Austin Dillon punches his ticket to the NASCAR Cup Sequence Playoffs with a win at Richmond Raceway on Saturday night time within the Prepare dinner Out 400.
RICHMOND, Va. – Austin Dillon claimed his sixth profession NASCAR Cup Sequence race trophy, earned a 2025 Playoff bid, and simply as importantly, he loved some candy redemption in Saturday night time’s Prepare dinner Out 400 at Richmond (Va.) Raceway.
Austin Dillon’s Win at Richmond
Dillon led 107 laps, together with the final 49, to say the victory and automated berth within the 16-car playoff discipline. He vaults from twenty fifth place within the championship standings earlier than the inexperienced flag. The victory is a clutch effort for the 2018 Daytona 500 winner and his No. 3 Richard Childress Racing group.
The trouble marks probably the most laps led by the No. 3 group all season and the third time Dillon has gained a race within the closing weeks of the common season.
It was an enormous assertion for Dillon, 35, after profitable this race final 12 months. Nevertheless, the victory was later dominated ineligible to take part within the Playoffs. Dillon was penalized by NASCAR for aggressive driving within the closing laps on the historic three-quarter-mile Richmond observe.
“Man, that feels good, obtained to thank the nice Lord above,” stated Dillon, who completed a wholesome 2.471-seconds forward of Playoff contender, Hendrick Motorsports’ Alex Bowman, who leaves Richmond now holding the final championship factors place with one common season race remaining subsequent week on the always-unpredictable Daytona Worldwide Speedway.
“I actually needed that one,” Dillon stated after an emotional hug from his brother Ty, who completed 18th on Saturday. “Final 12 months harm actually dangerous simply going via the entire strategy of it. However this one feels so candy. Man, I like Richmond.
“God has timing. His timing is one of the best timing. … It’s simply so particular. Each certainly one of these means a lot to me. My grandfather [NASCAR Hall of Fame team owner Richard Childress], for all that he’s put up in believing in me, as a result of there’s been a variety of ups and downs, might have been simple for him to alter the drivers on this 3-car. At the moment it feels actually darn good.”
Whereas inspired by his sturdy displaying, the runner-up, Alex Bowman, was additionally pissed off that lapped site visitors within the closing laps impeded him from making extra of a closing run at Dillon. He now sits within the closing Playoff switch place by 29 factors over Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing’s Chris Buescher.
“A pair favors,” Bowman responded when requested what extra he wanted to have the ability to deal with Dillon. “I certain complained about it on the radio, however that’s simply a part of what we do, so…Vented just a little bit, however had a extremely good Ally-48 [car] within the final run. Simply broke the tires off an excessive amount of in lap site visitors. Didn’t get any breaks. That made me type of work the rears tougher than I must.
“Simply have to be just a little higher via there to get to him. I definitely assume we had the higher automobile. Sadly, didn’t get there. [Crew chief] Blake [Harris] and all the blokes did an excellent job. Simply got here up just a little bit quick.”
Hendrick Motorsports’ William Byron formally clinched the Common-Season Championship along with his Twelfth-place end. It’s a enormous upward swing in momentum contemplating he was collected within the race’s solely main incident, a ten-car crash on lap 199 of the 200-lap race. He stated his No. 24 Chevrolet suffered just some mild splitter harm within the incident and was capable of regain observe place steadily via the night time.
“We had actually some actually good runs tonight,” stated Byron, who claimed his second consecutive Daytona 500 win on this 12 months’s season-opener and has led the factors standings for 20 of the primary 25 weeks of the season.
“Feels nice. Actually one of the best Twelfth place end I’ve ever had. We got here. In right here and simply did a stable job. We certified stable, however that is undoubtedly our hardest race observe. We had a stable plan and executed and it feels good. This group has labored onerous.”
Group Penske has Three Drivers within the Prime 5
A Group Penske Ford Mustang trio rounds out the highest 5 ending positions. Ryan Blaney leads the group, putting his No. 12 in third place. The consequence was the primary time in his stellar profession that he’s had a top-five run at Richmond. Blaney is the 2023 collection champion. His teammate, reigning collection champion Joey Logano, completed a powerful fourth place. The No. 22 Group Penske Ford began final in Thirty eighth place. And Austin Cindric accomplished the group effort within the No. 2 Group Penske Ford Mustang.
“I all the time take a look at alternative ways to get round right here each time I come again,” Penske stated of the Richmond oval. “I don’t assume it’s a secret. I battle actually dangerous right here. We work actually onerous to attempt to determine how can we enhance, like how can I enhance, how can we work on the automobile to determine what is going to mesh.
“Only a large effort by all of the 12 boys, large group effort. Positively assume we’re creeping up on it. Hopefully we are able to preserve going.”
Hendrick Motorsports’ Kyle Larson, Trackhouse Racing’s Daniel Suarez, Wooden Brothers Racing’s Josh Berry – a Group Penske accomplice group, Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing’s Brad Keselowski, and the hometown favourite, Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin, spherical out the highest ten.
Preliminary Playoff Implications
If there isn’t a new winner at Daytona subsequent week, each 23XI Racing’s Tyler Reddick and Hendrick Motorsports’ Alex Bowman might switch into the playoffs on factors. Though Reddick gained the opening stage and led 41 laps, he completed thirty fourth and 4 laps down. He sits fifteenth within the level standings at +60. Bowman is sixteenth at +29 factors above the cutline.
Reddick’s 23XI Racing teammate Bubba Wallace led a race-best 123 laps and gained the second stage. Nevertheless, a pit highway mishap derailed his run up entrance, with Wallace ending twenty eighth, two laps down. Three weeks in the past, he gained at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Byron’s Hendrick teammate, Chase Elliott, was in a ten-car accident mid-race, leading to his first DNF of the season. Elliott was Byron’s closest challenger for the Common-Season Championship title and the 15 Playoff bonus factors payday.
“It’s simply unlucky, we had a superb begin to the race,” stated Elliott, driver of the No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet. “We type of obtained on the flawed finish there to start with and misplaced some observe place. We obtained behind the No. 19 (Chase Briscoe) and obtained a penalty. I assumed we had been in a reasonably great spot proper there. We lastly obtained on some higher tires and we had been making our means via there effectively, so I used to be excited to see the place that was going to go, however sadly, we didn’t get the possibility.”
The incident and Elliott’s Thirty eighth-place end coupled with Byron’s Twelfth-place run sealed the title for Byron.
Subsequent Up
The NASCAR Cup Sequence returns to motion subsequent Saturday night time below the lights on the iconic Daytona Worldwide Speedway. The Coke Zero Sugar 400 begins at 7:30 pm ET on NBC, MRN, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. Harrison Burton is the defending race winner. 5 of the final seven winners of this race had been celebrating their first win of the 12 months.
