"It’s been rough the last two years": Austin Dillon opens up on feeling emotional during the Richmond race

Before his controversial win at Richmond, Austin Dillon had no finishes inside the top five this season. In fact, in the last two seasons, he had had a single top-five finish, which came at a Bristol dirt race in April 2023. So, winning at Richmond and booking his berth in the playoffs was an emotional moment for Dillon.

However, emotions got the better of the RCR driver way before the checkered flag dropped.

During a post-race press conference, when a reporter asked the #3 driver how big it was for him to put his team in the playoffs given their state in the current season, Dillon said:

"I tell you, with about a 100 to go, 80 to go, it was very hard for me to not get emotional in the race car. It’s been rough the last two years and for me to see the front and race with two of the best guys in the sport and prove that I can do it when given the opportunity, it was hard for me not to go to, like, get upset in the car." [05:35]

Dillon claimed that he had to keep his "s**t together" as he pointed to those who doubted him for being in the #3 car despite him being a champion in the Truck and Xfinity Series.

"And like I said, it was hard for me to keep it together with, like, 80 to go. I kind of got my s**t together because Denny (Hamlin) was right there and he was running a good race. He kept running, trying to run the line that I was running," he further added.

Austin Dillon further claimed that his line was a lot lower than most of the other drivers during the race. He said he would enter hard and low and keep the car rotating on the yellow line, which helped him in the long run.

"We had a car capable of winning that race. I sped on pit road. Was able to not make any mistakes and get to Victory Lane," he added.

Dillon also spoke about the state of his motivation during his winless period.

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Austin Dillon claims his motivation never wavered despite not winning a Cup race since August 2022

During the aforementioned press-conference after his first race win since Daytona in August 2022, Austin Dillon said:

"My motivation has never wavered in two years. I’ve probably put more work in the last two years than I have my entire Cup career. Going to the simulator every week at Chevrolet, working with Josh Wise, working with my guys, trying to understand how to communicate the best I can." [o9:20]

Addressing the idea of the Richmond win potentially revitalizing his career, Dillon claimed that such things are "God's plan." He mentioned that outside of NASCAR, his life is as good as it can be. The RCR driver also gave the example of Martin Truex Jr. and drew parallels between his and Truex's career.

As per Dillon, it is like a projectile, but if it isn't, he claimed he would support RCR in whatever way he can and keep racing as hard as he can to give his 100% behind the wheel.