Austin Dillon Wins Pole for Daytona 500
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(DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.) — Austin Dillon will spotlight the No. 3 Chevrolet made famous by the late Hall of Famer Dale Earnhardt in fashion at Sunday’s Daytona 500 after winning the pole.
Dillon, 23, finished with a lap of 196.019 mph to start up front for Richard Childress racing.
“Everybody wants to see this number perform well, and that’s what my goals are,” Dillon said. “I love getting in that race car and driving it. I think once we get through some of these races here at the beginning of the year, everything will sink in and I’ll get comfortable and be able to have some fun.”
Childress refused to field the No. 3 car after Earnhardt’s fatal accident at the 2001 Daytona 500.
“We wanted to come down here and put on a good show with the 3, and to have another ECR engine with Furniture Row on the front row, we couldn’t be more proud,” Childress said.
Martin Truex Jr. qualified second with a lap at 195.852 mph in his first go around racing for Furniture Row Racing.
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