Skip to main content
Join Now
NASCAR Logo

Austin Dillon spotter 'wreck him' audio synced with overhead video of Denny Hamlin right-rear hook

Nick Profile Picby: Nick Geddes08/14/24NickGeddesNews
Austin Dillon
Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports

Brandon Benesch, spotter for the No. 3 team, was heard telling Austin Dillon “wreck him,” in reference to Denny Hamlin on the final lap of Sunday’s Cook Out 400 at Richmond.

That’s exactly what Dillon did, just moments after he put Joey Logano into the wall in Turn 3. On his “Stacking Pennies” podcast, Corey LaJoie synced Benesch’s radio audio in that moment at the time when the right rear hook of Hamlin occurred. As you can see the video here, Benesch’s plea to Dillon was right on cue from when Dillon executed his race-winning move.

SEE THE VIDEO HERE

Ryan Flores, tire changer for the No. 12 team and LaJoie’s co-host, said Benesch was guilty of being a “fan” in that moment.

“That’s a tough look for Brandon, dude,” Flores said. “And I like Brandon Benesch a lot… He’s just caught watching like he’s a fan. But at that point, Austin’s not listening to what he’s telling him. You’re just reacting.”

Austin Dillon facing potential punishment from NASCAR

Richard Childress denied hearing Benesch yelling “wreck him” over the team’s radio. Dillon, meanwhile, claimed that at that point, he had tuned out anything Benesch was saying to him.

“Dude, at that point I’m elbows up, holding the throttle down, just trying to get to the start/finish line literally,” Dillon said after the race. “I am sideways off of [Turn] 4 ’cause I’m already three-quarters of the lane up the track, hammer the gas. I’m just looking at the start/finish line. That’s it. I ain’t hearing [expletive] at that point, you know? Your eyes turn red. You see red, you get to the end of the race.

“Daytona, last lap when I won there at the 500, your eyes see red. There’s one thing on your mind: get to the start/finish line first, period. No matter if anybody came on the radio, it doesn’t matter. Like, you have one job to do, it’s to get to the start/finish line first. That maybe can answer your question. A lot of people lose their jobs because they don’t get to the start/finish line first.”

Dillon is now awaiting potential punishment from NASCAR, which is expected to be announced Wednesday.