Controversial win locks Austin Dillon into the playoffs
RICHMOND, Va. — Drivers were hot on the mic about the way Austin Dillon won Sunday night at Richmond Raceway to get into the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.
Dillon vaulted from 32nd in points to the playoffs with the overtime win in the Cook Out 400. He bumped into Joey Logano entering turn three on the final lap, turning him into the wall. Then, as Dillon regrouped, he and Denny Hamlin got together, causing Hamlin to get into the wall while Dillon went to victory lane.
Dillon was overjoyed.
“It’s been two years. This is the first car I’ve had with a shot to win. I felt like with two to go, we were the fastest car. Obviously had to have a straightaway. Wrecked the guy. I hate to do that, but sometimes you just got to have it,” Dillon said.
He stunned the field early on in the race, taking the lead from Hamlin twice on speed and looking like a highly likely playoff spoiler. A caution late in the race and Logano taking advantage of him being statistically-worst on restarts wasn’t enough to keep him from that.
“I got to thank the good Lord above. It’s been tough for the last two years, man. I care about RCR, these fans, my wife. This is my first for my baby girl. It means a lot. I hate it, but I had to do it.”
Logano finished 19th. And was very vocal after hearing what Dillon said.
“It’s chicken s-it. There’s no doubt about it. He is four car lengths back, not even close. Then he wrecks the 11 to go along with it. Then he’s going to go up there and thank God and praise everything with his baby. It’s a bunch of BS. It’s not even freakin’ close,” Logano said. “Dude, I get it, bump-n-run. I get it. I didn’t back up the corner at all. He came in there and just drove through me. It’s ridiculous that that’s the way we race. Unbelievable.
“I get bump-n-runs. I do that. I would expect it. But from four car lengths back, he was never going to make the corner. Then he wrecks the other car, wrecks the 11 to go with it. What a piece of crap.”
Logano advised, “Wait and see,” when asked how he will race Dillon.
The idea of payback isn’t lost on team owner Richard Childress. When asked about it, he said, “Just prepare yourself. It’s a two-way street.”
Denny Hamlin, the other driver involved in the incident, took on the role of elder statesman.
“Absolutely a line was crossed, but it’s an invisible line. It’s not defined. I mean, they have rules and provisions for stuff like this. But they never take action for it,” Hamlin said. “What happens is you see young guys coming up in the short track ranks seeing that, and they think it’s fine. That’s why we see some of the lower series turn out the way they do in these green-white-checkered situations because some of the best that they’re seeing on Sunday do stuff like that.”
“I mean, who am I to throw stones in a glass house? But I certainly never won one that way.”
After addressing the media on pit road, both Hamlin and Logano went to the NASCAR hauler to talk with officials.
Dillon fired back, when asked about their comments in his post-race press conference.
“I’ve seen Denny and Joey make moves like that, running people up the track. I’ve seen a lot of stuff over the years, people moving people, and it’s part of our sport. Joey said ‘it was short track racing.’ Put yourself in my shoes,” Dillon said.
“It is what it is. I did what I had to do to cross the start-finish line first. As far as good for the sport? I heard we’re No. 1 trending on Twitter. So I guess that’s good,” he added.
TOP-10 FINISHERS: Dillon, Hamlin, Tyler Reddick, Bubba Wallace, Ross Chastain, Christopher Bell, Kyle Larson, Carson Hocevar, Chase Elliott, Daniel Suarez
Bell won stage one and led five times for 122 laps before a speeding penalty knocked him back in the field on lap 281. He stayed out longer than other drivers before making his final pit stop to make up track position, then took option tires for overtime to solidify his recovery.
Suarez had a career night, leading four times for 93 laps. He took advantage of option tires in stage two to drive from 16th to first in about 15 laps before winning the stage.
While he got swallowed up in the final stage on prime tires by drivers on option tires, his team decided to go the final 35 laps on option tires and went on a charge. He drove from 16th to fifth and was even on-pace to possibly win.
Ultimately, Suarez finished 10th.
Two positions ahead, in eighth, Hocevar was the highest-finishing rookie. He also matched his career-best finish he earned earlier this season at Gateway.
Hocevar now holds three of Spire Motorsports’ four Top-10 non-drafting track finishes in the NASCAR Cup Series.
Playoff outlook
Chris Buescher finished 18th and dropped below the cutline. Bubba Wallace is now the first driver above the cutline, three points ahead of Buescher and Chastain:
14. Martin Truex Jr. 662 points (+78 points to the cutline)
15. Ty Gibbs 602 (+18)
16. Bubba Wallace 587 (+3)
17. Chris Buescher 584 (-3 points to the cutline)
18. Ross Chastain 584 (-3)
19. Chase Briscoe 485 (-102)
20. Kyle Busch 465 (-122)
Truex finished 37th with a blown engine. Ty Gibbs finished 22nd after the tire strategies didn’t work out in their favor.
NEXT: August 18, Michigan International Speedway (2:30 p.m. ET; USA, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, 200 laps/400 miles)
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Jonathan Fjeld View All
Jonathan Fjeld is the co-owner of the The Racing Experts, LLC. He has been with TRE since 2010.
A Twin Valley, MN, native, Fjeld became a motorsports fan at just three years old (first race was the 2002 Pennsylvania 500). He worked as a contributor and writer for TRE from 2010-18. Since then, he has stepped up and covered 24 NASCAR race weekends and taken on a larger role with TRE. He became the co-owner and managing editor in 2023 and has guided the site to massive growth in that time.
Fjeld has covered a wide array of stories and moments over the years, including Kevin Harvick's final Cup Series season, the first NASCAR national series disqualification in over 50 years, Shane van Gisbergen's stunning win in Chicago and the first Cup Series race at Road America in 66 years – as well as up-and-coming drivers' stories and stories from inside the sport, like the tech it takes for Hendrick Motorsports to remain a top-tier team.
Currently, he resides in Albuquerque, N.M., where he works for KOB 4, an NBC station. He works as a digital producer and does on-air reports. He loves spending time with friends and family, playing and listening to music, exploring new places, being outdoors, reading books and writing among other activities. You can email him at fjeldjonathan@gmail.com