Austin Dillon Reflects on Time With Tyler Reddick

Getty Austin Dillon (right) has reflected on his time with Tyler Reddick (center).

Richard Childress Racing is moving forward with Austin Dillon and Kyle Busch as the main Cup Series drivers. Dillon has expressed excitement about the future, but he has also taken time to reflect on his experience working with Tyler Reddick.

“For me, it’s one of the best things that could’ve happened,” Dillon explained as his time with Reddick came to a close, transcript courtesy of NASCAR Media.

“I mean, he was a great teammate throughout, brought speed instantly, a new mentality to the track for RCR. I feel like it was big. He’s just got a lot of good things that came with having him as a teammate. We worked well together.

“Obviously, this year, I think any time on the track, we had each other’s back and we pushed each other to be better. So yeah, he was a great part of our organization for the time he’s been here, and we’ve got a good friendship and hopefully, he has a good career ahead of him where he’s going, and I’m happy for him.”

Reddick & Dillon Finished 1-2 in Multiple Races

GettyTyler Reddick (left) and Austin Dillon (right) race at Texas Motor Speedway.

Reddick and Dillon were Cup Series teammates from 2020 until the end of the 2022 season. They had numerous opportunities to help each other with pushes or with pivotal decisions.

The 2022 season provided two prominent examples. The first was at Road America. Reddick was in the lead with two laps remaining, and he was en route to his first career Cup Series win. His battle with Ross Chastain was the main story, but the cameras also showed that Dillon had a flat tire on the No. 3 due to a blown brake rotor.

If Dillon continued working his way around the track, he would have potentially left debris on the surface and brought out the caution. This would have sent the race to another restart and potentially taken away a win from Reddick.

The veteran driver ultimately found a cutoff, which he used to pull the No. 3 Chevrolet off of the track. He ended the day with a DNF, but he also ensured that Reddick would win.

Weeks later, Reddick played a key role in Dillon winning his first race of the year and punching his ticket to the playoffs. Austin Cindric had the lead with three laps remaining, but Dillon bumped him from behind, got the No. 2 loose, and took the lead with Reddick right behind him.

Once the two RCR drivers were at the front of the pack, they took on different roles. Dillon focused on completing strong laps while Reddick continued to push him. He also served as a key blocker the entire way to the checkered flag.

The support also goes back to a race at Texas Motor Speedway in 2020. Dillon and Reddick finished 1-2 after spending much of the final stage working together to hold off the field.

This process was made far more difficult due to the number of cautions and restarts. Each time the field had to line back up, Dillon would take the inside while Reddick would take the outside. They would lead the field to green and then move into a single file in the top two spots.

Dillon had a faster car, so he would take the lead each time. Reddick, for comparison, would spend each green flag run battling both Kyle Busch and Joey Logano for the second position.

The 2 Teammates Will Now Move Forward

The three-year partnership has come to a close after the season finale at Phoenix Raceway. Reddick will now move over to 23XI Racing while Dillon will return to the No. 3 Chevrolet.

The two drivers will have to adjust to new teammates as they approach the 2023 season. Dillon will work with Busch as the two-time champion makes his return to Team Chevy. Reddick will join forces with Bubba Wallace as he replaces Kurt Busch in the No. 45 Toyota.

No one knows how the two drivers will perform after they both secured wins in 2022. Will they achieve success once again, or will their respective seasons be full of near-misses? There is no clear answer, but both drivers will enter the season with rides capable of contending for wins.