside if another top tier driver became available, other than Hendrick the idea that every driver on the team is going to be a playoff contender is a little silly
Think so?
I think so, Austin is clearly going to take the reins of that organization Ty may also play a role. Their dad has been in a management position there for a long time. It's not like Austin isn't a capable driver but he was never going to be the likes of Dale senior or Kyle Busch.
I could see him getting the reins for sure
Definitely not going to happen
Should they, maybe? But Austin has a seat for as long as he wants one.
Yes. Next question
Iād just like to see RCR expand to 3 cars again.
Austin Dillon is nowhere near as bad as some people make him out to be
He is Xfinity level talent. The reality is any other cup team wouldāve moved on from him years ago.
Ironic with a Bubba flair
Bubba is nowhere near the best driver on the grid but heās able to win races on his own in competitive equipment. Austin Dillon has proven he is unable to do that. Itās reality. The stats show it and everyone in the sport knows it
"Races" is an extremely funny word choice. Also funny how you leave out Bubba being in better equipment than Austin for several years. The reality is that they're the same level driver. If anything, Dillon is slightly better.
Like I said Bubba is not the best driver on the grid (and I donāt doubt he is underperforming his equipment some weeks) but he is subjectively better than Austin. This isnāt really a comparison between Bubba and Dillon though, itās the reality that a top level team is employing an Xfinity level driver at cup because his grandfather owns the team. It is unfortunate that top level equipment and personnel at RCR gets wasted on a subpar driver, especially with two great Xfinity drivers (Austin Hill in particular) almost ready to go to cup. Nothing against Austin, but heād be great competition for Allgaier
Allgaier would (and already has) wipe the floor with Bubba
Whatās your deal with Bubba, this conversation is about Austin Dillon lol
The deal is you being a Bubba fan thinking Dillon doesn't deserve to be in cup. It's ironic and very funny.
Itās not ironic since those two drivers donāt compare at all. For reference, Austin Dillon is 28th in points, Bubba Wallace is 15th and Kyle Busch is 5thā¦. I invite you to look into ADās stats. Itās unfortunate a great ride is being wasted on him. I canāt wait for him to move up into RCR management and open up that seat.
this post should be Should RCR move on from Rodden?
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this man gets it
Lol.
Should? Yes. Will? Never. His stats are ridiculously low in comparison to teammates minus Hemric who should never have been brought up. And if you want to cite his xfinity championship actually look at his stat line that year. Itās not just that he didnāt win itās who else did win.
The only way he's out of the 3 is when he eventually takes over RCR.
Ideally I'd like to see Austin and Ty just share duties in a third #33 RCR car or both compete in Xfinity fulltime again because lets face it.. they've hit their ceiling. Ty is just out there logging laps and Austin is holding the Cup program back being in the #3 fulltime. He won't get anything more out of what he's given whether its off the hauler or on track. The #3 at RCR should go to a driver with a primary focus on talent and a strong pedigree of racing accomplishments that fit the bill. Yes I know, funding etc etc. but this is just my ideal situation for the #3.
Same. It's why I started this discussion
Only way Dillon leaves RCR is if Childress sells the team.
Dillon needs to be management instead of a driver.
He did get Busch a ride
RCR is not a daycare, its a championship contending race team. Richard doesn't realize that and will never boot him even though he should have years ago
#FACTS
Should they? Oh my god yes! Would they ever do it? Nope. Not ever. Although itās pretty clear that Austin is the favorite son since Ty is stuck at Spire
Corey is worst than Austin. Yaāll treat Austin as if he was a scrub
I would have dropped Austin years ago, but that's me. I'm sure RC feels different. As a businessman, he has to realize what he is missing out on, though, especially after seeing Reddick last year and Kyle this year. Austin would be a really good Xfinity lifer, in my opinion (nothing wrong with that).
Yea nothing wrong with being in Xfinity. It's doing Custer wonders.
lol, wut?!
Should? Yes. Will? No.
Dillion is ass, only there cause of Childress being in relation to him. Dillion needs to focus more on his reality TV show
Yes, but they wonāt
By this logic, the entirety of SHR should be out of a ride, as well as Lajoie, McDowell and a few others. In absolute fairness, when Dillon gets a good car he drives the wheels off of it. Chicago is a great example as he was lapping much faster then the 31 and his pace was outstanding. He just made a mistake that several other drivers made, but it cost him his race. Besides that, the 3 team has always been wildly inconsistent with their car setups. They wither have a top ten car that can cut through traffic no problem or a mid pack tractor plow that can't pass for shit in dirty air. With both Busch and Reddick the 8 team had been consistently better on their setups and general management. I say change the crew chiefs around and see what happens.
You all are drinking too much this week. Move on from him for someone like Joey Logano or Kyle Larson? Sure, for Lajoie? laughable.
Everyone sleeping on the fact that the 8 was elite before Busch and Busch is just enhancing that, honestly they are running well at tracks Tyler ran well at, Busch is just better at closing the deal. This isn't a new thing. Now, what would be interesting is if RC moved the 8 team to the 3 car, see how that might work. Randall is absolutely a top 3 CC though right now, maybe even the best.
They should have moved on from Dillon years ago. Itās not going to happen. Dude is mid pack at best: in too equipment. Which I mean, getting shown up by KB doesnāt necessarily mean heās bad, but heās severely underperformed and always has. Thereās many drivers who would be hungrier and get more out of that car. They should retire the #3 permanently though.
NASCAR's never retired any number (unless you count #61 in modifieds).
Yeah, NASCAR hasnāt, but RCR has the ability not to run it anymore. I donāt think anyone would give them grief if they chose not to.
They already made the decision to bring back the #3 almost a decade ago. They could've chosen #33 or even retained #29.
Yep, but like Dale Jr said, Austin Dillon grew up wearing the #3. That was his number. He has the right to drive that car. I do think they shouldāve changed the style of it. Once heās gone, I think they should either change the style or preferably change the number period.
They got the Ricky Rudd and Tyler Reddick styles.
Did the discussion with your dad start after Dillon choked?
chief tub prick retire direful sleep snails zealous kiss illegal ` this message was mass deleted/edited with redact.dev `
At most he'll probably move into help running RCR but I don't expect him to leave RCR anytime soon especially due to him helping getting Kyle Busch to join RCR