Heading into this weekend in Illinois, several top contenders were eager to secure their spot in the playoffs. With Kyle Larson, Martin Truex Jr, and Ty Gibbs all yet to win a race, the pressure was on reigning champion Ryan Blaney to bring home a win and help Team Penske get the momentum they needed.

However, after fuel miscalculations spelled disaster for Blaney’s WWTR campaign, the #2 Penske driver, Austin Cindric, beat all odds to avenge his fallen teammate. On a day where even Cindric was ‘shocked’ to have finished first, YouTube insider Eric Estepp highlighted the unexpected shift in fortunes for the #2 driver in his third season.

Austin Cindric turns around an otherwise dismal season

When we talk about the favorites for the 2024 playoffs, Austin Cindric’s name is seldom heard in any conversations. That is, until the Enjoy Illinois 300. After slotting his #2 Penske Mustang Dakrhorse onto the second row in qualifying, Cindric was able to hold onto the top five for much of the first two stages, with only two drivers proving to hinder his run at victory.

Apart from Christopher Bell’s dominant #20 JGR Camry XSE, Ryan Blaney was the only driver fast enough to keep Cindric at bay. However, that would all change after Bell reported engine issues and Ryan Blaney ran out of fuel on the last lap. With no driver around him to challenge for the win, Austin Cindric was able to secure his spot in the playoffs despite only bringing home one top-five before the race in Illinois.

Reflecting on the change in tides for Cindric’s 2024 campaign, Eric Estepp stated, “Even before (Christopher) Bell had his issue, (Ryan) Blaney had his issue, this was easily the most impressive race Austin Cindric has ever run in his NASCAR Cup Series career. He has been invisible most of this season. I think he’s 20th in points which is actually an improvement over last year, but no one is talking about Austin Cindric.”

With an average finish of 21.8 so far this season, it’s safe to Austin Cindric wasn’t considered to be in contention for the top 16. Adding to that notion, Estepp also highlighted Cindric’s average starting position of 11.9. With the statistics not in favor of Cindric, he was one the most underrated drivers for the playoffs. Estepp added, “His average finish in the eleven non-drafting tracks this year was twenty-five point two. That is god awful, terrible. Abysmal for a Penske driver.”

However, Estepp felt that sentiment was close to changing after Cindric’s performance in Illinois. The insider concluded, “Austin Cindric qualified on the front row, second place, and stayed there for a change. Finished fourth in the opening stage, collected a ton of stage points, and ran top five all afternoon. Played the strategy right, and caught the cautions when he needed to…Did Austin Cindric have a winning car today? Not necessarily, but this was by far his best NASCAR Cup Series race to date.”

Speaking of which, Eric Estepp isn’t the only one who believes it’s time for Cindric to step up to the Cup Series challenge.

‘It’s not been fun for a while’ – Cindric is hungry for more

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When Brad Keselowski departed Team Penske to form RFK Racing, the perfect opportunity opened up for Austin Cindric. Evidently, the Columbus, Ohio native wasted no time proving his worth. In only his first-ever full-time race in the #2, Cindric won the prestigious Daytona 500 in 2022.

Whilst this win spoke volumes of Cindric’s talent, he would have to wait until 2024 to make good on those claims. With Stewart-Haas Racing selling its charters, several drivers are available. Had Cindric not proven himself with a win this weekend, perhaps his seat would have been in danger. That being said, Cindric believes he cannot afford to become complacent again.

The #2 driver shared with FrontStretch, “I think there are two avenues I can take on that. I’ll take you down both of them. One of them is I’m a very internally motivated person, I don’t, like, this isn’t fun if I’m not winning. So as you can imagine, it’s not been very fun for a while, and that’s a standard I hold. I don’t wanna find myself in a position to be okay with tenth and be okay like, ‘Hey I finished in the top ten, it’s an awesome day’. No, that’s tenth.” 

Although Austin Cindric acknowledged his momentum this weekend was a ‘step forward’, there was still a long way to go. With Penske being a championing contending team, Cindric needs to ensure such results become a common sight going forward. He concluded, “It’s not where I want to be, it’s not the level at which I prepare, and it’s not the level at which my team expects to perform….that’s not good enough to be a race driver at Penske, and I know that. Like no one has to tell me that.”

Despite besting Ryan Blaney and making it to the playoffs first, Austin Cindric believes his redemption has just begun. That being said, do you think Cindric will remain an underdog for much longer?