Austin Cindric gives Team Penske its first NASCAR win and some much-needed momentum
Austin Cindric gave Team Penske its first NASCAR win of the season along with some much-needed momentum after a whole lot of struggles
Even amid the elation of finally winning a NASCAR Cup Series race again, Austin Cindric found himself a bit heartbroken.
It should have been a banner day for Team Penske on Sunday just outside St. Louis. Defending series champ Ryan Blaney was leading in the closing laps, Cindric was poised to give a team that has struggled all season a 1-2 finish and Joey Logano was just one spot away from giving Team Penske all three of its cars in the top five at the checkered flag.
But as the white flag flew, Blaney slowed to a crawl — out of fuel, it turned out — and Cindric went right by, leading the final lap for his second Cup Series victory and first since the season-opening Daytona 500 more than two years ago.
“They deserved to win this race,” said Cindric, who nevertheless was happy to lock the No. 2 car into the Cup Series playoffs. “Ryan has been a hell of a leader on this team. This weekend was a great weekend for everybody involved.”
