NASCAR: Austin Dillon to compete at Homestead after son’s birth

Austin Dillon is slated to compete in today’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway after the birth of his son.

Austin Dillon’s wife Whitney gave birth to their first son, Ace RC Dillon, on Sunday morning.

A.J. Allmendinger had been on standby for Dillon at Richard Childress Racing for today’s NASCAR Cup Series race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, but Dillon is still set to compete in this race. Dillon hasn’t missed a race since he began competing full-time back in the 2014 season.

Allmendinger was also on standby for Dillon for this past Wednesday evening’s race at Martinsville Speedway. Dillon did leave the race early, but that exit came due to medical reasons, not the birth of his son. He was not replaced behind the wheel of the #3 Chevrolet and finished in a season-worst 37th place.

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Through the first 11 races of the season, Dillon sits in 17th place in the championship standings as the highest driver below the playoff cut line. His top finish of the season is a fourth place finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway back in February.

The 30-year-old Welcome, North Carolina native has competed in six races at the four-turn, 1.5-mile (2.414-kilometer) oval in Homestead, Florida before, and he finished in a career-high eighth place there in last year’s season finale at the track.

Allmendinger just competed in this afternoon’s Xfinity Series race at the track and finished in fourth place driving for Kaulig Racing. He hasn’t competed in a Cup Series race since he was still driving full-time for JTG Daugherty Racing back in the 2018 season.

The Dixie Vodka 400 is currently being aired live on Fox, with the green flag set to wave shortly.