Living under the shadow of icons is difficult for the blooming talent. Many celebrities from star-studded families have faced these problems. They’re always subject to judgment and comparison with a microscopic lens. And while being under insurmountable pressure to perform, they’re seldom praised adequately for their achievements.

Austin Dillon is a part of one such background. His grandfather, Richard Childress, and RCR’s veteran driver, Dale Earnhardt, have defined his life and carved his path since childhood. But the 34-year-old driver is happy to have such legendary figures lighting the path for him and preparing him to put up a fight.

Austin Dillon has gratitude for his upbringing

The best way to describe Richard Childress Racing‘s legacy is through the names of Dale Earnhardt and Kevin Harvick, bringing numerous wins for the team. But this season is proving to be an anticlimax for the team’s legacy. First, it was a lack of wins that haunted the team, and now it is a controversial race with an unfavorable verdict. But is this the first time that RCR has faced a backlash from the NASCAR community? Certainly not.

During Dale Sr’s time, the team used to be constantly surrounded by controversy. Known as ‘the Intimidator,’ Dale Sr always had an aggressive driving style that many people frowned upon. His wasn’t the cleanest of race crafts that NASCAR has seen, but some people perceived it as a competitive spirit. And then there were the controversies involving Richard Childress himself, from as early as 1995. That incident was similar to Dillon’s Richmond tactics. Adding to the list are failure to comply with drug policies and crew altercations with other teams.

So, growing up, Austin Dillon has witnessed all the track drama and the wrath of the NASCAR community. While talking to Marty Smith on Marty & McGee, Austin revealed, “I’ve grown up in a family that was very controversial with Dale Earnhardt Sr going into the track every weekend. And a lot of people disliked Dale for a long time.” This isn’t an easy situation to grasp for a kid, but Dillon was smart enough to look at the greater picture and absorb the best possible version.

“That narrative changed over time and you can see the Intimidator and the love that he was able to endure from all of his fans,” added Dillon. He could see both sides of the coin and learned to flip the coin if he didn’t like the side he was holding.

Furthermore, he learned this life lesson from Richard Childress and his lifelong dedication to the sport. “And my grandfather, I’m proud to be his grandson because he never backs down; he never will and he’s one of those guys that’s gonna be up on the holler to his last breath watching his races and be a part of his race teams because he loves this game and this sport.”

The time to put on the big boy pants is here for Dillon, and he needs to put into action all his life’s learnings. As RCR prepares to appeal the penalty doled out by NASCAR for the Richmond race, many things need to be put into perspective by Dillon. However, he has a specific problem with the way the decision was arrived at rather than with the decision itself.

Austin Dillon knows how to handle opinions

There is a case to be made in favor of Austin Dillon, given his background. He has been a kid with a ‘silver spoon’ which comes with its cons. In the words of Marty Smith: “People have always expressed their opinions about you and you and I have talked about this since you were a teenager.”

Austin responds by asserting RCR’s NASCAR history and acknowledging that it has faced adverse decisions before. However, he mentions that the landscape has changed now, and NASCAR factors in stakeholders for its decision-making, indicating biasedness in the process. “With the new landscape, at least of what we’ve heard is, you know, industry, stakeholders, the opinions were taken into account this past week,” speculated Dillon.

Team owners are answerable to all team members and have a responsibility towards them all. Dillon explained his means of handling the opinions by concluding, “We’ve got to do a very good job. We owe it to RCR, all of our partners to do a very good job in this appeal process and that’s what we will do.”

Do you think industry opinions influenced NASCAR’s decision? Let us know.