In outreach to fans, Dillon does it right
Tip of the day: There are good ways and bad ways to interact with fans.
Bad: Miko Grimes, the wife of Buccaneers cornerback Brent Grimes, busting out anti-Semitic language on Twitter while critiquing the Jewish owner of her husband’s former team, the Dolphins.
Good: Austin Dillon, cold-calling fans in conjunction with a NASCAR promotion with broadcast partner NBC. It led to a lot of thumbs up on Twitter and elsewhere.
“It was a lot of fun,” Dillon said. “The guys at NBC ... had a list of names of fans of Austin Dillon, and I just started calling them. I couldn’t disguise my voice; it is so country. I have a pretty funny voice every now and then. I just didn’t use it.”
Other drivers, including Kyle Busch, have participated in NBC’s “Phone a Fan” web videos, in which unsuspecting fans receive calls from their favorite NASCAR drivers. Dillon called a fan named Jackson while posing as a NASCAR market researcher to discuss Dillon’s iconic No. 3 car, haircuts and girls.
“There are a lot of haters out there, and to hear a real fan and talk to them on the phone and get the love from them,” Dillon said, “it was pretty special just hearing fans that support you and are proud of what you are doing out there ... and just excited to hear from you. That is what’s fun about it and that is what makes our sport great.” Allmendinger OK: AJ Allmendinger didn’t make a Tuesday-Wednesday pit stop at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for testing this week, but it’s not because of his heavy-impact hit at Austin Dillon is part of NASCAR and NBC’s fan outreach campaign. Kentucky last weekend.
Allmendinger finished 36th in the Quaker State 400 after being caught in two wrecks, the second of which looked nasty. His left hand and wrist were wrapped during a visit to the track’s care center, but X-rays revealed nothing was broken.
A spokesperson for JTG Daugherty Racing said Allmendinger’s team will focus on building cars after a rough stretch. Allmendinger hasn’t finished in the top 10 in two months and ranks 20th in points. Busch in ESPY chase: Busch is up for an ESPY Award on Wednesday night. The defending Sprint Cup champion is nominated for Best Driver along with Scott Dixon (IndyCar), Lewis Hamilton (Formula One), Erica Enders-Stevens (NHRA) and Alexander Rossi (IndyCar).
Winners are decided by fan voting. The program airs at 8 p.m. EDT on ABC.