Austin Dillon finished 15th in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in 2009. (Photo: LAT Photographic)

Meanwhile, initial plans for RCR to field a second truck team in 2010 have been scrapped.

“We were going to and decided to go another route,” Mike Dillon said. “It’s all development and trying to put people in the right position to perform where they need to at their level and then advance them when they’re ready.”

The elder Dillon, who competed in what is now the Nationwide Series from 1995-2001, sees the Truck series as the best place for his son to gain seat time and hone his skills.

“I think right now dollars and being able to afford to run one of the series full time is one of the reasons and then the other is just the type of racing they do in the Truck Series,” he said. “I think it’s the right step. … Nationwide, I think it’s a step between the trucks and the Cup cars. Some people may have a different opinion of that, but it’s obvious when guys go back and forth between the different series where they run, and I think it’s the right step for his experience and where he’s at today.”

Dillon is optimistic that the Truck Series, which has been hampered by the tough United States economy, has weathered the worst of the storm.

In addition to RCR's return to NASCAR’s No. 3 division, Sprint Cup driver Kyle Busch recently announced plans to bring his Kyle Busch Motorsports organization up to the series as well.

Busch will field two full-time trucks and also a possible third entry for 2008 series champion Johnny Benson if sponsorship allows.

“I think it’s some of the best racing we have today,” Mike Dillon said. “I think when you’ve got the caliber of drivers that’s in that series and it appears they’ve chosen that’s where they want to run their career at, then you’ve got a lot of good people you have to go over there and outrun and run with and you can compete and you can learn. …

“I think it’s some of the best racing we had last year. A lot of people might be missing out on it, so if you watch that stuff it’s passing that you don’t get to see much anymore and racing hard. And it’s pretty cool.”