Beaver Falls, NY (July 27, 2008): Austin Dillon’s debut at New York’s Adirondack Speedway proved to be bittersweet. After leading a total of 40 laps, the 18-year-old driver of the #3 Garage Equipment Supply Chevrolet in the NASCAR Camping World Series East settled with a third place finish. Dillon lost the lead to DEI development driver Trevor Bayne for the third and final time following a lap 126 restart.

“We had a good restart. Trevor kind of jumped us on the outside and kept us down there,” Dillon explained. “We raced hard there for two laps and finally I got the lead and he pulled in behind me. I guess he got a good run and shoved me up the track a little bit. I couldn’t hold the bottom when he pushed me off in there. I tried to get the lead back but I hit the inside bump and I couldn’t hold it. That’s when Matt (Kobyluck) got on the inside of me too.”

Dillon started the race from the outside pole after laying down a lap of 108.709 mph in qualifying earlier in the day. At the drop of the green, polesitter Bryon Chew got the advantage coming out of three with Dillon getting shuffled back to fifth. The first caution flew at lap 18 when a car spun on the track, but a heavy rain began falling and NASCAR was forced to red flag the event.

After one hour, the race was back under green at lap 38 with Dillon anxious to get things going.

“I knew it would be slicker,” Dillon said about the track after the red flag. “I like it when it’s loose and slick because I have dirt experience and I thought there’s where it was going to help me the most. It did, but I really changed my driving style after that red flag. I really felt like I needed to get on the wheel and that I wasted that first little bit losing some position.”

By lap 42, the Garage Equipment Supply Chevrolet was already up to third. Caution tightened up the field for a restart at lap 55. Peyton Sellers moved out front with Dillon going low under the 99 of Chew. Chew shut the door, but Dillon was persistent and continued to challenge.

Dillon took the position at lap 80 when he used the bottom groove to his advantage and took the position in turn three. He then set his sights on Sellers. On lap 86, Dillon went to challenge Sellers for the lead and made contact. Sellers spun and Dillon inherited the lead.

Dillon led the next 26 laps unchallenged, but on a restart at lap 114, Bayne made his presence known. Dillon was unshaken by Bayne’s pressure and continued to lead. The two were lined up side-by-side for another restart at lap 126 and the action really heated up.

Bayne went to the front, but not without a fight. Dillon and Bayne were dead even through the distance of the ½ mile oval. Dillon pulled ahead in turns one and two on lap 127, but Bayne drove back out front on lap 129.

A caution put the duo back together again for a restart at lap 136, and again, they went door-to-door through the tricky turns. Bayne went out front and brought eventual race winner Matt Kobyluck with him before Dillon settled into third.

“It was a hard fought battle and I wish I could have kept the lead, but Trevor got me and there was nothing I could do,” Dillon said. “On the back of the pace car it says rubbing is racing and that’s what we did tonight.”

Dillon maintained his third place spot on the final restart at lap 148 despite a multi-car pileup in turns three and four on the white flag lap.

“It was a good race all and all,” he concluded. “It’s disappointing, but it’s a third. It didn’t help us any in points, but it kept us the same. We were a little worried about this track when we came here. I didn’t have any experience here at all so a top-three is good and I had a lot of fun.”

For more information on Team Dillon Racing or driver Austin Dillon, visit www.teamdillonracing.com.