RCR teammates Dillon and Menard move past Richmond drama

With Austin Dillon also making his debut in NASCAR’s playoffs, the last thing he needed was bad feelings lingering between him and his Richard Childress Racing teammate Paul Menard.

Both drivers became quite animated on the radio at Richmond last Saturday night while battling for position before Dillon salvaged a 13th-place finish. Dillon did his best to make amends before the teammates returned to North Carolina. 

“I talked to him,” Dillon said. “We ride on the team plane together. I got back there and he had an empty seat next to him and I just sat down and talked to him. I kind of explained what I was going through during the race. Darlington, I got into him. That was a mistake of mine. I told him after the race, ‘I totally messed up.’ Obviously, the pressure of getting in there was important to me and he understood that. 

“He was actually angry about an incident that I didn’t even know about, really. I thought I was clear off of 4 and I kind of squeezed him. Just a misunderstanding there. I think we’re kind of on the right path. I’ll talk to him again before this weekend. We were in meetings together. Nothing was really said after our conversation. So I feel like we’re in a good spot.”

Menard was sidelined on Lap 266 following contact with Ricky Stenhouse Jr., at Richmond. He finished 40th. The No. 27 Menard’s Chevy finished 16th at Darlington, his second top-20 result in as many races. 

Still, it’s been frustrating for Menard, 36, who qualified for the Chase last season but has not been in the top 20 in the standings since March. If there is a bright side to the run-ins between the Childress cars, Dillon believes it’s that the organization is performing better. 

“The good thing is we’re racing hard against each other and to have RCR competitive, is a positive,” Dillon said. “It’s a plus.

“I’m learning a lot about relationships now. I’m engaged. Communication is everything and communicating with him is a start to it. I’ve always had a good relationship with Paul. We both love a lot of the same things. We love the outdoors. We love racing. We’ve never really had an issue. I just want to tell him, ‘Hey, I’m not really doing this on purpose. I’m just racing hard.’ He understands. He was in the Chase last year at that point leading up to it and he knows how stressful it is. I think we’re in a good place.” 

Changes on pit road

Dillon remains optimistic about his chances the Chase, particularly given the upgrade he received for his pit crew earlier this week. RCR moved Jackman Adam Lewis and Rear Tire Carrier Brad Robison to the No. 3 team from the No. 31 team after Ryan Newman failed to advance.

“When the 31 was knocked out, we had the opportunity to get a real good rear carrier, move him to the rear and move our regular front guy back to the front,” Dillon said. “That was a kind of cleaning up of things. We had an experience jackman — that had been in the Chase — on the 31 also. I got to thank the 31 team a lot for letting us take this opportunity and kind of run with it. 

“Everyone at RCR was all in for this Chase and the one goal we have set is to make it as far as we can and win this thing.”