Preamble: The title comes from a book by Robert Sheffield’s 2010 novel “Talking to Girls About Duran Duran.” In the novel, he takes 25 pop songs from the 1980s and uses each song as a jumping off point to talk about his love of music and growing up in the 1980s. (If you’re more into hair metal than pop, you should also check out Chuck Klosterman’s 2001 book “Fargo Rock City.”) In “Talking to People Who Don’t Know NASCAR About Daytona, I’m going to devote each entry in the series to one of my Top 10 favourite Daytona 500s. Instead of discussing who led what laps, etc. I’m going to describe to an audience (and probably a non-existence one) why I chose this particular race.
#9 – “The 2018 Daytona 500 – The Legacy Becomes the Legend”
“Evolution is a mystery. Full of change that no one sees. Clock makes a fool of history.” – Evolution
Somewhere – including on Austin Dillon’s mantle – there is a photo of Dale Earnhardt, Sr. celebrating what commentator Mike Joy called “the most anticipated moment in racing”, his win in the 1998 Daytona 500.
As the evening progressed, Earnhardt posed for a photo with his youngest child, daughter Taylor, and car owner Richard Childress’ grandsons, Austin and Ty Dillon. While Taylor is standing on one side of the Daytona 500 trophy and Ty is on the far right of the photo, Austin is standing right next to Earnhardt.
If you had written a script for the “evolution” of the career of Austin Dillon, Richard Childress Racing and the #3 Chevrolet going forward, you could never have crafted a turn of events.
You could argue that the story doesn’t really start in 1998 but a year earlier with Mike Dillon, Austin’s father. The elder Dillon took over for Dale Earnhardt Sr. when the legendary driver blacked out during the opening lap of the 1997 Southern 500. In doing so, Mike Dillon would be the last driver other than Earnhardt to drive the #3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet until 2014.
In 2014, Austin Dillon would bring the #3 back to Cup for the first time since Earnhardt’s death in 2001. It would be a controversial decision and one that caused Dillon to draw the ire of many fans who declared the only reason he had a Cup ride was because of who his grandfather was. However, being Richard Childress’ grandson hadn’t won him a Truck Championship (in 2011) or a Nationwide Series Championship (in 2013). Nor did it win him the pole in the 2014 Daytona 500 (he would finish 9th) in the first points-paying race for the #3 in 13 years..
Over the next four years, the nay-sayers would have plenty to say about Dillon and his lack of success at the Cup level. It would not be until the 2017 Coca Cola 600 that Dillon would get his first win.
With a half a lap to go in the 2018 Daytona 500, it sure seemed that Austin Dillon was going to have to wait to visit Victory Lane again…but it was going to be so close. As I watched the final laps, I was reminded of what I used to say as I watched Dale Earnhardt, Jr. be on the verge of winning: “Damn it, Junior! If you came this far just to lose you could have blown the engine on the first lap!”
I’ve never had the chance to ask a race car driver what it must be like to come so close to winning, only to come up short. Is it better to be able to say you were this close to victory, or, if you are going to lose, would it not be better to finish 20th and just say “Well it wasn’t our day!” rather than have to second guess yourself and every decision made to try and figure out where you could have made up those split-seconds?
The 2018 Daytona 500 had been cause for nostalgic celebration. It would be held 20 years and three days after Dale Earnhardt, Sr. had won the 1998 Daytona 500 in his 20th try. And now here was Austin Dillon, looking to come up one or two spots short.
The race was in overtime after a multi-car wreck with six laps to go. Aric Almirola had the lead as they came to the white flag. However, in leading the pack, Almirola, driving the #10 Stewart-Haas Ford, had to keep blocking the runs from Dillon, among others.
As the pack stormed towards turn 3, Almirola moved up to block Dillon but mis-timed the move. Dillon could have checked up, which could have had an accordion effect as cars behind him, in turn, checked up.
Austin would not only have lost the Daytona 500 but he might have triggered a major wreck. It was the last lap of the Daytona 500 and no one lifts. (Watch any major superspeedway race and there is nearly always a wreck as they come out of the final turns because everyone has their foot to the floor, trying to get every position they can, and won’t let off until they cross the start-finish line.)
Dillon didn’t lift. Instead, he clipped Aric Almirola and sent him spinning into the corner. Some would accuse Dillon of stealing a move from Dale Earnhardt, Sr. and the “infamous” cage-rattling of Terry Labonte at the 1999 Bristol Night Race. But no one is going to intentionally wreck a competitor, even someone they are mad at, during a superspeedway race. The risk is just too great
Almirola was no worse for wear when he came to rest against the SAFER barrier but his chances at winning the Daytona 500 were gone.
Meanwhile, Austin Dillon was heading into the final turns and the phrase “Drive it like you stole it” had never been more apt. Even Mike Joy, who always seems to have the perfect phrase to commemorate the occasion, seemed to stumble for a moment. That’s how unexpected the turn of events.
But twenty years – and three days – after a young Austin Dillon had celebrated with Dale Earnhardt after the latter had ended his twenty year trek to win the Daytona 500, Dillon would drive the 2018 version of the Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet to a victory in the Daytona 500. After the cool-down lap, Dillon replicated Earnhardt’s victory donuts in the infield grass. In addressing the crowd, Dillon said “This is for Dale Sr. and those Senior fans!”
johnmilner.ca 
