Austin Cindric sounds off on frustration of having better car, being unable to pass after Gateway

Austin Cindric is only +11 above the cutline heading into the final race of the Round of 16 at Bristol Motor Speedway. That comes after a slightly disappointing Sunday at Gateway last weekend.

It’s usually one of Cindric’s better tracks, but the No. 2 Ford had trouble passing at World Wide Technology Raceway. During an appearance on Door Bumper Clear, the Team Penske wheelman elaborated on his frustration with not being able to do more while having an awesome car.

“Some days are easier than others. I stared at the back of Ross’ car for 80 laps yesterday. You know, it’s just part of racing, right? It puts an emphasis on a lot of little things that might not seem like much from the outside, but they can mean absolutely everything for your race,” Cindric explained.

“Like, I think Chase [Elliott] finished third? At one point in the third stage, he and I were in the same spot. Then, on a restart, the top lane just completely parks. He ends up third, and he was right next to me. Meanwhile, I’m back in the trash, switching strategies. We finish in the teens.

“It’s stuff like that where you’re like, ‘Why? I can’t do anything.’ But at the same time, there’s opportunity. As a driver, I just want to focus on what takes me that next step, to be a tenth better, instead of being stuck at that same pace.”

Suffice to say, his performance at Gateway has put Cindric in a precarious position heading into Bristol. He elaborated on what his strategy will be in Tennessee on Saturday night, and how being so close to the cut-line will change his race.

“I think it’s like any other week for us because we do have to go out and run well and have no issues, that’s for sure. And that’s the best way you can control your destiny,” Cindric added. “There are a lot of things out of your control, especially from a tire standpoint. No one’s run this right-side tire. Apparently, five degrees of ambient temp changes everything. I woke up this morning and saw 58 in the forecast, took out the hoodie and knew this isn’t good. So, it should be an interesting weekend, no doubt. 

“I do love Bristol. … Bristol is hard on the cars, too. I don’t think there’s been too many events, even when we had normal tire fall off, that there haven’t been right-side failures and things of that nature or even steering rack failures, guys losing power steering and things like that. Bristol’s a really tough track on cars, but if somebody else has a problem, it’s very easy to get wiped out in front of the mess. It’s not a very warm and fuzzy place to go out and do it, but have to go out there and earn it.”

Time will tell if Cindric is able to survive The Last Great Colosseum and move on to the Round of 12. The Team Penske wheelman knows it’ll be difficult, but he seems to be up to the challenge.