NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Austin Hill reveals custom Georgia Bulldogs racing shoes

At the end of the day, NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Austin Hill is a Georgia boy at heart, and he shows it every week in the race car. The Georgia Bulldogs are near and dear to Hill’s heart and his racing shoes prove it.

Last week, Austin Hill put Winston, Georgia on the map by once again winning the Daytona season opener in the Xfinity Series. Three years in a row, the first race of the year has gone to Hill.

This week, he’s in his home state racing in Atlanta. He will have his Georgia Bulldogs racing shoes on as he attempts to win at Atlanta for the third year in a row. In 2022, Hill won the second Atlanta race of the year. Last season, he won the first event in the Peach State.

Given how talented Hill is on superspeedways, I’d venture to say his chances are pretty good.

Talking to Bob Pockrass of FOX Sports, Hill talked about his shoes and his fandom for the Dawgs.

“Yeah I had them last season,” Hill said, showing off his shoes. “I’ve always been a, born and raised in Georgia, grew up in the Douglasville area. So I ran all season last year with these on so I figured, do it again.”

When asked if he had any ill-will towards the CFP Committee for committing Georgia – Hill shrugged it off.

“It is what it is. Oh well, I guess. There’s always next year.”

Austin Hill wears racing shoes with University of Georgia logos. Check them out as he talks about representing his home state. pic.twitter.com/N5kQbxpYaj

— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) February 23, 2024

This season, Austin Hill is going to be focused on bringing a championship home to Georgia. If the Dawgs can’t get it done, he’ll try and earn one for the Peach State in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.

Austin Hill, master of drafting

When it comes to the Xfinity Series car, no one is better in the draft than Austin Hill. His performances at Daytona, Talladega, and Atlanta prove that and more. Even when it looked like Hill had too much damage and was out of contention, he fought back.

Part of that dominance has to do with the setup on the Xfinity cars. It allows for more driver input, and the drivers don’t understand the draft as well as the Cup Series field. That’s why Denny Hamlin thinks Hill’s prowess on the superspeedways won’t translate to the next level.

“You can’t take away anything from his ability to get the most out of everything and certainly on superspeedways, he’s got a way of keeping his car up front,” Hamlin said. “Even when it’s damaged, he knows a way. … I don’t think it translates into any kind of Cup success by any means because everyone is good in Cup on superspeedways now.

“Everyone’s good and there’s just more data out there for drivers to look at and study, so I feel like the bulk of the Cup field is really, really good.

“You look at the Xfinity field, there’s like three or four who really know how to work the draft well. You can just see it by how spread out they are, and who can manufacture runs and what not. Austin Hill’s experience just allows him to just kind of really abuse the Xfinity field because they’re just not as experienced as he is or of that capability on superspeedways.”

Austin Hill is in the RCR organization. His path to the Cup Series is there, but not any time soon it appears. But is Hamlin right? Will he struggle if and when he makes that transition?