Austin Cindric

Austin Cindric

25-Year-Old Driver  
Penske Racing
Penske Racing
2023 Fantasy Outlook
You couldn't start a season better than Cindric did in 2022. The Penske Racing rookie grabbed an upset victory in last season's Daytona 500 to kick off his rookie campaign. After that, it was a mix of highs and lows that would ultimately lead Cindric to nine Top-10 finishes and a 12th-place rank in the final driver standings. It was a bit of overachievement considering that the young driver only cracked the Top 10 once in the 10 races of the Chase playoffs. The No. 2 Ford team looks to be returning completely intact with Jeremy Bullins still calling the shots as crew chief. Cindric's inconsistent end to last season is a bit concerning moving forward. His 16.3 average finish is something that has to improve in 2023 or he won't be able to climb these rankings much higher. Right now, Cindric is unquestionably the third-best driver in this three-driver Penske Racing camp. Read Past Outlooks
Runner-up in Duel 2
NASCAR Cup
February 16, 2023
Cindric finished second in the Bluegreen Vacations Duel 2 at Daytona International Speedway Thursday night.
ANALYSIS
Cindric would show great muscle in this second qualifying race at Daytona. He could push other drivers to the lead and he could take the lead himself. The Penske Racing youngster would be in a battle for the win at the front on the last lap. A bobble by Todd Gilliland among the leaders would allow Cindric to slide by on the outside line and settle in behind leader Aric Almirola. He couldn't catch the No. 10 Ford at the checkered flag, but would settle for a strong runner-up finish. Cindric will start sixth on the grid in Sunday's Great American Race.
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Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Austin Cindric See More
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Yesterday
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6 days ago
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7 days ago
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14 days ago
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Past Fantasy Outlooks
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
The 2020 Xfinity Series champion will take over the iconic No. 2 Ford of Penske Racing in the upcoming season and go to work on potential Rookie of the Year campaign. It's going to be a big step for the talented youngster. Filling the shoes of Brad Keselowski is no easy task. There will be a lot of expectations and associated pressure with this promotion. For a 23-year-old rookie to take over a flagship ride is never easy. Fortunately, Cindric got in seven Cup Series starts last year and that will help with his transition. He showed some flashes of ability in those starts, and the experience will help in 2022. Cindric will be paired with crew chief Jeremy Bullins and the two will look to quickly figure out the new Next-Gen car and get to work on some good finishes. It will be an up-and-down typical rookie season for sure, but Cindric should have the inside track on winning the ROTY award in the upcoming season.
The 2020 Xfinity Series champion will return to defend his title in 2021. The Penske Racing star built on a very good 2019 campaign and drove to six wins and 26 Top-10 finishes last season to claim the Xfinity Series crown. Cindric will once again drive the strong No. 22 Ford and the team will return all major parts, including crew chief Brian Wilson. The 22-year-old driver proved himself to be a strong driver, and very gifted at the road circuits. Cindric collected two of his six victories on those challenging courses. With NASCAR doing even more racing on these style tracks in the upcoming season, it only adds to the value that this driver and team bring to the table. Cindric should challenge to equal or exceed the six wins he posted last season, and will once again be a top contender to win the championship.
Cindric was the most improved driver of last season's second half. After a slow start in the Penske Racing No. 22 Ford, the young driver came on strong and posted three pole positions and two victories in the final half of 2019. While Cindric didn't race for the championship at Homestead, he still finished a respectable fifth-place in the driver points. The 14 Top-5 and 24 Top-10 finish campaign was a good salvage job to a slow start to last season. Cindric will now take what he's learned in 67-career starts in this division of NASCAR and apply it in the upcoming season. He'll once again be paired with Brian Wilson and resume the good work they started last season. We should see an increase in wins and Top 5 totals. The youngster will give Justin Allgaier a good run for the money in the championship chase.
Cindric gets a major upgrade in status for 2019. He takes over the full-time driving duties for the strong No. 22 Ford of Penske Racing. This is the car that has been piloted by multi-driver Cup stars over the last several seasons. Last season alone this team accounted for six victories, 19 Top-5 and 25 Top-10 finishes between its five-driver lineup. Cindric nabbed six Top-5 and nine Top-10 finishes of that overall performance. He'll have to step up his game in the upcoming season, and we believe he will. Cindric is taking over one of the most elite teams in the Xfinity Series garage. After finishing eighth in the final driver standings last year, racing for multiple teams, the consistency of showing up each week in the No. 22 Ford Mustang will do wonders.
With the closure of Brad Keselowski's truck series operation, Briscoe and Cindric became two very good young drivers in search of a ride. Roush Fenway Racing stepped in and revived their No. 60 team in an opportunistic situation. This team was named Ford's development driver team, and the two truck series aces will head up the effort. Majeski is a 23-year-old product of kart racing and late model stocks. He made three starts for this team in 2017, and collected a Top-10 finish in the season finale at Homestead. The driver distribution for this team has yet to be announced, but we can only imagine it will be a heavy dose of Cindric and Briscoe, followed by a lesser dose of Majeski. This team should be pretty competitive given the talent behind the wheel.
Cindric replaces Daniel Hemric in the No. 19 Ford F-150 this season. The 18-year-old from Columbus, Ohio has just six-combined truck series starts over the last two years. Cindric's NASCAR experience is limited and spread all over the lower divisions of the sport. So this will be a baptism by fire as he takes on his first full schedule in a national touring series. Veteran crew chief Doug Randolph will help ease this transition and bend this sharp learning curve just a bit. Hemric posted 11 Top-5 and 17 Top-10 finishes in this truck last season en route to a strong sixth-place finish in the driver standings. We don't believe Cindric will have this ability right out of the gate, but he could grow to that level of performance in time.
More Fantasy News
Rolex 24 with Rick Ware Racing
NASCAR Cup
January 9, 2023
Rick Ware Racing has confirmed its entry of an ORECA 07 Gibson in the LMP2 class for a full-season campaign in the 2023 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. In addition, RWR is announcing its driver line-up. The team's full-season driver line-up will consist of Eric Lux and Pietro Fittipaldi. Devlin DeFrancesco will complement the duo for the remainder of the Michelin Endurance Cup events. Defending Daytona 500 Champion, Cindric, will round out the quartet for the twice-around-the-clock season opener.  
ANALYSIS
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Cup Series Rookie of the Year
NASCAR Cup
November 7, 2022
Team Penske's Cindric started the 2022 year with a victory in the season-opening Daytona 500, and he took the season's final checkered flag on Sunday, having earned the Sunoco Rookie of the Year, NASCAR.com reports.
ANALYSIS
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Fast Darlington Practice
NASCAR Cup
September 3, 2022
Cindric was fastest in Happy Hour practice for the Cook Out Southern 500 NASCAR Cup Series race at Darlington Raceway Saturday. He turned a fast lap of 167.698 mph.
ANALYSIS
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Third at Daytona
NASCAR Cup
August 28, 2022
Cindric finished third in the Coke Zero Sugar 400 NASCAR Cup Series race at Daytona International Speedway Sunday afternoon.
ANALYSIS
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Runner-up Finish at Indianapolis
NASCAR Cup
July 31, 2022
Cindric finished second in the Verizon 200 NASCAR Cup Series race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course Sunday.
ANALYSIS
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