Ever since he made the switch to Richard Childress Racing, Kyle Busch’s grass hasn’t been greener on the other side. The 2023 season was a good exhibition, and he bagged three wins, but as time went on, it was clear that he wasn’t the driver to watch out for every weekend. In fact, he hit new lows last year as for the first time in his career, he went winless and failed to make it to the playoffs. Yeah, an argument can be made for a couple of races like Daytona and Darlington in the fall, but apart from that, the RCR Chevys haven’t been able to provide Rowdy with the resources he needed to be competitive. And unfortunately, the trend is continuing in 2025.
Although the No. 8 Chevy had good speed to start off the season. Had it not been for the late race caution at COTA, who knows we might be having a different conversation. But that streak of three consecutive top 10 finishes quickly faded into three races without even finishing inside the top 20. Last weekend, Rowdy lost his cool with the way his race car was handling.“Unf—– believable, This car sucks so bad. Thank you, NASCAR,” he said and ended his day in Kansas wrecking himself. From the outside looking in, it seems RCR needs to ramp up its efforts with speed and handling on its Chevys, but his teammate, Austin Dillon, believes that they’ve got more speed this year.
Austin Dillon backs RCR despite mediocre results
Freddie Kraft was the one was asked Dillon about his take on the NASCAR season so far on the Door Bumper Clear podcast. To which the driver of the #3 Chevy replied, “I still feel like we have the speed, but we really haven’t hit the balance.” Not to forget, RCR made major changes within the organization, Keith Rodden took over the role of vice president of the competition, Johnny Klausmeier was hired as the technical director, and Richard Boswell became the new crew chief for the #3 team. And when Kraft asked Dillon whether these changes had yielded any positive results, his response wasn’t in line with Busch’s.
“Well, I think so. KB was—he actually rated his car at Texas number one. So, he felt like he could have won the race with the car he had at Texas, which is good.” This revelation comes as a stark contrast to Busch’s frustrations at Kansas, where he struggled to a 12th-place running position in Stage 2 before his radio outburst. Dillon’s comments suggest that beneath the public criticism, there may be more optimism within the organization than Busch’s Kansas comments indicated.
While Busch has struggled with four finishes of 20th or worse in the last seven races, Dillon has surged with three consecutive top-10 finishes and could’ve added a fourth one in Kansas. “I was really excited after Vegas. We went to Vegas and we had a car. It’s probably the most cars I’ve passed in a mile and a half in the NextG car,” Dillon reflected, before adding, “Those three top 10’s obviously put us back in a pretty good place.” As the team heads toward the All-Star break, the contrast between public frustration and behind-the-scenes assessment reveals the complex challenge of dialing in the Next Gen car across different tracks and conditions.
NASHVILLE, TN – JUNE 25: Austin Dillon 3 Richard Childress Racing Huk Performance Fishing Chevrolet talks with Richard Childress prior to the running of the NASCAR, Motorsport, USA Cup Series Ally 400 on June 25, 2023 at Nashville SuperSpeedway in Lebanon, TN. Photo by Jeff Robinson/Icon Sportswire AUTO: JUN 25 NASCAR Cup Series Ally 400 EDITORIAL USE ONLY Icon2306257904400
For all NASCAR teams, especially organizations like RCR that are fighting to return to championship form, the Next Gen car presents a technical tightrope walk that Dillon described with striking clarity. “It’s a knife edge, man,” Dillon explained. “Like you touch one thing the wrong way or you really have to like set the cars up for a certain portion of the race and you’re hoping it’s the end of the race because at one point in the race you’re going to be bad. I feel like everybody has that run in them and you got to be able to manage that.”
For all the positives that Dillon shared on the podcast, it is hard to ignore where the two RCR drivers are placed in the points standings. Kyle Busch, who was on the bubble, drops out of the playoff position post-Kansas and sits 18th in points, whereas Dillon is 22nd. With just 14 races remaining in the regular season, they are running against the clock as opportunities for a win will shrink with every passing weekend.
Kraft’s DBC show promises ‘A Side’ of Dillon fans rarely see
Bubba Wallace’s spotter, Freddie Kraft, may have captured more than just a standard interview when he sat down with Austin Dillon for the popular “Door, Bumper, Clear” podcast. “Finished up a fun DBC this morning. I think @austindillon3 fans will love it, and if you don’t really follow AD I think you get to see a side of him you might not usually see,” Kraft teased on X, suggesting the 35-year-old RCR driver opened up in ways NASCAR fans rarely witness.
The timing of Dillon’s appearance comes at a particularly interesting moment for Richard Childress Racing, following a Kansas race that saw him finish 22nd, snapping his three-race streak of top-10 finishes. Meanwhile, teammate Kyle Busch had his own drama unfolding with heated on-track moments involving Josh Berry and Noah Gragson, further highlighting the complex dynamics within the organization that Dillon addresses in the podcast.
As Dillon prepares for the upcoming All-Star Race at North Wilkesboro Speedway, his candid conversation with Kraft offers fans a rare glimpse behind a storied NASCAR race team. The grandson of team owner Richard Childress appears to have shared insights that even his regular supporters haven’t been privy to. Whether you like Dillon as a driver or not is another debate, but to know about the inside details of RCR in the modern era is something that would interest a lot of NASCAR fans.
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