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Austin Dillon Helped Facilitate The Kyle Busch Signing For Richard Childress Racing

by Hunter Thomas September 16, 2022 0 comments

BRISTOL, Tenn. – Austin Dillon played a huge role in getting Kyle Busch signed at Richard Childress Racing.

On Friday at Bristol Motor Speedway, Dillon recounted the conversations that he had in an effort to get Kyle Busch to sign with his grandfather’s team. Busch, who has competed for Joe Gibbs Racing since 2008, became a free agent when deals didn’t come to fruition for him to return to the Toyota team. When Dillon learned of the news of Busch’s free agency, he thought that the two-time NASCAR Cup Series champion would make a great replacement to fill the No. 8 Chevrolet at Richard Childress Racing after Tyler Redick announced that he was going to move to 23XI Racing in 2024.

“After the Tyler announcement, it was about what’s the future of the RCR look and where to go from here. In my mind, there was one guy in free agency who anyone who would love to have when it comes to a driver standpoint,” Dillon said. “It’s something he can bring and elevate your competition side right off the bat. And he moves the needle when it comes to marketing. He really does. He has a huge fanbase. So for me, it was just talking to my grandfather and saying, ‘Hey, what do you think about Kyle?’ He came back with if he would want to drive for us. I was like, why not because we have fast cars and good equipment. Truthfully when it comes to Kyle, he wants to go fast and win races.”

Richard Childress pondered the idea of adding Busch to the lineup, a driver who he personally got into a physical altercation with at Kansas Speedway back in 2011 following a NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race. Not long after, Childress made a decision, and Dillon reached out to Busch to get his thoughts on the possible deal.

‘So he (Richard Childress) said to let him think about it, and about 30 minutes later,” Dillon said. “So I texted Kyle and then gave him a call and we talked. It was the same kind of conversation with Kyle… ‘Do you really think he wants me to drive for him?’ And I was like, yeah that’s what I called. It’s a great opportunity for both of them. For me, especially as a teammate, I get to learn a lot from him. The people in our shop are really excited to have a guy with his kind of experience… a two-time champion with over 200 wins. It’s awesome and it’s great for RCR. In the end, that’s what makes me happy.”

Dillon took the initiative to help facilitate this deal, because he wants to see Richard Childress Racing succeed for many years. He has a great deal of passion for the team and has obviously grown up in its culture. Sure, adding Busch to the roster is a huge power move, but Dillon didn’t view it as a threat. In fact, he wants to learn from the Las Vegas native and help make the team more competitive.

“I was born across those railroad tracks, so I feel like it’s all I ever know,” Dillon said. “To me, everybody who works at RCR and all the faces that I see on a weekly basis… those decisions that my grandfather made for so many years, I’ve seen him have sleepless nights because he wants his people and his company to survive and do well. For me, it’s the same thing. I want the people at RCR to be happy and have jobs for a really long time. When it comes to helping him to make good decisions for the future, I think he takes my opinion. That’s cool, and I think I deserve that too from a competition standpoint, just being in this garage for a long time, seeing a lot and seeing how things work.”

Come Saturday at Bristol Motor Speedway, both Busch and Dillon will have to start from deep in the field. Busch will roll off in 21^st, and Dillon will start 28^th.

Live coverage of the Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway will broadcast live on USA and PRN at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday night.

Photo Credit: Tyler Goodson/TheFourthTurn.com