RCR driver sees restrictor plate tracks as opportunities
Related: NXS Talladega practice results
TALLADEGA, Ala. – Ty Dillon, the XFINITY Series points leader, will be looking to extend his advantage Saturday when the Winn Dixie 300 (3 p.m. ET, FOX) gets underway here at Talladega Superspeedway.
And the wide-open 2.66-mile Talladega track, Dillon said, is just the place to do it.
Dillon, 23, leads defending series champion Chase Elliott by eight points (293-285) after this season’s first eight races. Chris Buescher sits in back of Elliott and trails Dillon by 11.
“I got one of my first ARCA wins here,” the Richard Childress Racing driver said Friday after the series only practice. “… I was able to beat Frank Kimmel down the frontstretch and just edged him out at the finish line.
“Every time we come to one of these (restrictor plate) race tracks I feel like it’s an opportunity for me to win and run well. We were very strong in Daytona.”
Dillon finished third at Daytona in the series’ season-opening race. Buescher finished second, just behind Roush Fenway Racing teammate Ryan Reed, while Elliott came away 28th.
On Friday, Erik Jones led XFINITY practice; Dillon was 26th on the board.
Qualifying is scheduled for 11 a.m. ET Saturday. If he’s not on the front row, Dillon has plans to get there, and quickly.
A self-avowed “aggressive racer,” Dillon said plate tracks “really kind of fit my style.”
“I like being able to, as soon as the flag drops to go as hard as I can go and get as many positions (as I can),” he said. “That style has always suited me really well when we go to restrictor plate tracks, where I can be aggressive with the moves I make and get myself to the front and try and stay out of trouble.
“For whatever reason, it’s always worked for me in the past and I’ve had some really good finishes at some of these race tracks. That’s kind of my mentality when I race every weekend, but it really seems to play out well here.”
As for the points, Dillon is mindful of them “but it’s not something I’m worried about every single weekend.
“The main focus no matter what is to win the race,” he said. “If you can go out and win the race every weekend, you don’t really have to worry about points.”
Although Sprint Cup drivers have won six of this season’s eight XFINITY Series races, the last two events at Talladega have seen XFINITY regulars come out on top – Regan Smith in 2013 and Elliott Sadler last year.