“It’s gotta be Kyle”: When Austin Dillon candidly shared his thoughts on the ‘most punchable face’ in NASCAR

In an interview from November 2018, NASCAR driver Austin Dillon gave his candid response to a question regarding who might have the most punchable face in the sport. Dillon picked his future teammate, two-time Cup Series champion, Kyle Busch.

In a conversation with motorsports journalist Jeff Gluck, Dillon was asked a series of questions that included a pick for someone who has a punchable face. The Richard Childress Racing driver said:

"I mean, it’s gotta be Kyle (Busch). I don’t know who he got punched by in Vegas, but I just picture his face when he had the blood running down and everything. That’s why (the answer), I guess."

Dillon was referring to an incident that occurred between Kyle Busch (who drove for Joe Gibbs Racing at the time) and Team Penske's Joey Logano at a Las Vegas race in 2017. In the last lap of the Kobalt 400, Busch and Logano were battling it out for third place, when their cars came into contact causing Busch to spin out, finishing in 22nd while Logano took fourth place.

Blaming the #22 driver for the crash, Kyle walked over to the Penske team's pitwall after the race and attempted to punch Logano. What followed was an altercation between both drivers' pit crews that ended with Busch being pulled away with blood dripping down his forehead. Austin Dillon finished that race in 25th with Martin Truex Jr. taking victory at the chequered flag.

Kyle Busch eventually joined Austin Dillon in 2023 driving the #8 car for Richard Childress Racing. Dillon, who has been with RCR for the entirety of his Cup Series career had a best season finish of 11th place in the Cup Series, which he achieved in 2017, 2020, and 2022.

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Austin Dillon shared his thoughts on apologizing after an on-track dispute

Austin Dillon (3) and Kyle Busch (18) crash during the Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, March 20th, 2022 - Source: Imagn

Speaking with Will Gluck during the same interview from 2018, Austin Dillon was also asked if he believed an apology should be made if two drivers get into it on the racetrack. In the #3 driver's opinion, an apology is always called for.

Discussing what he thought should be done if the contact being made is intentional or unintentional, the 34-year-old had said:

"I think reaching out to the person is fine if it wasn’t intentional. If you didn’t do it on purpose and it was just a mistake, you overdrove and you hit them, it’s like, “Hey man, I screwed up there. I was over my head.” And that’s a good time to let someone know."

"If you did it on purpose, I think they know themselves pretty much already. And then there’s a conversation about why you did it — if it was to get back at them for something earlier or it’s just, “Hey man, I had to go. That was kind of the deal and I’m sorry for it, but you understand.”"

Austin Dillon has accumulated a total of five wins, 23 top fives and 80 top 10s while racing full-time in the Cup Series.