"I was showing him how to race a teammate" - Austin Hill hits back at Sheldon Creed with clean race after Martinsville debacle

The tense chapter between Richard Childress Racing teammates Austin Hill and Sheldon Creed seemed to have come to an end this Saturday at the Phoenix Raceway. The rift had arisen from a contentious clash during the penultimate Xfinity Series race at Martinsville.

Up until the Martinsville incident, Hill and Creed had both been eyeing a spot in the Championship 4 field. However, Creed delivered a fateful blow to Hill in a collision that abruptly ended Hill's pursuit of championship glory.

Neither Hill nor Creed could secure a place in the final four, leaving the Richard Childress Racing higher-ups seething with discontent. VPs and team owners have openly criticized Sheldon Creed in the aftermath of the incident.

The fact that Sheldon Creed was set to part ways with Richard Childress Racing at the end of the season only served to intensify the tension. Thus, there was a lot of speculation about the dynamic between Creed, Hill, and the RCR team heading into the climactic championship race.

However, the Xfinity Series race unfolded without any spat between the two teammates. Creed secured a commendable second-place finish, while Hill claimed the seventh position, bringing an end to a season fraught with drama.

In the post-race interview with Frontstretch, Austin Hill addressed the question of whether the animosity had subsided. He said:

"I was just showing him how to race a teammate. That's all that was."

He went on to talk about the way he raced with "respect":

"I could've easily wrecked him if I wanted to, or got into him or cleared him and parked him into the center of the corner like he did me. But I was just trying to show him what a good teammate was. I just tried to race him with respect like I did everybody else."

Austin Hill reveals he hasn't talked to Sheldon Creed yet

Throughout the race, Hill was crystal clear about his choice to race clean. The 29-year-old said:

"I don't feel like I put a bumper to anyone on the night. I felt like I raced with respect, held my own, did my own deal and raced everybody clean."

But the question of whether the hatchet has truly been buried between the two teammates remains uncertain, as Austin Hill admitted:

"I don't know if it's necessarily under the bridge yet. We haven't really talked yet but hopefully we do sooner rather than later."

With Cole Custer winning the championship and bringing an eventful season of Xfinity racing to an end, it remains to be seen what comes up next for now-ex-teammates Austin Hill and Sheldon Creed.