Ford Performance Notes and Quotes
NASCAR Xfinity Series
Championship 4 Media Availability | Thursday, November 4, 2021
Austin Cindric, driver of the No. 22 Carshop Ford Mustang for Team Penske, will be going for his second straight NASCAR Xfinity Series championship on Saturday night. On Thursday, he met with members of the media as part of Championship 4 Media Day and talked about this weekend’s race.
AUSTIN CINDRIC, No. 22 Carshop Ford Mustang — HOW DO YOU FEEL GOING INTO THIS WEEKEND? “I feel like probably the best thing that I’ve heard all year, that I’ve probably been saving for this moment, came from Chase Elliott. Past success doesn’t equal future success. It’s pretty hard to go back-to-back in races let alone three times at a certain racetrack, but obviously championships as well, so we have that opportunity and I think we’re prepared for it.”
WHAT HAS YOUR TEAM BEEN MISSING THE LAST HALF A YEAR? “One spot like for the last two, four weeks — however many second-place finishes we have in the playoffs — one spot.”
IS IT THE OTHER GUY HAS MORE SPEED? ANYTHING YOU CAN POINT TO? “No, I don’t think anything has been a weakness. In some ways, I feel like looking at Kansas we had our best mile-and-a-half race of the year. That’s probably been one of our weaknesses throughout the season and you look at Kansas and we led a majority of the laps. We probably weren’t the fastest car, but able to execute and put ourselves in position. You can look at so many races really within the last 10 weeks that we had a chance to win at, so there’s only so long you can be so consistent and this weekend is the same.”
ARE YOU SURPRISED KANSAS WAS THE BEST ONE? “Third time is the charm. The third playoff race at Kansas is the charm. We’ve always been fast there, but for whatever reason a lot of chaos. We were fast enough this time to be in front of all of it.”
CUP RACING IS NEXT FOR YOU. WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED IN THE FEW RACES YOU RAN THIS YEAR? “I think I’ve got a really solid base as far as what to expect and by that I mean I’ve obviously known the entire season — the car is a lot less relevant than the series and the competitors than the racetracks themselves, whether if that’s the flow of restarts or what it takes through the level of competitiveness and, like I said, the competitors. I’ve raced against a lot of the same guys for the last three or four years of my career and I think it was a good wake up call doing some of those Cup races how much different it is when you don’t know the people you’re racing against and vice versa.”
WHAT WAS THE BIGGEST PART OF THAT WAKE UP CALL? “I think right away in Atlanta for me just on restarts — what to expect, what the mentality is when you’re running 20th. I don’t think I’ve ever run 20th throughout a majority of a race in an actual series ever and that’s like a normality, honestly. I look at guys I’ve raced against in the past and they move up to the Cup Series and, yeah, once you get inside of the top 20 it’s quite challenging and I feel like I got a lot of perspective on what it takes to not only do that, but also what it takes to move yourself forward and run inside the top 15, run inside the top 10 and be competitive.”
HOW IS IT RACING AT PHOENIX AGAIN FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP? “It’s certainly great to come back to Phoenix. It’s somewhere I probably have more NASCAR starts than any other racetrack dating back to 2015 in the Truck Series, so, for me, there’s a certain familiarity there, but, otherwise, everyone continually steps up their game. We’re not gonna say that if we just show up with the same racecar we had two races ago we’re gonna go out and win the race. We have to continually get better because our competitors are gonna continually get better. It is challenging to win two races in a row let alone three, and obviously championship-wise as well.”
WHAT HAS THE ANTICIPATION FOR THIS WEEK BEEN LIKE? MORE COMFORTABLE? “I think there’s less newness as far as that’s concerned for me — as far as what to expect out of myself. I learned a lot about what to expect out of myself last year and I feel like I learned a lot in a positive way from the mentality that I took and that I think I’m bringing that mentality back again and it’s the fact that I’m happy to be here. Yeah, I’ve won the championship. It says champion right there, but it doesn’t guarantee me anything on Saturday, so happy to be here, happy to have a shot, happy to be part of the conversation and happy to be driving fast race cars, so looking forward to taking the most of that opportunity.”
WHAT WOULD IT BE LIKE TO WIN THE TITLE AND BE ABLE TO CELEBRATE WITH FANS? “That would be pretty sweet. I’m not gonna lie, I have thought about that. The number of years I’ve gone to NASCAR Banquets and listened to other people talk about all the great things that have happened to them throughout the year. Yeah, that would be cool if we get that opportunity, but I wouldn’t say that’s a motivator. It’s probably just an added bonus if we’re able to do our jobs.”
WAS IT DIFFERENT LAST YEAR WITH THE LIMITS THAT WERE IN PLACE LAST YEAR AND HAVING FANS THIS SEASON? “Not that I would say it wouldn’t happen this year, but our team celebration last year was in the parking garage of our hotel in the back of a pickup truck with a cardboard box full of beer. Not as glamorous as you might think, but probably just as effective as a team experience.”
WHAT’S THE BIGGEST THING YOU LEARNED LAST YEAR THAT CAN HELP YOU WIN THIS YEAR? “At the end of the day it is just a race and I feel like that’s kind of a boring answer, but it is just one race and you have to take all the small details and all the big details of what it takes to win a race and apply them to this weekend, and it can’t be any simpler than that in my mind. I think the only thing that changes for me preparation-wise is I know the three people I have to beat, and that’s different than every other weekend. In some ways, you can say it simplifies it compared to a normal race weekend because you’re normally having to beat 10 other guys and this weekend it’s just three. It’s three of the best in the series, but it’s just three, so, for me, it’s in some ways a numbers game, but otherwise it’s the same job.”
DO YOU WANT TO KNOW WHERE THE OTHER THREE ARE RUNNING? “If I can’t see them, things are going either really well or really bad, so I’ll certainly understand the situation hopefully as I can see it either in my mirror or in my windshield.”
WHAT IS THE TRANSITION LIKE GOING FROM MARTINSVILLE TO PHOENIX? “It’s probably the difference of a half-mile — a little more banking. Otherwise, the mentality at Martinsville for a lot of guys was winner takes all, must-win to get in. There was a lot of aggression in all three series, but, otherwise, that all changes in Phoenix for sure.”
IS IT WEIRD KNOWING YOU MIGHT HAVE TO WIN THREE IN A ROW AT THE SAME TRACK TO WIN BACK-TO-BACK TITLES? “Yeah, obviously to win a title you put the expectation that you have to win the race to win the championship. Yes, there are scenarios in which I don’t have to win, but I’d certainly want to and I’d certainly want to put ourselves in that position, but I think I’ve heard Chase Elliott say it before and I really like this — past success doesn’t equal future success and I’m a believer in that. My race team, I feel like, believes in that because otherwise we’d be bringing the same exact race car that’s sitting in some museum somewhere for Roger. We’d be bringing that same race car and trying to do the same job with it. It’s different. Our cars are different. My notebook is bigger. Our race setups continue to evolve and I have to also know that in the last two races our competitors look at us and say how do we match that and better it, and I have to respect that as a competitor knowing that I have to continually up my game as well as my race team in order to stay in front.”
IS IT ANY MORE OF CHALLENGE THAN WHAT THEY FACED TO TRY TO BEAT THE GUY WHO WON HERE THE LAST TWO TIMES? “Yes and no. There’s a certain extent where you can’t think for anybody else, so there’s certain limitations that I feel like we have there that we have to continually improve. I guess just as of recent those limitations haven’t been as limiting as others.”
HAVE YOU THOUGHT OF DOING ANY RALLYCROSS AFTER THE SEASON IS OVER? “I don’t know about that, but Rallycross is a lot of my racing background, so definitely a lot of friends kind of resurfacing as far as that series goes. It’s been fun to watch all that stuff kind of come back together. They’ve got a lot of exciting stuff coming in the future with kind of a new car and a new series, so excited to see all of that. Yes and no. I had some opportunities to go do it, but, otherwise looking forward to watching it.”
DOES IT GIVE YOU CONFIDENCE THAT THERE HAVE BEEN A FEW BACK-TO-BACK NXS CHAMPIONS IN RECENT YEARS? “It sounds great to me. It absolutely sounds great, so I’ll take it if you’re handing it out, but, otherwise, I’ve got to go get it.”
DOES IT GIVE YOU CONFIDENCE, THOUGH? “I think the value for me is having another season, whether if that’s letting things slow down, focus on some smaller details that might help me in the future. Those are the things that I feel like I’ve benefited from in the 2021 season versus 2020.”
WHAT DO YOU WANT TO TAKE AWAY FROM THIS WEEKEND THAT MIGHT HELP NEXT YEAR WHEN YOU MOVE INTO THE 2 CAR IN CUP? “I’m not sure how much relatability this weekend specifically has to my commitments next year racing the 2 car, but, for me, I’d like to think that this series has probably taught me more than any other series I’ve raced in and whether if that’s the people or my own personal experience and my growth as a driver, but I’d certainly love to end that on the best note possible.”
HOW EXCITED ARE YOU TO RACE THIS YEAR IN FRONT OF A SOLD OUT CROWD? “I feel like this year is probalby gonna do this venue justice for having a championship race — get a lot of people excited about it because, really, since they moved the grandstands, obviously the infield was a lot more enhanced than it was when I first raced at Phoenix. I’m excited for the feedback and to see what the fans think. Obviously, my job is still the same, but it would be that much more gratifying to have the full support and the full NASCAR fan base excited for championship weekend.”
HOW MUCH OF A CHANGE WILL THAT BE IN YOUR PERFORMANCE? “I don’t think it changes my performance much. I feel like I’m very self-motivated, otherwise it’s certainly great to see people get excited about our sport. It’s obvious that they’re the backbone of what we do, so to see everyone excited — not just to hear about it but actually physically feel it is pretty cool to experience.”
HOW WOULD YOU HANDICAP YOUR THREE COMPETITORS? “I look at all three of them and I’d say they have enough strengths to win the championship, so, for me, I have to respect that. I have to try and equalize that. I have to understand what I can do to offset that and take it in stride. I think of the three guys that I’m racing they’re the three best in the series this year and that’s why they’re here, so I’m excited for that challenge and going up against the best.”
YOU CAME TO DANIEL HEMRIC’S DEFENSE LAST WEEK ABOUT ALL THE QUESTIONS REGARDING HIM NOT WINNING. WAS IT RESPECT FOR A FELLOW COMPETITOR TO SAY SOMETHING LIKE THAT? “I think that’s a good way of characterizing it. I’ve obviously raced against Daniel for a while. He’s been in the series and he’s been in sport for a while and he’s obviously shown that he belongs to whatever extent that may be. Obviously, he’s competitive every weekend. He’s a guy that I feel like I can race hard and very respectfully and I have a great appreciation. It doesn’t take much, but I have a great appreciation for guys that handle themselves that way. Winning a race or not winning a race, whatever it may be, I’ve noticed it in myself — for the longest time it was, ‘Oh, Austin can’t win on ovals. Oh, Austin can’t win on this type of track. Now apparently I can’t win on a short track.’ If you haven’t done something, that’s all people will talk about.”
SO YOU CAN RELATE TO IT? “I can relate to that, absolutely. You hear with Truex, ‘Oh, he can’t win on a short track,’ and he’s like the guy that dominates most short tracks. It’s one of those things that you have to be aware of, but at the same time it does get old to listen to it after a while and from Daniel’s perspective he can’t just stick up for himself and make a stink about it because then it kind of just makes you look like an ass, but sometimes you need somebody else to do it for you and I have enough respect for Daniel to stick my neck out in that way.”
WHAT IS THE RESPECT LEVEL BETWEEN THE FOUR OF YOU? “I think the respect level is quite high. I feel like in high-pressure situations Noah and I have really had a relationship put to the test and it’s only positives, honestly. You look at last year at Phoenix coming to the line trying to race for the win and trying to race for the championship he raced me extremely respectfully and the same situation last weekend when he’s trying to race his way in. I’m not gonna put him in the fence for no reason other than trying to win the race and it still felt like I could do it without doing so, and then obviously AJ and I have raced each other hard since I got in the series, so I feel like he and I have a pretty great understanding, but at the same time, to your point about the four of us being polar opposites, we’re all at different points in our career. Obviously, AJ is extremely experienced and just wants to be in the Xfinity Series. Noah is trying to grow his career. He’s coming back for another season. Daniel is probably the most different of us, kind of up and down and back up again, trying to understand where he falls. Obviously, it’s kind of fun because everybody’s motivation level is different and, for me, I’m very self-motivated and I’d love to end this on the biggest high possible.”
HOW DO YOU DESCRIBE THIS EXPERIENCE OF BEING IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP 4 AND BEING IN PHOENIX? “I think this year we’re gonna get to understand what Phoenix as a host city actually means. I think, for me, that’s the newness, that’s what I’m excited to see because I feel like it is a great venue — even coming here and coming to the convention center and talking to all of you in person. The last time I did this was in 2017 in the Truck Series when I made the Championship 4, so it’s been a while since I’ve kind of felt that — not that I need to feel special in any way, but it’s kind of fun to understand that this is important, this is what matters, this is what we’ve worked the entire year for and not just us but the entire industry.”
DO YOU FEEL ANY PRESSURE BEING THE LAST HOPE FOR TEAM PENSKE TO WIN A TITLE THIS YEAR? “I feel like that’s pretty hard on our race team. Finishing second in the Indy Car championship is not a miserable season. I know the expectations are high. Obviously, you get all three of our guys in the Round of 8 in the Cup Series. A pretty big bummer for one of them not to be in the Champ 4. I think we’ve got three of the best Cup drivers in our lineup. Obviously, a disappointment, but, to your point, we still get to wave the flag for Team Penske and Ford and I’m excited for that. When I walked in the shop early on Monday morning I’ve never seen that many people surrounding two Xfinity cars in my life, so that gets me excited, that gets me motivated. This means just as much to our race team as anything else, so for me to be the guy that has the opportunity to do it is pretty fun.”
HOW HAS YOUR RELATIONSHIP BEEN WITH BRAD THROUGH THE YEARS AND HOW DOES IT FEEL TO TAKE OVER FOR HIM NEXT YEAR? “It’s certainly big shoes to fill and obviously Brad has filled a lot of roles for me in my career, whether if that’s as a team owner, as a teammate, even as a kid someone to look up to. I can remember when he came over our house and we played the NASCAR video game in our basement. That progression has been almost strange for me to really wrap my head around. It might be more challenging for Brad because he’s probably been able to witness more than I have just being a kid and not even recognizing some of the people that I’ve been around, but, obviously Brad is at a completely different point in his career. You mentioned the race on Sunday and I even texted Brad after the race. I was the biggest Brad Keselowski fan. I was the believer for the last 90 laps of that race because they came on strong and not to mention it’s the team I’m gonna be working with next year, the same crew chief, and I’ve started to get to know those guys more. I got really excited standing up in my living room yelling at the TV. Obviously, they came really close, but he’s a fighter. He’s a great leader and obviously his presence is felt in our race team and we’re certainly gonna miss him.”
HOW DO YOU GET UP TO SPEED WITH THE NEW CAR NEXT YEAR? “With challenges comes opportunity. Obviously, I think through the discover process of what works for those cars and understanding how to prepare and what a race is gonna look like in the Next Gen car is a great opportunity for someone like me, but, otherwise, I’m a big believer that the challenges are still gonna remain as far as being a rookie in the Cup Series and how challenging that is. I watch guys that come in and win a bunch of races in the Xfinity Series and move to the Cup Series and they have a tough time for a little while. My expectations are certainly in check for what that may be like, but I think this season — having the opportunity to do some races in the 33 car — has really given me a great base layer at pretty much all types of racetracks to understand what that flow is gonna be like, what that challenge is gonna be like for me and I feel like it’s also given my race team a level of expectation for what to do and with that being said I had some fun in those Cup races, probably more than I was expecting to to be honest. Leading the Daytona 500, making it in by the skin of our teeth and leading laps at COTA, Road America, you name it, it was pretty cool and probably unexpected. I think, for me, one of the bigger challenges that I didn’t foresee is I’ve raced against the same guys for the last four years, give or take, and I’m gonna have new competitors that I’m gonna have to learn and probably more competitors that I’m gonna have to learn as far as how they race and how that plays out because it is a social sport and when you’re spending four hours two inches away from people, you have to be able to trust one another and vice versa — probably more on the other side. They have to be able to trust me, but otherwise it’s a great challenge and I’m looking forward to it.”
WHAT IS THE ONE CHARACTERISTIC YOU’RE MOST PROUD OF SINCE COMING TO THIS SERIES? “I think it’s a good question. I don’t know if there’s one specific characteristic. I just feel like my transition as far as being a guy that’s in the field to being a guy that’s respected in the field has been the transition for me, and I feel that — even if it’s walking through the garage area talking to guys on other teams and being able to be loose and everyone comfortable around you. I think a lot of people didn’t know what to expect from me early on and that’s understandable — something different, something new, how are you supposed to act? For me, that’s been pretty gratifying to be able to earn that respect the right way. A lot of that is credit to the people around me that have helped me grow into that role and looking forward to kind of closing that chapter this weekend.”
HOW HAS YOUR DAD HELPED YOU THROUGH ALL OF THAT AND GROWING UP AROUND THIS SPORT? “I think anytime that I’m on the phone and complain about something that involves being a race car driver he tells me you’re the one that wanted to do it, and that’s where the conversation ends. Otherwise, it’s up to me to make those conclusions, but he’s been a great ally for me from a what’s expected and what’s normal standpoint if that makes sense. How to be the best race car driver, he’s lead an organization that expects absolute excellence and so that’s what’s expected out of me as a default, and I feel like that’s benefited me greatly in my career.”
HAS THAT HELPED YOU WITH THIS OPPORTUNITY TO WIN BACK-TO-BACK TITLES? “It certainly can’t hurt.”
HOW IS IT DIFFERENT THIS YEAR? “I think there’s less newness as far as what to expect and what that feels like and I learned a lot about myself last year. I was very open-minded about being very self-reflective through the whole process, whether that’s the week leading up to it and making it there and obviously being content with just being part of it — not content in the sense that I’m not motivated to go out and try and be the best, but content with knowing that you’ve just accomplished something that everybody else in the series has tried to do. For me, it’s a great opportunity to go do the same thing. I think the mentality for me is the same. I’ve learned a lot about myself and, like I said before, it’s a great opportunity to close a chapter in a pretty thick book of mine.”
ANY NERVES? “I don’t really get nervous. I’ll be interested to see if I get nervous before the race on Saturday, but I get confidence from knowledge and feel like we’ve prepared ourselves the best way possible and from there we’ve got a job to do.”
DO YOU HAVE ANY TARGETS ON YOUR BACK WITH YOUR COMPETITORS? “Not that I’m aware of. I feel like I’ve navigated that, whether if it’s cleverly or consciously, maybe that’s a better word for it. I feel like I have a great respect for the three people I’m racing for this championship and I feel like it’s mutual.”
WHEN YOU GO TO CUP NEXT YEAR HOW DO YOU THINK ABOUT RACING AGAINST THOSE GUYS AND PROVING YOURSELF? “I think at the end of the day as social as it may be and it may seem, and it certainly is, but the best way to earn respect is to outrun somebody, and that’s as simple as it may come and that may come quickly, it may come slowly, but that’s certainly the goal no matter what. So, if I focus on my job, I think the rest will come.”
WHAT IS YOUR PHILOSOPHY ON DEALING WITH ISSUES WITH OTHER DRIVERS? “I feel like in the Cup Series, not more sensitive to it, but I feel like there’s a lot more driver to driver communication than there is in the lower series because some of the mentality even if like whether if it’s go-karts, Legends cars or whatever else, it’s like, ‘I’m not gonna be dealing with this guy for that long, so who really cares? That’s probably just a one and done thing and I’m not gonna worry about it.’ That mentality can only get you so far. We’re talking about guys that are five, 10-year veterans of this sport that you’re going to have to deal with if you want to be good at this, so you might as well tread lightly in a lot of situations, but at the same time you have a job to do. The competitor inside you wants to do the best and mistakes can be made. I feel like I’m the first one I’m pointing the finger at myself if it’s my fault and I’ve done that in the past, and I’ve climbed my way up that ladder before, but definitely not gonna speculate on anything I haven’t done yet.”
WHAT SETS YOURSELF AND YOUR TEAM APART FROM THE OTHER THREE? “I feel like we certainly have a lot of strengths and I feel like one of those is consistency. We’ve been able to consistently execute throughout the year, and I think it’s really shown whether if it’s in points or race finishes or the speed we bring every weekend in our race cars. But I look at the guys that I’m racing against this weekend and a lot of them have strengths that are good enough to win a championship and I will say that I feel like those strengths are not something that we can equal on our race team, so I’m excited for that opportunity — knowing that and I feel confident in that and it’s time to go do it.”
WHAT MAKES YOU SO GOOD AT PHOENIX? “I’m not sure if there’s one thing or another, but I have always liked racetracks where you can use the brakes and modulate the car throughout a run. Otherwise, I feel like it takes a fast race car to win races, and I’ve had some really fast race cars at Phoenix and kind of my early days trying to learn how to use them, and I feel like I’ve learned a lot from this racetrack and seeing the fruits of that benefit has been fun the last two races.”
HAS YOUR PREPARATION DIFFERED AT ALL THIS YEAR GOING INTO THIS RACE? “I may pay more attention to some smaller details, but, otherwise, our preparation level as a race team is very consistent with what we had last year. Our process throughout the week has been very consistent and it’s been good to get in a groove. Even as someone who is 23 years old, you spend your whole life and you go to this grade in school, and you’ve got to go to high school and you have all these processes that change constantly, and you always think about how can people get — not in a rut but in a routine year to year to year. You’re looking as an adult. This is probably the most adult I’ve felt because I’ve had a process with my team, with my people that I work with, with my peers and just going and executing on it has been pretty gratifying and that also being a basis of success has been even more gratifying.”
IS THERE ANYTHING SPECIFIC YOU LIKE TO DO WHEN YOU COME TO PHOENIX? “I’m pretty boring when it comes to race traveling because I’m like, not paranoid, but I’d rather just have a quick meal and go to bed, so I don’t do a whole lot of exploring when I’m racing.”
THE STAR WAR CONTENT HAS BEEN PRETTY QUITE ON DISNEY PLUS. ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO ANYTHING COMING UP? “I have watched the cartoon ones — the Star Wars Visions. I’ve watched all of those. I think those are pretty good. I’ve actually gotten into watching Naruto lately. It’s very funny because the timing of when Visions came out to when I started watching some episodes of Narato was like very linear, so kind of fun to watch that and learn about that, but really excited about the Book of Boba Fett coming out, Mandalorian. There are a lot of things to be excited about in the Star Wars universe, for sure.”
HOW WAS THE LAST SEASON OF THE CLONE WARS FOR YOU? “I’m still catching up because I never watched all of the Clone Wars seasons. There’s a lot of Clone Wars to get through, so I’ve tried not to spoil myself with the bad batch yet. Is it worth it? I think so. Slowly but surely it’s worth it.”
WHAT WILL YOU DO DURING THE OFF-SEASON? “I have four or five Next Gen tests. Those are my circled fun moments.”
WHAT ABOUT TO RECHARGE? “I guess I haven’t considered that. Maybe sleep in a little bit more. Otherwise, my off-season workouts are more challenging than my in-season workouts. My trainer is certainly looking forward to not caring if I’m sore the next day. Otherwise, I did buy a house last off-season, moved in during the season, kind of be able to get completely settled in. I wouldn’t say that’s a stress release, but it’s maybe something to take my mind off. I usually work my project car during the off-season. I usually get big chunks done on that, so looking forward to getting back to that.”
HOW DO YOU RELIEVE STRESS? “I’d say from a day-to-day basis I feel a lot of people can relate to just coming home after eating dinner and jumping on the XBox for a couple of hours with your buddies and just decompressing, not even caring about how it’s going, just decompressing about the day and just taking your mind off of everything else. I’d say that’s how I pretty much close out almost every day.”
