Ty Dillon Bio
Tyler Reed Dillon, known professionally as Ty Dillon, is an American professional stock car racing driver born on February 27, 1992, in Welcome, North Carolina. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 10 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Kaulig Racing. Dillon is the 2011 ARCA Racing Series champion and was once the youngest champion in series history. He has spent the majority of his career driving for Richard Childress Racing and its affiliated teams.
Dillon comes from one of the most recognized families in American motorsports. His grandfather, Richard Childress, owns Richard Childress Racing, and his father, Mike Dillon, serves as the team’s general manager. Ty is the younger brother of fellow NASCAR driver Austin Dillon, who pilots the No. 3 Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing. Over the course of his career, Dillon has earned respect for his consistency, plate-track skill, and steady development as a Cup Series competitor.
Early Life and Background
Ty Dillon was born and raised in Welcome, North Carolina, in the Piedmont Triad region of the state. He grew up in a household surrounded by motorsports, with his grandfather Richard Childress running one of NASCAR’s most storied organizations and his father Mike Dillon having competed as a driver before becoming a team executive. His older brother Austin also pursued a career in racing, giving Ty an early view of what life inside a top-level racing team looked like.
Dillon began his racing career in go-karts and Bandoleros, the typical starting point for young American drivers with aspirations of moving up the ladder. As a teenager, he advanced into the K&N Pro Series East in 2009, competing for the series championship the following year despite running a limited schedule. He scored a win at Gresham Motorsports Park in August 2010, announcing himself as a rising talent within the developmental ranks of stock car racing.
Path to NASCAR
Dillon’s path to NASCAR accelerated through the ARCA Racing Series, where he made three starts in 2010 and won twice, at Kansas Speedway and Rockingham Speedway. In 2011, he ran his first full ARCA season and dominated, winning seven races on his way to the series championship at just nineteen years old. Although he lost the ARCA Rookie of the Year award to Chris Buescher by two points, the title positioned him for a full-time opportunity in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
That opportunity came with Richard Childress Racing, and Dillon made his Truck Series debut in 2011 at Kentucky Speedway. He moved into the series full-time in 2012, posting top-ten finishes in each of his first five races and earning the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Rookie of the Year award. His first Truck Series victory came at Atlanta Motor Speedway on August 31 of that year, confirming that the family’s racing pedigree had produced another winner.
Ty Dillon Career
Early Career (2011-2013)
Dillon’s early professional years were split between ARCA and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. After his championship-winning ARCA season in 2011, he balanced part-time Truck Series duty with continued development in lower-profile events. In 2012, he became a full-time Truck Series driver for Richard Childress Racing and quickly established himself as a contender, claiming Rookie of the Year honors and visiting Victory Lane at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
He returned to the Truck Series in 2013 and elevated his performance further, winning at Kentucky Speedway and at Texas Motor Speedway, where he gave the No. 3 its 100th victory across cars and trucks in NASCAR history. He finished second in the 2013 Truck Series standings behind Matt Crafton and was named the series’ Most Popular Driver. The results made a clear case for his promotion to the Nationwide Series the following season.
NASCAR Nationwide/Xfinity Series Breakthrough (2014-2016)
In August 2013, Richard Childress Racing announced that Dillon would move full-time to the Nationwide Series in 2014, taking over the No. 3 Chevrolet from his brother Austin. He won his first career Nationwide Series pole at Las Vegas and added poles at Kentucky and Kansas, showing qualifying speed. His signature Nationwide moment came on July 26, 2014, at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where he passed Kyle Busch on the final restart and held him off to take the win. He finished second to Chase Elliott in the 2014 Rookie of the Year standings.
By 2015, Dillon had grown into one of the Nationwide Series’ most consistent performers, finishing a career-best third in points with a series-leading 25 top-ten finishes and 12 top-fives despite not visiting Victory Lane. In 2016, he secured a spot in the Xfinity Series Chase, won the Dash 4 Cash bonus at Richmond, and closed the year fifth in the final standings with five runner-up finishes. Across his part-time Xfinity outings in 2017 and 2018, he continued to deliver top-ten results, ending 2017 with sixteen top-tens in the series.
NASCAR Cup Series Era (2014-Present)
Dillon made his Sprint Cup Series debut in 2014 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, driving the No. 33 for Hillman-Circle Sport LLC in partnership with Richard Childress Racing. In 2016, he expanded his Cup schedule with Circle Sport-Leavine Family Racing in the No. 95 and even substituted for an injured Tony Stewart in the No. 14 at Stewart-Haas Racing. On November 28, 2016, Germain Racing announced that Dillon would take over the No. 13 GEICO Chevrolet for the 2017 season, giving him his first full-time Cup ride.
His first career Cup top-ten finish came in 2018 at the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona, where he placed sixth. The following year, he scored his first Cup stage win at Bristol and added a stage victory at Talladega, along with a career-best fourth-place finish at the rain-shortened July Daytona race. After Germain Racing closed its doors at the end of 2020, Dillon drove for Gaunt Brothers Racing, GMS Racing, Spire Motorsports, and Kaulig Racing in a stretch that tested his resilience.
Kaulig Racing Era (2024-Present)
On March 25, 2024, Kaulig Racing announced that Dillon would drive the No. 16 in a five-race deal that began at Richmond. During the summer of 2024, he also made a one-off start in the No. 50 for Team AmeriVet at the Coca-Cola 600 and returned to Richard Childress Racing’s No. 33 for the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis, where he started 22nd and finished 19th. The opportunities demonstrated that he remained in demand across multiple team structures.
For 2025, Kaulig Racing confirmed that Dillon would return to the Cup Series full-time, taking over the renumbered No. 10 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 from Daniel Hemric. The move places him back in a full-time ride with a competitive single-car team and a clear opportunity to rebuild momentum after several seasons of part-time duty.
Driving Style and Strengths
Dillon is widely regarded as a strong plate-track racer, with consistent top-ten and top-five finishes at Daytona and Talladega throughout his Cup career. He has also demonstrated strong restarts and patience in fuel-mileage situations, skills that helped him collect stage wins and career-best finishes in the Cup Series. His work with crew chiefs such as Kevin Manion during the 2023 season showed an ability to adapt quickly to new voices atop the pit box.
Notable Races and Milestones
Among Dillon’s signature moments are his 2014 Nationwide Series win at Indianapolis Motor Speedway over Kyle Busch, his first Truck Series victory at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 2012, and the 100th career NASCAR victory for a No. 3 car or truck at Texas in 2013. In the Cup Series, his breakthrough top-ten at the 2018 Coke Zero Sugar 400, his first stage win at Bristol in 2019, and his career-best third-place finish at Talladega in 2020 stand out as defining results.
Ty Dillon Career Wins
Ty Dillon has built a multi-series résumé that includes championships, race wins, and a steady flow of top finishes. His victories span the ARCA Racing Series, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, and the NASCAR Nationwide Series, with consistent top-ten performances also coming in the NASCAR Cup Series. He has been recognized with the 2012 Truck Series Rookie of the Year award and the 2013 Most Popular Driver Award.
ARCA Racing Series Highlights
Dillon captured the 2011 ARCA Racing Series championship with seven wins, becoming the youngest champion in series history at the time. His early ARCA success at Rockingham Speedway and Kansas Speedway in 2010 signaled his arrival, and his title run confirmed that he was ready for national NASCAR competition.
NASCAR Truck Series Highlights
Across multiple stints in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Dillon scored wins at Atlanta Motor Speedway in 2012, Kentucky Speedway in 2013, and Texas Motor Speedway in 2013. The Texas victory marked the 100th NASCAR win for a No. 3 car or truck, a milestone that tied the Dillon-Childress family to one of the sport’s most iconic numbers.
Other Wins and Performances
In the NASCAR Nationwide Series, Dillon’s most notable victory came at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2014. He also posted consistent top-ten and top-five finishes throughout his full-time Nationwide and Xfinity Series seasons, including a career-best third in the 2015 Nationwide Series standings. His development in those years laid the foundation for his long Cup Series career.
Ty Dillon Family
Family Background and Racing Lineage
Dillon’s family is one of the most influential in modern NASCAR. His grandfather Richard Childress is a former driver turned championship team owner and the founder of Richard Childress Racing. His father, Mike Dillon, is a retired NASCAR driver who now serves as the general manager of Richard Childress Racing. His older brother, Austin Dillon, is a Cup Series driver for Richard Childress Racing and a former Daytona 500 champion.
Personal Life
Dillon married Haley Carey, a former driver and Charlotte Hornets cheerleader, on December 20, 2014, in a ceremony at Childress Vineyards in Lexington, North Carolina. The couple welcomed a daughter, Oakley Ray Dillon, on November 20, 2017, and a son, Kapton Reed Dillon, on October 29, 2020. The family has remained based in North Carolina, close to the heart of Dillon’s racing operations.
2025 Season Performance
Ty Dillon enters the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series season with a full-time ride at Kaulig Racing, behind the wheel of the No. 10 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1. The move reunites him with a competitive single-car operation and offers a fresh opportunity to re-establish himself as a weekly contender after several seasons split between part-time Cup duty, the Truck Series, and the Xfinity Series. Kaulig Racing’s alliance with Chevrolet also keeps Dillon aligned with the manufacturer he has driven for throughout most of his career.
The early storyline of 2025 centers on Dillon’s ability to translate his plate-track strength and veteran race craft into consistent top-twenty and top-fifteen results with a new team. With a single-car structure, expectations will rest heavily on chemistry with his crew chief and the team’s weekly preparation. The partnership will be measured by steady finishes, stage points, and the kind of momentum that can build toward a playoff push over the long season.
Heading into the year, Dillon’s outlook is one of measured optimism. A return to full-time competition gives him the practice, seat time, and rhythm that part-time schedules often limit. If the Kaulig Racing program delivers speed on intermediate tracks and superspeedways, Dillon’s experience and his family’s deep ties to the sport could make 2025 a defining season in his Cup Series career.
