Cindric On Playoffs: ‘We Haven’t Achieved Our Maximum’

MOORESVILLE, N.C. – Austin Cindric was clear Wednesday when he reiterated to reporters that he “wanted to be invisible for the first two rounds” of the NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.

But it’s more than safe to say that, after the Round of 12 opener at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Austin Cindric no longer has the ability to stay invisible like he hoped.

Following his 17th-place finish at the one-mile Loudon, N.H. track, Cindric took part in a Ford Racing media availability to discuss the playoffs so far and his mindset going into both Kansas Speedway this weekend and the Charlotte Motor Speedway ROVAL on Oct. 5.

So, how does Cindric feel about his playoff run to this point?

“I don’t think any race has really gone the way we wanted it to so far, which put us in a very tight window for [the round-one cutoff race at] Bristol. I thought we had a lot of potential for a good finish at Bristol. A lot of potential for a good finish at Darlington. We definitely had speed at Gateway. I can sit here and list off all the reasons why and a lot of ways I feel like that’s how our season has gone this year. If I looked at my season from the perspective of a top 10 means I’m good or not, I’d go crazy because we’ve had a lot more than just that, but we have to go out and put it up there. We need to get results and results equal points, whether that’s in the stages or at the end of the races.

“My pit crew has probably been doing the best job they have all year. They’ve been super consistent and super reliable through the playoffs. I’d say that’s probably one of my overwhelming positives,” Cindric added. “Past that, we’ve done what we needed to, but [what] we did in the last round is not going to be enough to get us through, and I also don’t feel like we’ve been able to achieve our maximum in those races, either. I think that’s really where my head’s at and where my focus is.

“I do feel like if we achieve the maximum of what we’re capable of as a group, or much closer to it, I feel like we’ll find ourselves in a very favorable position to continue fighting for a championship.”

Cindric has yet to record a top 10 in the playoffs so far, with his best finish being 12th in the playoff opener at Darlington.

Speaking on his New Hampshire performance, Cindric felt like he didn’t get all he should have out of the fourth race of the postseason.

“I definitely view it as a missed opportunity in a few ways. Obviously, having great runs from all of the cars that came out of that shop, I think, starts in qualifying. A lot of that was on me, just not getting the lap,” Cindric explained. “Honestly, it was on me just getting a little impatient exiting a lap that would have been pretty strong, but I thought we had some strengths in the race. We got some damage and probably more than I thought as far as from a performance standpoint, kind of reviewing things looking at the car.

“The snorkel was pinched off, so that’s power [lost] and the splitter was separated from the nose and that’s downforce  [lost], so it was a pretty challenging stage three to come back up through the field after doing some repairs for that.”

Cindric is staring down the barrel of a 19-point deficit entering Kansas, but he doesn’t feel like his team is desperate just yet.

“We’re obviously going to have to go out and have two really good days and just as likely that the others do the same or get into trouble,” Cindric said.  “Kansas and the Charlotte road course have been two very challenging racetracks as far as getting in wrecks or getting behind, so I think there’s a lot of opportunity for us and 19 is totally not out of the question, especially in two race events.

“I’m not getting ahead of my skis here at all, but I think from our standpoint you have to look at it realistically and think that we’re going to have to go out and have two of our best weeks of the year to go make this happen on points, but I think those are two tracks that we’re capable of doing that.”

NASCAR announced recently that Goodyear is bringing a new right-side tire to Kansas that will also be used in Las Vegas. It’s something Cindric doesn’t feel will create an immense amount of upheaval.

“You’re never fully going to know, but I don’t expect much change,” he tipped. “From Goodyear’s side, from what I understand, it’s more just from a durability standpoint with the construction of the tire, so I think pace and fall off and tire wear and the racetrack and all that … from everything that I understand and the information that I have, should all be fairly similar.

“Kansas is definitely one of those tracks that the teams push it right to the edge, so I don’t think that’s going to be any different this weekend.”

Looking ahead to the Charlotte ROVAL, Cindric was asked both about his road course performance and if he likes having the ROVAL as the cut-off race. It’s been a tough year for Cindric turning both left and right, something he didn’t shy away from admitting.

“I don’t feel like going on through the list of reasons why, but I would say this year has been exceptionally challenging. I think the biggest change I could put on that is we have a tire that we’ve gone to at the start of the year that we’ve integrated into all road courses and, at the end of the day, I’ve struggled to figure out what’s best for my car and what’s best for making lap time,” Cindric explained. “I feel like the start of the year was pretty bad for me trying to understand that. I’d say my last two events that we did at Sonoma and Watkins Glen were probably our two best, but 15th isn’t what we shoot for here.

“I definitely look forward to Charlotte and once again trying to adapt what we know from our last couple years to the ROVAL, where we had a great playoff race there last year – just not good enough to win. We were in a must-win last year, but it’s going to have to be a good event for us regardless.”

So, does Cindric expect potential chaos at the ROVAL that could give him a better chance of making the playoff semifinals?

“I think you can take no race for granted as a status quo event. Just look at our schedule. Even New Hampshire this past weekend or Kansas this weekend can be crazy, so I don’t think you can take any race for granted,” he said. “Obviously, the on-track product and the challenges with what the driver has to do is going to be much different than how I drive the car at Kansas, but, otherwise, I see it as just as much of a wild card as going into this weekend. That’s how I view it.

“We have to be good at all types of tracks, so I see the Charlotte road course as no different, but it definitely provides some unique challenges and a lot of close quarters racing that can be hairy if you’re a playoff car, but I think the job and the risk and the opportunity to fail or succeed is just as high at Charlotte as it would be at any other race throughout the year.

“As silly as that sounds, it’s really become that competitive in this series.”

Coverage of the Hollywood Casino 400 presented by ESPN Bet airs Sunday, Sept. 28 at 3 p.m. ET, live on USA, the Motor Racing Network, and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, channel 90.