NASCAR: 3 drivers who should already start to panic
By Asher Fair
NASCAR drivers who should be in panic mode: No. 2 – Austin Cindric
Team Penske’s Austin Cindric had a dream start to last season, winning the Daytona 500 in his first race as a full-time NASCAR Cup Series driver and following it up with a 12th place finish at Auto Club Speedway to take sole possession of the top spot in the point standings.
But as it turns out, Cindric needed that victory to qualify for the playoffs, as he wouldn’t have managed to do it on points alone last year. It took him 15 races to finish in the top five after the season opener, and he ended the year with just one top 10 finish in the 10 playoff races.
His start to the 2023 season has been totally opposite of what it was last year. He crashed out of the Daytona 500, yet his 23rd place DNF is still the better of his two finishes to open up the year.
The plus side is that, despite having not actually finished a race higher than 28th place, he sits in 18th in the point standings, thanks to his stage points and the points he earned from his Bluegreen Vacations Duel race.
Additionally, Cindric is often known as a road course driver, and there are five road and street course races remaining on the regular season schedule.
While it’s too early to write him off completely, he may very well need another win to get back to the postseason. Where can he pull it off?