NASCAR fans have seen their fair share of confusion over similar driver names, but what happened with Austin Hill is next-level absurdity. When reports surfaced that there were, in fact, two Austin Hills competing in stock car racing, fans couldn’t help but let the memes fly.

After all, in a sport where identity and reputation are everything, how does a driver even begin to separate himself when there’s a clone—name-wise, at least—on the track?

For those who aren’t caught up, the ‘original’ Austin Hill—let’s call him Austin Hill (RCR)—is a well-established name in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving for Richard Childress Racing and securing multiple wins in the process. The RCR star has built a reputation as a hard-nosed, aggressive driver who isn’t afraid to rub fenders to get the job done. His strong performances have even sparked discussions about a potential future in the Cup Series, making him one of RCR’s most promising prospects.

Enter Austin Hill 2.0, or as he’s now humorously being called by fans, Austin Hill (Non-RCR). This Austin Hill, an 18-year-old racer who has competed in the Trans-Am Series, will be joining Joey Gase Motorsports for a limited schedule in the upcoming NASCAR Xfinity Series season.

The 18-year-old Hill is set to race at three events: Watkins Glen, Portland, and the Charlotte ROVAL. The announcement has sparked discussions among fans and commentators about the potential for confusion during races and broadcasts, given the identical names.

While a second Austin Hill won’t be making his debut in the Xfinity Series until August, it does raise an ironic situation that has many wondering how NASCAR will approach it. Perhaps he’ll add a middle name or initial to help differentiate himself from his veteran counterpart.

While the situation is amusing, it does raise an actual dilemma. The motorsports world has seen drivers with similar names before—think Kyle Busch and Kurt Busch—but this is a whole different level of identical. Given how integral branding and identity are in NASCAR, Austin Hill (RCR) might have to take some extra steps to ensure his name stands out in a crowd. Maybe we see an “Austin R. Hill” decal on his race car as a possibility. Perhaps, in a tongue-in-cheek move, RCR should consider putting “The Original” under his name on his fire suit.

While Richard Childress Racing remains focused on maximizing Austin Hill’s potential, fans have taken full advantage of the humor in this bizarre situation. Social media has been ablaze with reactions, including an outpouring of witty remarks, memes, and emoji-based voting systems.

Fans had a ball with this hilarious coincidence

The news of Austin Hill’s namesake doppelgänger had fans in stitches, and the jokes came flying fast. One fan quipped, “Austin Hill is so good that they cloned him!” The absurdity of having two racers with the same name immediately triggered memories of past NASCAR identity mix-ups—like when fans kept confusing Ty Gibbs and Ty Dillon or even when multiple Jeffs (Gordon and Burton) once battled on the track. But two Austin Hills in the same racing sphere felt like something straight out of a sci-fi flick.

Another fan broke it down simply: “Austin Hill (the RCR one). Austin Hill (the non-RCR one).” It became clear that NASCAR Twitter needed a way to distinguish between the two, and this was the simplest fix. But in the chaos of a wreck, would commentators even have time to clarify? If spotters shouted “Austin Hill is in the wall!” would crews be scrambling to figure out which one? The potential for hilarious radio confusion had fans both entertained and concerned.

The jokes didn’t stop there. One fan warned of an unintended consequence: “Someone’s gonna wreck RCR Austin Hill and accidentally fight this guy instead.” Given NASCAR’s history of post-race tempers flaring—think Greg Biffle vs. Jay Sauter, or more recently, Noah Gragson and Ross Chastain—this scenario wasn’t too far-fetched. Imagine a driver storming over, fists clenched, only to realize they had the wrong Austin Hill in their sights. That kind of mistake could go viral overnight.

Then came the ranking system. “Austin Hill 👎🏼. Austin Hill 👍🏼.” This brutally simple rating method instantly sparked debate.

Another fan refined the scale: “Austin Hill 👎🏼. Austin Hill 🤷🏼‍♀️.” After all, the second Austin Hill hadn’t done anything to earn a thumbs-up or down just yet. It was only fair to reserve judgment.

One fan summed it up best: “👍 until proven 👎.” It was a wait-and-see approach, but in a sport where reputation is built at 200 mph, it wouldn’t take long before fans decided whether the second Austin Hill was a worthy competitor or just an unfortunate case of mistaken identity.