Boswell Promoted; Austin Dillon Will Have a New Crew Chief in 2027

Richard Childress Racing made some personnel moves on Wednesday to strengthen its team in 2027, but now the search is on for Austin Dillon's next crew chief.

Austin Dillon puts on his helmet before qualifying for the Coke Zero Sugar 400 NASCAR Cup Series race on Aug. 28, 2026, at Daytona International Speedway. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

On Wednesday, Richard Childress Racing announced a round of personnel changes aimed at the upcoming 2027 NASCAR Cup Series season. While the team made the moves in hopes of turning around performance of the organization next year, it will have a direct impact on Austin Dillon, the driver of the team's iconic No. 3 Chevrolet.

Richard Boswell, who has served as Austin Dillon's crew chief for the past two seasons, has been promoted, and will serve as the Vice President of Competition for RCR beginning in 2027.

Additionally, the team has created a new role: Director of Development and Innovation. Sliding into that newly created position, which will lead the company’s efforts to identify, develop and implement emerging technologies, will be Art Trejo.

“Everyone at Richard Childress Racing remains relentless in our desire to win and compete at the highest levels of our sport, but we know we’re not quite where we need to be,” said Richard Childress, Chairman and CEO of Richard Childress Racing, in a team press release. “We’re announcing these changes now because we want to make sure we have the right people, the right leadership, and the right technology in place to compete at the level RCR expects to compete at. Richard Boswell is a talented leader who knows racing, knows how to lead people, and knows what it takes to win. I know he will do a great job taking on a larger role in leading our competition team. Art Trejo brings a completely different set of experiences and a new way of thinking that I believe can help take our racing operations forward. We’re going to keep pushing, keep investing, and keep looking for ways to get better.”

If you're wondering who Trejo is, he's new to the NASCAR industry.

Trejo graduated with degrees from Princeton University and UCLA, and he spent 27 years as an officer in the Navy. Most recently, Trejo has served as an employee at SpaceX, where the team says Trejo gained extensive experience working in complex, technology-driven environments.

It'll be interesting to see how the addition of Trejo, from SpaceX, will improve the long-term performance level of Richard Childress Racing.

As for the decision to promote Boswell to VP of Competition, this means Dillon, a six-time NASCAR Cup Series race-winning driver, will have a new crew chief next season. As of now, the team has given no indication as to who will be the new man atop the pit box for Dillon next season, but that decision will likely be a huge determining factor in how the 2027 campaign goes for Dillon and Richard Childress Racing.

With Austin Hill coming back full-time to drive the No. 33 Chevrolet next season, Dillon will serve as the elder statesman of the driver lineup. Dillon will likely be leaned on heavily to lead the team in results next season, and the data and information acquired from Dillon by his new crew chief will be integral to the overall team's performance development next season.

Boswell, who came from Stewart-Haas Racing, was a known commodity when he joined Richard Childress Racing. As he moves into an important role within the team, RCR will now be tasked with finding a worthy replacement as crew chief for Dillon and the No. 3 group.