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Austin Cindric Focuses on Positives in Another Year in Xfinity Series Before Full-Time Cup Debut

Published 10/15/2020, 1:04 AM EDT

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USA Today via Reuters

Recently, Team Penske reached a multi-year contract with Xfinity Series driver Austin Cindric. Although he missed out on what would have been a well-deserved Cup Series in 2021, he isn’t too torn up about it. Instead, he believes that it was just incredible for him to be offered the opportunity in the first place.

He said, “Team Penske and Ford Performance, they are big supporters of mine. They invested a lot in my career, obviously this year we’re waiting for the championship. The next five weeks from here are incredibly important.”

According to Cindric, although he is in the Xfinity Series for another year, he will get experience for 2022. He will run a few Cup races in 2021 before his full-time Cup debut in 2022.

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He also admitted that it would be an incredible chance for him to race for Wood Brothers. Considering that there were several parties involved in the negotiations, he is simply grateful to be in such a position.

What else did Austin Cindric say?

The 22-year-old also responded to suggestions that Matt DiBenedetto’s retention only delayed his Cup Series debut. He insisted that there is no right or wrong answer to such a question, especially in terms of driver development. He gave the analogy of college football and the NFL, where he spoke about whether players are ready for a step up.

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USA Today via Reuters

In his own case, it is a matter of what is best for his career in the long term. At least he has the opportunity to come back to the Xfinity series so that he can continue his development. At the end of the day, Austin Cindric believes that this is the best-case scenario for both him and Matt DiBenedetto.

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Truthfully speaking, Cindric has had an impressive career in his path to the Cup Series. He earned seven NXS victories, with a few Truck Series wins as a delightful bonus. Cindric also had triumphed in the ARCA Menard Series and the former NASCAR K&N Series.

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He raced in the SportsCar Championship, Pirelli World Challenge Series, Cooper Tires USF2000 Series, and Red Bull Global Rallycross. In other words, his resume is quite impressive and hugely diverse, making him an even hotter prospect. For now, Cindric will be focusing on the remainder of the 2020 Xfinity season and the championship fight.

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Written by:

Dhruv George

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Dhruv George is a senior Formula One and NASCAR analyst for EssentiallySports, having authored nearly 12000 articles spanning different sports like F1, NASCAR, Tennis, NFL, and eSports. He graduated with a PG Diploma in Journalism from the Xavier Institute of Communications. Dhruv has also conducted interviews with F1 driver Pierre Gasly and Moto2 rider Tony Arbolino.
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