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NASCAR Camping World Trucks Series
TRUCKS: Could Dillon Ride The 3 To Top Level?
Austin Dillon notched his first Camping World Truck Series win on Sunday at Iowa Speedway...
Mike Hembree  |  Posted July 13, 2010   Charlotte, NC
Austin Dillon celebrates his win at Iowa Speedway with a smoky burnout. (Photo: LAT Photographic)
The pull of the number 3 in NASCAR racing is undeniable.

Almost 10 years after his death, Dale Earnhardt Sr. is still a superstar. Fans wear his caps, his T-shirts and crowd his souvenir locations at tracks.

The fiercely facing forward 3 retains its power.

Car owner Richard Childress semi-retired the number after Earnhardt’s death, a move that generally was applauded throughout the sport. Although many other drivers have raced such iconic numbers as the 43 and 21 after their principal drivers (Richard Petty and David Pearson) left the sport, it was generally thought that the tragic circumstances surrounding the 3 – and Earnhardt’s long history with it – warranted its departure from the track.

Not surprisingly, Childress has guarded the number – and its trademark black cloaking – closely ever since.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. has raced the number three times, driving it to a very popular victory earlier this month in the Nationwide Series race at Daytona. After that win, Junior said repeatedly that he will never race the 3 again. The burdens, he said, are too heavy.

There are still many observers who anticipate an eventual Childress-Earnhardt Jr. pairing in Sprint Cup racing, an idea that has gotten an extra kick because of Junior’s continuing struggles at Hendrick Motorsports. Circumstances – and money – can change a lot of plans, of course, but Earnhardt’s definitive statements at Daytona would seem to rule out any such partnership that also would include his father’s number.

There might be another candidate waiting – well, not actually waiting, he’s running hard – in the wings. It’s Austin Dillon, Childress’ 20-year-old grandson. He drove the black No. 3 Richard Childress Racing truck to his first victory in the Camping World Truck Series in Iowa Sunday.
Austin Dillon (Left) competes in a truck owned by his grandfather, Richard Childress (Right). (Photo: LAT Photographic)

Dillon appears to have a bright future. Childress and his father, Mike, a former Nationwide Series driver and currently competition director at RCR, have advanced him through the ranks, and he has succeeded at each level. The plan is to run him in the Truck series this year and next, with a sprinkling of Nationwide races.

A rising sophomore at High Point University, Dillon, having grown up in the RCR universe, has a strong appreciation for the power of the 3.

“I just try each and every week to get the best finish we can with that number,” he said. “I know the fans want to see it up front. That’s where I want it to be.

“When you see it on top of the board when you leave the track, that was really a cool sight. That was cool for me and my grandfather.

“It’s a powerful number. It makes the people in the stands stand up and cheer. I love driving it. It’s a lot of fun.”

Childress has said on occasion that “maybe another Earnhardt will come along” to drive the No. 3 in Cup, but that’s about as far as he’s been willing to go on the record.

If Dillon, a smart kid with on-track promise, continues to roll along and move up, could Grandpop one day put him in the Cup No. 3? That answer will be of grand interest to past – and future – fans.

Mike Hembree is NASCAR Editor for SPEED.com and has been covering motorsports for 28 years. He has written several books on NASCAR, including "NASCAR: The Definitive History of America's Sport" and "Then Tony Said To Junior: The Best NASCAR Stories Ever Told". He is a six-time winner of the National Motorsports Press Association Writer of the Year Award.

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