Getty Austin Dillon prepares for a race at Kansas Speedway.
Richard Childress Racing’s Austin Dillon has just provided some insight into his playoff mindset. He let everyone know that there is no panic button even when he’s below the cutline.
The Cup Series driver delivered this message on pit road after a 14th-place finish at Kansas Speedway. He detailed some of the issues that he faced early in the playoff race and explained how the team made some improvements. Dillon also detailed how moving to the next round of the playoffs will be a fairly simple task with so many drivers sitting within 13 points of the cutline.
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There’s no panic button. You’ve just got to execute,” Dillon said on September 11. “You’ve got to execute and have good runs. It’s very simple. We go have a top-10 run at Bristol, we’re probably gonna transfer.
“We need a top-10 run. That’s all we need,” Dillon added. “I mean, as many problems have been going on and the situation we’re in, if we finish in the top 10, we’ll probably transfer.”
Dillon’s First 2 Races Featured Some Struggles
GettyAustin Dillon recovered from early issues once again.
Dillon punched his ticket to the playoffs with a win in the rain-delayed Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway. He jumped from well below the cutline and entered the playoffs full of confidence in the No. 3 team.
The playoffs began with the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway. Dillon qualified 13th overall, but he quickly fell back through the field in a car that wouldn’t do what he wanted. He struggled throughout the afternoon as the team continued to make adjustments, and he ultimately finished 17th overall and gained some points on other drivers.
The trip to Kansas Speedway played out in a similar way. Dillon qualified 11th overall, but he fell back through the field once again. Though he was able to use a two-tire strategy late in Stage 1 to gain 17 spots, take the lead, and set himself up to gain some stage points.
Dillon remained inside of the top 20 during the final two stages, but he wasn’t able to gain as much ground as he wanted and contend for a top-10 finish. He settled for 14th, but he still put himself a little closer to the cutline as other contenders dealt with tire issues and other problems.
Dillon Has Previous Strong Performances at Bristol Motor Speedway
Dillon has the goal of posting a top-10 finish at Bristol Motor Speedway and moving on to the Round of 12. Will he achieve this goal? According to his history at the track, there is a chance that he will.
Dillon has made 15 starts at the Tennessee short track during his Cup Series career. He has posted three top-10 finishes — 10th in 2015, fourth in 2016, and sixth in 2020. Dillon also has 11 top-15 finishes at Bristol Motor Speedway, a run that includes the past three races.
What about short tracks during the Next Gen era? Dillon has also contended for some strong finishes during the 2022 season while adjusting to the new car. He finished 10th at Richmond Raceway in the spring before following it up with a third-place finish at Martinsville Speedway. The summer race at Richmond resulted in a 16th-place finish.
Bristol is a different beast considering that it has a different layout than other short tracks. Martinsville, in particular, is relatively flat while Bristol has steep, banked turns. This layout presents a different challenge, and many Cup Series drivers have openly spoken about how they have exactly no idea what to expect on Saturday, September 17.