Austin Dillon explains reasoning behind NASCAR penalty appeal: 'We deserve to be in the playoffs'

Austin Dillon was penalized following his controversial win at Richmond, with NASCAR ruling that his driving in the final stretch fell into the category of conduct detrimental to the sport, thus removing his playoff eligibility based on that win.

It was a harsh blow to the Dillon camp, which has had a rough season but put together an excellent race in the Cook Out 400.

Dillon explained the goal of the appeal this week on the Marty & McGee show on ESPN.

“With that appeal obviously we deserve to be in the playoffs,” Dillon said. “We want to reverse that decision that NASCAR has made to take our playoff eligibility away. We feel like we have a case to stand on and should.”

Austin Dillon wasn’t ready to dive into the particulars of the appeal, preferring to keep those close to the vest until the appeal is made. But he does feel like his side of the story deserves to be heard.

“I think the biggest thing is to be able to state our case,” Dillon said. “Feel like a lot of people and a lot of people in the industry have given their opinion and we have been celebrating our win, enjoying the fact that the 3 car was the fastest car at Richmond this past weekend. Had a three-second lead with two laps to go.”

The driver of the No. 3 car has had an upbeat attitude this week despite the crushing news, perhaps a testament to how strong he thinks his case is on appeal.

Still, it’s unclear on what grounds Austin Dillon will appear, other than perhaps to tack toward the contact with Joey Logano and Denny Hamlin being inevitable at that stage of the race.

We won’t know for sure until after the appeal runs its course.

“I’ve got to be careful with what I give out right now for the appeal process, because it’s going to be like a trial,” Dillon said on a USA broadcast on Saturday afternoon. “It really is. Wish everybody could see it, television. Would be cool to be in there. Because I haven’t really given my entire story of the game yet.”

Should the appeal fail, Austin Dillon will have an uphill climb to the playoffs. He currently ranks 31st in points, well below the playoff cut line. He’ll likely need another win to get into the playoffs unless the appeal is successful.