'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Team Penske and rookie NASCAR Cup Series playoff driver Austin Cindric piloted the No. 2 Discount Tire Ford Mustang at the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway, where he finished 16th but was not satisfied with the position.
Austin Cindric demonstrated the strength of his Ford Mustang from the start of the weekend, surpassing the practice charts and progressing to the final round of qualifying to earn sixth place in the starting position.
During the media interaction after the race, Cindric expressed his dissatisfaction and the struggles that he encountered at the races at Darlington Raceway. In his statement, he stated that,
“We didn’t take ourselves out of it tonight and that was certainly goal number one. I just wish we would have made more progress in the car tonight. We really struggled on the short runs and really got my lunch money taken on restarts and felt like we could hang with the rest of them on the long runs, but anytime we’d try to fix that we’d kind of just hurt the rest.”
He added that,
“It’s certainly something to learn for tonight and those restarts and I lost track position really kept killing us, but we didn’t take ourselves out of it. We were able to come away with more points than a lot of guys, so I’ll take it, but I’m certainly not satisfied with it.”
Austin Cindric wished to see how they could progress at the Cook Out Southern 500, which seemed impossible. He mentioned that despite the struggles, he was happy because his team made more points than others, but he was not satisfied with how the race went.
How Austin Cindric performed at the Cook Out Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway
Cindric finished 13th after navigating the other part of the 115-lap opening segment in a free-handling Discount Tire Mustang. He received a four-tire service with an air-pressure adjustment during the break and jetted off for the start of Stage 2.
The 24-year-old driver powered through the second segment, concentrating on navigating the short runs. Austin Cindric crossed the line 21st in Stage 2 and headed to the pit crew for a large swing of changes to aid the car's handling.
Throughout the final stages of the crown jewel event, the team continued to make changes during pit stops. Finally finishing 16th, the NASCAR Cup Series rookie moves into the playoffs at Kansas Speedway 13th in the standings.
