Dale Earnhardt Jr Stunned by the Downfall of Richard Childress’s Bully as He Still Eludes His First Championship

“My goal is to just make it to the final four,” Austin Hill claimed before the postseason kicked off. Richard Childress’ Xfinity star has stunned at superspeedways this year. He opened the 2024 season with back-to-back victories at Daytona and Atlanta and went back to the latter track during the Fall to clinch yet another win. However, Dale Earnhardt Jr is disappointed that other tracks have not yielded to Hill, who is also known for an aggressive edge.

While getting into Hill’s bad books may not be the best thing, his rivals have overtaken his rank in the playoffs. He owns 18 top-tens and 10 top-fives so far this season but currently sits in 5th rank in the Round of 8. With yet another championship bid looking to slip through his fingers, Hill earns Dale Jr’s sympathy.

Dale Earnhardt Jr expected more from the hot rod

Austin Hill has irked multiple Xfinity Series competitors this season. The most prominent may have been his wash-up with Shane van Gisbergen at Circuit of the Americas. The two rivals door-slammed each other while Kyle Larson got away with the victory. Then SVG answered back by overtaking him at Portland. Then Richard Childress’ hot rod locked horns with Cole Custer at Charlotte. The two crashed with 17 laps remaining – although Hill lost control and collected Custer, he continued to initiate contact as the two cars reached the backstretch. This landed a massive $25,000 penalty and a 25-point cut on Hill’s lap.

However, this hefty penalty is not the only thing that went wrong this season. Dale Earnhardt Jr broached Hill’s topic in a Dale Jr Download episode, and opined Hill could have done much more. After all, 10 top-fives mean 10 missed opportunities to snatch wins.

“I always felt like Austin Hill had the edge on all those guys. They’ve had some odd results this year…some races where they haven’t shown up.” Then Dale Jr warily added that he would not like to tap into Hill’s rowdy side. “But he’s an aggressive guy…Austin Hill at minus 8 I would be a little bit nervous racing around him. ‘Cause he’s aggressive, I mean, let’s be honest. The guy’s physical.” 

Compared to 2023, Austin Hill‘s season has witnessed a dip. He won the regular season title last year, whereas in 2024, Hill finished fourth in the regular-season standings. After two early-season victories, Hill and crew chief Andy Street chased playoff points. But the postseason demands a stage points strategy that is going to be awry for the No. 21 Chevy team.

Dale Earnhardt Jr continued, “It’s been interesting to see how they’ve put themselves in the position. I would have expected at this point of the year that Austin Hill would be in a much better position points-wise.” Now, Hill and his crew would need a win under their belt for a championship bid. This is hardly the first time Austin Hill has faltered right at the end.

Hill let his rowdiness overcome him

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“My favorite part is that he has that don’t piss me off attitude and I like that.” Richard Childress may fancy the boiling side of Austin Hill, but that has not always helped the driver. Back in 2021, Hill drove for Hattori Racing in the Craftsman Truck Series and was primed to enter the Round of 8 with a bang. However, an aggressive chain of events at Bristol ended that championship bid. Hill started 10th and picked up 17 stage points but with 12 laps to go he had a face-off with Josh Berry. He attempted to cut off the latter, the No. 16’s left rear clipping the right front of Berry’s No. 25 Truck.

That contact left Hill sliding into the inside wall. He then ricocheted back into traffic, collecting Lawless Alan, Hailie Deegan, Derek Kraus, and Austin Wayne Self. That aggressive misstep eliminated Hill from the 2021 Truck Seris playoffs and he lamented afterwards. “I was just trying to get in line and my spotter told me that he was coming, and he was there. Kind of went down a little bit to see if I could spook him a little bit and maybe make him lift and I misjudged it. I came down too much. Then as soon as he got into me, it just took all the rear stability out of it, and off we went. I hate that we tore up all those other race trucks and I hope everybody ended up alright.”

Evidently, Austin Hill may need to check his aggressive habit, as Dale Earnhardt Jr. mentioned. As the Xfinity Series progresses, he needs a big stroke of luck if Hill hopes to advance into the final round.