When you’re in the Penske garage, big expectations is weighing down on your shoulders. Having teammates like Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney certainly couldn’t be easy for young Austin Cindric. After all, both his teammates have virtually dominated NASCAR in the last three years. However, Cindric is not one to run from the challenge, and it’s what this NASCAR YouTuber has recognized.
After the results of the Pennzoil 400, Eric Estepp named Penske’s Austin Cindric as the guy to look out for this season.
Why Cindric? Just look at his numbers from Vegas. He started 3rd, led 63 laps, and won Stage 1. A loose wheel meant two extra pit stops, dropping him down the order but that didn’t stop him. He still got 6th. Had it not been for the faulty tires, he could have even finished higher than Joey Logano, the driver who led 53 laps for 2nd. Looking at this, NASCAR Insider Estepp had a lot to say.
Insider Eric Estepp gave his analysis, “Let’s talk about Austin Cindric. You look at the points, he’s 21st. Not great, but the underlying data is impressive. He’s led 159 laps, that’s second most in the NASCAR Cup Series. He’s got a couple of top ten finishes, including this past weekend at Las Vegas, a traditional mile and a half. I was ready to hop off the bandwagon after Circuit of the Americas, but Cindric has bounced back the past couple of weeks. Las Vegas, especially, qualified third, went up, took the lead, and won the opening stage. Despite that mid-race setback, had a loose wheel, had to pit twice, lost all his track position, he worked his way up to sixth. A lot of other good cars dealt with similar setbacks. Bell, Larson, Logano, and they didn’t get back to sixth. We expect Cindric to look good at Daytona and Atlanta, and sure enough, he did, but Las Vegas? That performance tells me that maybe in year four, Cindric is finally starting to turn the course. So, I’m saying full steam ahead. Maybe Cindric really finds his stride this year.”
When Estepp says this, he doesn’t do so lightly. Cindric is at 159 laps led this season, a whopping 14.1% of the total laps run this season. He’s only outshined by his teammate, Joey Logano, who sits at the top with 247 laps. Regardless, just looking at his laps led, Cindric is over halfway up to his tally from last season, which stood at 256 laps!
Feb 16, 2022; Daytona, FL, USA; Feb 16, 2022; Daytona, FL, USA; NASCAR Cup Series driver Austin Cindric (2) talks to the press during Daytona 500 media day at Daytona International Speedway. Mandatory Credit:Mandatory Credit: Mike Dinovo-USA TODAY Sports
This year, he’s consistently managed to impress fans with his performances. As Estepp explained, Cindric managed to impress fans win a win at the Daytona Duels and then his 8th place finish was the cherry on top, but the bigger thing to celebrate for the Penske driver is the massive improvement he’s made since last year. At the 2024 Daytona 500, the Penske driver only managed a 22nd-place finish despite starting in 6th.
Coming to his more recent achievement, a Stage win in Las Vegas and a 6th place finish showed a similar pattern when looking at his 2024 Cup Series run. Cindric started in third, just like last Sunday, before finally finishing in 29th after lady luck failed him on the track. Something’s clearly changed in the Penske garage, and Cindric seems to be the biggest beneficiary here.
The only blemish on his record is the COTA penalty from his incident with Dillon, but Cindric answered with two top-10s back-to-back. Vegas showed he can fight back better than some top drivers. Logano’s 2nd kept Penske strong, but Blaney’s crash left room. Cindric’s not just the extra guy. He’s pushing hard. If he keeps this up, he might outshine Penske’s champs in 2025. His 6th place could be another Cup Series win soon. And he isn’t alone in his journey.
After the race, Cindric took a moment to give credit to his crew chief for ensuring his charge back into the top 10. “Definitely a solid day for our Discount Tire Ford Mustang. Think we showed great pace and fought back through some adversity. Great call by (crew chief) Brian (Wilson) to gain back that track position. We can certainly build off today.”
Perhaps Cindric’s breakout performances this year would put out fans’ concerns. Some were worried after his father Tim Cindric stepped down from the Penske organization, Cindric could lose his seat. With those concerns laid to rest, Cindric can focus on the Homestead Miami race coming up this weekend.
While things are looking positive for Cindric, there’s one Penske driver who was going through an emotional roller coaster after Las Vegas.
Ryan Blaney accepts blame after radio outburst
Although Cindric and Logano had a strong finish, their teammate Ryan Blaney wasn’t so lucky. Having started in 36th place, Blaney was making steady work of his rivals. By the end of Stage 2, he had already made his way to sixth position. It looked like he could even top that result at the end of the race, but it all came falling apart for the driver.
On lap 195, Blaney was second in a 4-wide fight for position, with Noah Gragson and Bubba Wallace on his outside, and Christopher Bell on his inside. It all unraveled in that lap as the cars came to a screeching crash.
Blaney, obviously frustrated, made his feelings clear over the radio. “I ain’t driving this [expletive] thing back. It’s destroyed. Who [expletive] caused that, Timmy? Was it my fault? I’m as close as I can get to the 20. So, I don’t know. The [expletive] 20 apparently just shoves it through the middle. Doesn’t have any regard for anybody, apparently. I don’t know. Whatever.”
When he got back into the garage and had a better chance to see things, that’s when he felt bad about his outburst. “Honestly, I think it was my fault,” he explained. “I thought I had two underneath me and one outside. And I guess it was two outside of me. I pinched the two guys in the wall. I’m sure it’s my fault. I gotta watch the replay again to know for sure.”
For now, all three of the Penske cars will look to carry their momentum and turn it into a win for a seat in the playoffs. Who knows? Perhaps we could see three Penske cars line up for the Championship race this season.
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