By Jerry Jordan, Editor
KANSAS CITY, KS – As it stands right now, Austin Cindric is feeling pretty confident as he leaves Kansas Speedway with a second-place finish in the Kansas Lottery 300 because his points from the race put him in a strong position to move on to the season finale and battle for the Xfinity Series Championship barring a major disaster next week.
“It was a great points day in our Odyssey Battery Ford Mustang,” Cindric said, after the race. “I really would have loved to lock our way in and race for a win at Martinsville, that would be huge for us. I hate losing but we will move on. In the bigger picture, it was a good day.
Cindric sent congratulations to Ty Gibbs and the No. 54 Toyota team from Joe Gibbs Racing, saying the team is very strong.
“That whole team has been on it no matter who is in the car,” he said, referencing the win by John Hunter Nemechek last week at Texas Motor Speedway. “They have earned it. It sucks to lose one that late in the race. Not the first time, but I didn’t spontaneously crash in the playoff Kansas race this time, so it is okay I guess.”
In the past, Cindric has left Kansas Speedway in a must-win situation to make the Championship Round of NASCAR’s playoffs. Now, he is in a much better situation, he said.
“I am more comfortable than anyone else can be I guess,” Cindric said. “The good thing about Martinsville is it takes a lot to hit hard enough to get you out of the race. We probably just need to finish that one and we will be in the show. That is really all that matters for us but I would really like to try to race for a win at Martinsville.”
Cindric began the race in second and won Stage 2. He leaves Kansas 47 points above the cutline. And the second-place finish is his 20th top five in 2022.