Dillon aims for rare Daytona repeat
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Austin Dillon does not want to be a one-hit wonder.
The Daytona 500 has produced its share.
The reigning champion of the Great American Race wants to make another kind of history on Sunday. Dillon looks to become just the fourth repeat winner, joining Hall of Famers Richard Petty (1973 and ’74) and Cale Yarborough (1983 and ’84), as well as Sterling Marlin (1994 and ’95).
“That would be very cool,” Dillon said. “It seems like a hard thing to do. This place is not easy to win at. That’s why it’s so special
… so many people haven’t won here.”
Tony Stewart, Kyle Busch and Rusty Wallace are among 14 drivers with at least 49 career wins, but without a Daytona 500 victory.
The unpredictability of restrictor-plate racing leads to plenty of wrecks and overtime finishes. Since 2005, eight of the past 14 races lengthened because of the greenwhite-checker finish.
Even when the 2017 race ended after 200 laps, winner Kurt Busch’s car was banged up virtually beyond recognition, his No. 41 barely discernible.
“This place, everything has got to line up,” Dillon said. “Everything has got to line up just perfectly for you to go to Victory Lane, and that’s what it’s all about.”
Last February everything fell into place for Dillon.
The race featured eight caution flags and wrecks of seven and 12 cars. Busch, his brother, Kyle, Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick and Chase Elliott were among the big names out of the race by the time it went to extra laps.
Dillon had been a lap down with 17 to go, but he found himself in position to win when it mattered. Aric Almirola led the race with a lap to go, but Dillon passed Almirola and turned him into the wall when he mistimed blocking Dillon on the backstretch.
The 28-year-old Dillon knows it will be impossible to follow a script come Sunday.
“It’s definitely very hard to make a game plan that’s predictable,” he said. “I think the only game plan you can make is anything can happen, and you have to be ready for that, and your team has to be ready for that. Just be prepared for everything that could happen and could go wrong.”
Or go right, in Dillon’s case.
“The celebration afterwards was pretty awesome,” he said.
Kyle Busch says he will return to Gibbs
Kyle Busch said he is on the verge of a contract extension with Joe Gibbs Racing. Busch has driven the No. 18 Toyota for Gibbs since 2008 and is in a contract year with the organization.
“We’re in discussions right now, we are talking. It’s all been agreed to,” Busch said. “It’s just a matter of putting pen to paper. We’re all good.”
Busch has won 47 Cup races and the 2015 championship with Gibbs. He has raced for the title in each of the last four seasons.