Austin Dillon loses final appeal and is stripped of his NASCAR Cup playoff spot
A NASCAR appeals official on Monday upheld a penalty given to Austin Dillon for his overly aggressive driving at Richmond Raceway. It means Dillon will not participate in the Cup Series playoffs unless he wins the final race of the regular season on Sunday.
The decision to deny Dillon and Richard Childress Racing’s appeal came from Appeals Officer Bill Mullis and strips Dillon of his automatic playoff spot for his victory, which he earned on Aug. 11 after hitting Denny Hamlin and Joey Logano in the final turn heading for the finish line.
It was Dillon’s first win in two years.
Three days after the race, NASCAR announced that Dillon would keep the prize money and the trophy, but would lose his spot in the 16-driver playoffs.
Dillon’s initial appeal was rejected by a three-judge panel last week, after which Dillon took the case to Mullis.
Mullis owns Langley Speedway, a short track in Hampton, Virginia, and has been named NASCAR’s final appellate judge for the 2024 season.
Dillon is currently ranked 29th in the Cup Series points standings.
Monday’s decision leaves three playoff spots open before Sunday’s Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, the final race of the regular season. A total of five drivers can still fill the final three spots, or just two if there is a new winner on Sunday.
Drivers who can secure a playoff spot based on points include Martin Truex Jr., Ty Gibbs, Chris Buescher, Bubba Wallace and Ross Chastain.
Click on nascar.com/standings/nascar-cup-series to view the current standings.
Reach Mike Organ at 615-259-8021 or at X @MikeOrganWriter.
