Richard Childress may be facing pressure on the Cup Series front, but things are looking up in Xfinity. With his grandson Austin Dillon penalized for race manipulation at Martinsville and Kyle Busch’s team hit with fines over a wheel issue, there’s no shortage of Cup-level headaches. Yet on the Xfinity side, Childress’ grandson, Austin Hill, is providing a reason to celebrate. Riding high on momentum, the No. 21 Chevy driver is not only primed for his first championship title but seems more confident than ever.

Austin Hill started out the 2024 season with a bang, collecting back-to-back victories in Daytona and Atlanta. Then the driver set off on a drab streak, collecting 12 top-ten finishes. But Hill’s victorious returned in Atlanta during the playoffs and stretched to Homestead—and he hopes to continue it in Phoenix as well.

Austin Hill is allowing a sliver of hope

Richard Childress’ Xfinity ace has qualified for the playoffs in a three-year consecutive streak. But 2024 is special for him—this is the first time Austin Hill is competing in the Championship Four race. After AJ Allmendinger scored his first victory of the season in Las Vegas, Hill faced a slew of able-bodied competitors in Homestead. Sam Mayer was the defending race winner, and Cole Custer won in Florida in 2017. On the flip side, Hill also presented a strong case, having a perfect two-for-two top-10 showing at Homestead-Miami, including fourth place last year. And he duly converted that top-five into 1st place this year.

After clinching his Phoenix berth for the first time, Austin Hill is letting himself relax. Currently holding the No. 1 seed in the playoff standings, the No. 21 driver sighed: “I almost think that the emotions came in because of how hard it’s been for me to make it into the Final Four. Now that I’m into the Final Four, I almost feel like I have a totally different mindset going into this weekend. If I win this championship, who knows, the emotions could come flooding in.” He added, “I’ve been so close so many years. I’ve been shot down each and every year by just a couple of points here and there. And all this relief just kind of came off my shoulders…and the stress level and the anxiety and everything that goes with that.” 

Phoenix Raceway and Austin Hill have a bubbling relationship. In five career Xfinity starts at the 1.4-mile short road course, he has four Top 10 finishes. The 2024 spring race in the Sonoran desert saw him finish 4th. So Hill is confident about the upcoming weekend: “Now I’m going to this weekend, just kind of free-spirited. We’ve made it – all the hard parts over and done with.” 

However, the late start time and cold temperatures may impact track conditions, making car preparation paramount. So Hill is cautioned about that: “I think we got to be prepared for that, kind of make our best-educated guess on what we think the racetrack’s going to do when it goes in tonight.”

Yet his performance at Homestead may signal a remarkable future. Even his rivals praised his indomitable speed.

Hill showered in praise

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After a 4th-place showing last year, Austin Hill was like a fire-breathing dragon this season at Homestead. He swept both stages, led a race-high 82 laps, and won the battle off of pit road during both stage breaks. Significantly, Hill did not need to ride the high line close to the wall, which is typically the preferred line at Homestead. Instead, he comfortably cruised to Victory Lane by managing to find the necessary speed while running the bottom. Yet Cole Custer gave a tough fight—the two drivers exchanged the lead six times. Custer looked poised to win after shooting from third to first on Lap 98. He also sailed to almost a five-second lead before the final round of green-flag stops.

Yet Austin Hill toppled him during the final laps, as the No. 21 soared to a 3.045-second margin of victory. That left Custer speechless and oozing appreciation for Hill and his team. “[Hill] was just lights out today,” he said. “They were just really, really good on the long run. The second to last run, they really fell off for whatever reason, and they seemed to pick up a lot of speed that second to last time.” Even Jonathan Toney, crew chief for the No. 00 Ford, tipped his hat. “I think the track kind of took some transitions you know. So, we kind of fought back and forth and I think the car got better at the end. But the No. 21 was fast from the drop of the green flag and they done a good job.”

With volumes of respect overflowing in the Xfinity garage, Austin Hill has all the positive vibes he needs. Now, his first championship title is only a good Phoenix run away.