“Its Paid Some Dividends Too” – NASCAR Assistant Director Kip Childress on His Supposed Relation to Richard Childress

There are billions of people in the world, so it would not be surprising if some people share their last names without being related. One example is Chase Briscoe and former IndyCar driver Ryan Briscoe. Despite the same last name, Ryan is Australian, while Chase is American. In a similar vein, NASCAR assistant director Kip Childress is not related to team owner Richard Childress.

Speaking about the non-relation he said, “Not close enough. That’s been my standard answer over the course of about 50 years. Ironically, Richard and I live around 15 minutes from one another.Growing up in the same town, now live in the same county. I’m literally 10 minutes from RCR.”

“It’s really funny when I go visit the shop, some of the new employees over there. If they want to sign in at the guest book at the lobby, they’ll look down and see Childress. They’ll wonder, ‘I wonder if , you know…’.”
“And its paid some dividends too, I managed to maybe get an upgrade on a flight because of that.”

READ MORE: Let Chase Elliott “Burn His Stuff”: Richard Childress’ Message for Tyler Reddick, on the Cusp of His Maiden NASCAR Cup Win

What else did he say about NASCAR team owner Richard Childress?

The sport’s assistant director also spoke about another amusing incident. As it turns out, he was at a banquet and a fruit basket was delivered to his room. The basket was supposed to go to Richard Childress and his wife Judy. When Kip informed Richard of the mix-up, he asked if Kip had brought his wife, and told them to enjoy it.

Kip Childress also admitted that it was quite funny that he and the NASCAR team owner are working in the same field, but on different sides of the fence.

For now, he and the rest of the paddock are looking ahead to the next Cup Series race. This time around, everyone heads to the Atlanta Motor Speedway as the race for the playoffs heats up.

WATCH THIS STORY: Richard Childress Gives All Important Update on the NASCAR Future of Tyler Reddick

Tyler Reddick’s win at Road America snags one more seat and lowers the chances of many other contenders. So there is a chance that the remaining drivers will turn up the wick.