Sitting 12th in the standings, Austin Cindric was a whopping 48 points beneath the elimination line, meaning nothing short of a victory would carry the Team Penske Ford into the next round. Despite the uphill battle, he arrived in Charlotte optimistic, hoping to channel the flashes of speed shown earlier in the season with his Talladega win. But the hybrid track stood true to its nature of being a chaotic and unpredictable race, and what unfolded for Cindric was nothing short of a lesson.

Reflecting on a day that unraveled quickly, Cindric said, “We made good progress like the initial start, but yeah, it was pretty slick, pretty tricky. Yeah, made a mistake there and lost some spots and then got dumped and then got in the wreck.”

After making a small mistake and losing spots early, Cin

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