DAYTONA BEACH, Florida — Austin Dillon will be making his series debut this weekend and with that, he’ll return Richard Childress Racing to the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series for the first time since 1999. Dillon, grandson of RCR president and CEO Richard Childress, will be behind the wheel of the No. 3 Chevrolet. The No. 3 is certainly not new to the series by any means. Mike Skinner (No. 5 Toyota) took it to Victory Lane in the series’ first race at Phoenix in 1995 and then on to claim the series’ first championship that same year.
"RCR was fortunate enough to win the first race and the first championship in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series in 1995 with Mike Skinner driving the No. 3 Chevrolet, so it's great to see the No. 3 truck back on the track," said Childress. "We had a great deal of success with that program so I'm excited to see what Austin (Dillon) can do behind the wheel to continue the legacy that's been established. The Truck Series is always very competitive and they put on a great show so Austin driving the No. 3 truck at Iowa will be a good opportunity for his career."
Dillon will be only the third driver in the No. 3 truck. In addition to Skinner, Jay Sauter was behind the wheel from 1997 to 1999.
While he’ll be a rookie to the series, Dillon isn’t a rookie when it comes to Iowa Speedway. The young driver has four starts at the track: One start in the NASCAR Nationwide Series for the series’ inaugural race this season; two starts in the NASCAR Camping World Series East where he has one pole (2008) and two top-ten finishes and one start in the ARCA Re/MAX Series this season where he started 30th and finished second.
“I couldn't have picked a better race track to make my debut,” Dillon said. “I've raced at Iowa Speedway three times this season and feel confident heading back. We think we can be competitive during the race once I get a feel for how the truck handles during the practice sessions. Overall, our goal is to learn as much as we can during the race, earn a solid finish and, more importantly, have fun."
