Austin Dillon is ready to get back to business at the race track after winning last week’s Daytona 500.
Dillon’s thrilling win in “The Great American Race” has sent the Richard Childress Racing driver on a cross country odyssey to celebrate and talk about the victory.
He’s basking in the moment and also thankful about the team effort it took to win at Daytona. To show that appreciation, Dillon is going to buy a Daytona 500 championship ring for everyone at RCR.
“It’s going to hurt a little bit.,” Dillon joked Friday morning at Atlanta Motor Speedway. “But it’s worth it. I’m a believer in you give, you get back. I’ve been given a lot and the blessing keeps on returning itself, but it’s a big morale booster for all those guys.
“I think there are 425 employees, so it will be a pretty big check I will have to dish out to Jostens. Jostens if you are listening we need to do some kind of social media deal or something, man, to get a good deal on those rings.”
Dillon has a pair of Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series wins to his credit. He’s led a total of three laps in winning both last year’s Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway and then the last circuit in his Daytona win a week ago.
But he’s ready to show he’s more than a driver who can get to Victory Lane on an occasional basis, albeit in two of the sport’s crown jewel events.
“Just go out and prove them wrong,” Dillon said of his naysayers. “Stay focused, do my job, and work hard. We’ve got a lot of races… the one thing they don’t have right now that we have is a win. So, we are on top right now and no matter what they can’t take that away and we are going to keep working.
“I don’t expect us to lay down at all. I feel like now more than ever we need to go head on and go after it. Be focused and get back in the swing of things, but we will be ready.”
That starts with Sunday’s Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 at Atlanta. He’ll warm up by racing in Saturday’s Camping World Truck Series race and will be ready to try and start the Cup campaign with back-to-back wins on Sunday.
“So, we will just keep rocking it however we can,” he said. “We still have a lot to work on. We want to make this Camaro ZL1 good at all tracks. We are looking forward to that. Been excited about it. It’s a great start to the season. It definitely gets the momentum going. We just need to keep pounding.”
