Race Weekend Central

Ty Dillon Kicks Off 2019 With Top 10 in Daytona 500

Top 10s have never come easy for Germain Racing in their troublesome time in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. And for Ty Dillon, his entire Cup career prior to Sunday saw but one in 90 starts.

He added another one to the list after finishing sixth in the Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. His No. 13 Chevrolet survived relatively unscathed to tie the third-year driver with his best-ever Cup result.

And it came in a special car, too.

“This thing is called ‘Jingles’,” Dillon said. “It’s been around a long time. It doesn’t qualify good, but it always is there at the end. It was there again.”

Rallying from 22nd starting spot, Dillon dodged chaos to see the checkered flag. After finishing 39th and crashed one year ago in the 500, Sunday’s finish was super sweet, with Dillon leading the charge for Chevrolet in the finishing order.

“I was happy the way it ended up,” he said. “I’m so happy to score a point for Chevy, to be the top-finishing Chevy means a lot to us.”

With both the Advance Auto Parts Clash and Gander RV Duels dominated by single-file racing, Dillon was among those happy to see the cars compete in multiple lanes most of the day and night.

“It was different than what people expected,” he said. “The way it ended up, we’re really proud the way it finished. Our car handled the way we thought it would and it led us to the front.”

Though Germain has run 354 Cup entries since 2009, Daytona was only their eighth top-10 finish. And with six of them coming at Daytona, Dillon hopes the hot start can benefit the team heading into the 1.5-milers.

“The last couple years we’ve had to dig out of a hole,” he said. “It’s hard. You can get amped up in this race early and take yourself out early in the year.

“I’m happy to start on the right foot and continue down this road.”

About the author

Growing up in Easton, Pa., Zach Catanzareti has grown his auto racing interest from fandom to professional. Joining Frontstretch in 2015, Zach enjoys nothing more than being at the track, having covered his first half-season of 18 races in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series in 2017. With experience behind the wheel, behind the camera and in the media center, he thrives on being an all-around reporter.

Sign up for the Frontstretch Newsletter

A daily email update (Monday through Friday) providing racing news, commentary, features, and information from Frontstretch.com
We hate spam. Your email address will not be sold or shared with anyone else.

Share via