Team Penske Driver Reveals Him & Chase Elliott Are Helping Each Other as “Teammates”

Travis Pastrana made really good recruitments for the Nitro Rallycross series. After bringing Chase Elliott on board, one of the hottest prospects in NASCAR, and Austin Cindric to partner him – they had a really good chance to grab something in the series, at least on paper.

Both Chase Elliott and Cindric are among the younger drivers of NASCAR at 26 and 24 years, respectively. They also had a good time at the Daytona 500. Elliott, who won the 2020 Cup Series, grabbed a 2nd-place finish in the 2021 Daytona. Cindric on the other hand won the 2022 edition, in just his second appearance in the event.

As they teamed up, Cindric was asked “How does it feel having Chase Elliott as a teammate which is new to you obviously?” Cindric said, “Yeah, I know, it’s cool to be doing this with Chase obviously. We have the same job for 38 weeks out of the year, he and I haven’t really had much crossover so.”

“I don’t think I know him that well, I don’t think he knows me that well and it’s been a cool opportunity I guess to do that. He’s a cool guy, Bill’s even here hanging out definitely cool to have him, definitely cool to spend some time, probably a more casual environment.”

“But Chase is a good dude, obviously a great driver. So we both have each other to compare ourselves to but also to kinda help, “Hey you’re still going with this too, like maybe try this I’ll try this”, kinda working together really as teammates. Something I probably didn’t think I’ll experience this year but cool to have him.”

Read More: “Dad Was a Star But…” – Chase Elliott Snubbed Father for Tony Stewart Support for This Reason Before Taking Part in Kyle Larson Dominated Affair

It must have been a great opportunity for both drivers, young as they are, to share their own experiences with each other, and possibly learn something new from it. Cindric especially would have been stoked to get this chance.

Only disappointment for Chase Elliott and Austin Cindric

The Nitro Rallycross weekend in Phoenix ended on November 13th, with Travis Pastrana passing the checkered flag first. It made him the first repeat winner in the series, having won in 2021 as well.

But for his hotshot new boys, Chase Elliott and Austin Cindric, things didn’t go as planned. Pastrana thinks it could be because of their muscle memory from NASCAR. He theorized that the drivers tend to have one eye on the speedometer before making jumps.

While that doesn’t really take a lot of their time, that micro-second is crucial in events like these and affects what they can do. Other than that, it has also been postulated that the cars they are driving in the Nitro RX series are much different in comparison to their stock cars in NASCAR.

Here they are using an 800kW, 1070 hp all-electric ‘beast’ which is very different from what they have previously driven. Thus both Elliott and Cindric had to grasp as much as they could in the short while they were allowed. In the end, both looked out of sorts on the tracks.

Watch This More: Bubba Wallace Found Support From Dale Earnhardt Jr Amid NASCAR Backlash During The Confederate Flag Fallout in 2020

Both drivers couldn’t find the rhythm or pace to make it through to the finals. Finishing fourth and fifth in the Last Chance Qualifier, all they could do was watch Pastrana go past the checkered flag and celebrate with the team.