AUSTIN CINDRIC No. 2 DISCOUNT TIRE FORD MUSTANG DARK HORSE
START: 26TH STAGE 1: 19TH STAGE 2: 17TH FINISH: 30TH PLAYOFF POINTS: 12TH (-48)
RACE RUNDOWN: Austin Cindric and the No. 2 Discount Tire Ford Mustang Dark Horse team endured a challenging afternoon in Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway, ultimately crossing the finish line in 30th place. After an incident in qualifying forced the team to start from the rear of the field, Cindric wasted little time moving forward, driving into the top 25 by Lap 16. Following the opening round of green-flag pit stops, he settled into the top 20 before a Lap 56 caution slowed the field. Cindric reported improved stability after the initial changes to aid his freeness. He restarted 17th, ultimately finishing Stage 1 in 19th. The car tightened up significantly over the last run and Cindric returned to pit road for service and adjustments to reset on some of the previous changes. The No. 2 team continued to fine-tune the balance in Stage 2, as Cindric ran consistently inside the top 20. He still battled tight conditions early firing off and a loose feel over the long run. A green-flag stop on Lap 121 set him up for another solid stretch, and he ended Stage 2 in 17th. In the final Stage, Cindric appeared poised for a decent finish until a multi-car accident on a Lap 216 restart triggered by contact from Noah Gragson left the No. 2 Discount Tire Ford Mustang Dark Horse with heavy damage. The incident broke a toe link, damaged the body, and left Cindric without power steering. After extended repairs on pit road, the team returned to the track several laps down and managed to nurse the car to the checkered flag.

CINDRIC’S THOUGHTS: “I definitely passed a lot of cars today, but never really in a points-paying position. I’m proud of the effort from the team all weekend. I never really made it easy on myself to start from Saturday and it’s hard to sit here and say we had speed to contend. A cheap wreck there on the front straightaway and I had to run the last 50 laps without power-steering, so mentally, physically and emotionally I’m disappointed for the result. Our goals are pretty clear for next week.”
RYAN BLANEY No. 12 MENARDS/RICHMOND FORD MUSTANG DARK HORSE
START: 37TH STAGE 1: 14TH STAGE 2: 9TH FINISH: 24TH PLAYOFF POINTS: 2ND (ADV)
RACE RUNDOWN: Despite starting at the rear of the field in a backup car stemming from an incident in practice Saturday, Ryan Blaney and the No. 12 Menards/Richmond Ford Mustang Dark Horse team were able to make their way through the field in Sunday’s Hollywood Casino 400, but a late-race pit road penalty resulted in a 24th-place finish. Crew chief Jonathan Hassler’s call to run long during the opening stage saw Blaney cycle to the lead on lap 38 before eventually hitting pit road a lap later under green, allowing Blaney to gain valuable track position in a 14th-place finish in Stage 1. Blaney worked his way back into the top-10 during the first run of the second segment before the No. 12 team started the green flag pit cycle on lap 120. The call saw Blaney positioned in 11th by the time the cycle completed as he picked up a pair of spots in the closing laps to pick up a ninth-place result in Stage 2. Blaney continued to keep the Menards/Richmond Ford around the top-10 during the final run of the 400-mile event before the caution flag flew with 15 laps remaining while scored ninth. Hassler made the call for right side tires only to get Blaney off of pit road fifth, but a speeding penalty sent him to the tail end of the lead lap cars for the ensuing restart. A pair of green-white-checkered restarts followed as Blaney ultimately took the checkered flag 24th.

BLANEY’S THOUGHTS: “I thought we probably could have run eighth to 10th. That was kind of our max potential with this thing. I thought we got a little better through the day, which was good. We did two [tires] on the last stop and tried to get some track position and make something happen, but I sped. I was just trying to be aggressive knowing that I really didn’t have much to lose, but I’m proud of the effort with this backup car and coming from the back. I just made a little mistake. We’ll go have a good weekend [in Charlotte] and try to win a stage and win the race. The road course strategies get pretty up in the air, so we’ll just go try to maximize our day.”
JOEY LOGANO No. 22 SHELL-PENNZOIL FORD MUSTANG DARK HORSE
START: 35TH STAGE 1: 7TH STAGE 2: 7TH FINISH: 21ST PLAYOFF POINTS: 8TH (+13)
RACE RUNDOWN: After starting towards the rear of the field due to unapproved adjustments following an incident in practice Saturday, Joey Logano and the No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Ford Mustang Dark Horse team rallied for a pair of top-10 stage finishes in a 21st-place finish at Kansas Sunday. Logano picked up 14 positions during the first run of the afternoon prior to the start of the green flag pit cycle before settling into 17th in the running order by the time the cycle completed on lap 53. A caution just three laps later prompted crew chief Paul Wolfe to make the call for right side tires only, allowing Logano to come off pit road fourth as one of two teams to opt for a two tire stop. Logano restarted from the inside of row two with 18 laps left in the segment before coming away with a seventh-place finish in Stage 1. With the top-10 track position to begin Stage 2, Wolfe called Logano to pit road at the beginning of the green flag pit cycle on lap 121 as the Shell-Pennzoil Ford maintained pace over the course of the run to cross the line seventh in Stage 2. Following a caution on lap 211, Logano lined up to restart in the outside row with 51 laps to go when a multi-car incident unraveled before the field made it to turn one, resulting in contact with the No. 4 that sent the No. 22 spinning towards the apron. Logano made a pair of trips to pit road for four tires and to assess damage to the left rear as the Shell-Pennzoil Ford lined up from the tail end of the lead lap with 45 laps to go. Despite dealing with handling issues on the ensuing run, a caution with 15 to go gave the 22 team the opportunity to make another two tire call to vault to ninth on the leaderboard prior to the restart with nine laps remaining. Logano battled to maintain track position over the course of a pair of overtime restarts, but ultimately settled for a 21st-place finish. Logano and the No. 22 team head into the final race of the Round of 12 in the eighth and final transfer spot in the playoff standings, 13 points above the elimination line.

LOGANO’S THOUGHTS: “It was a hard weekend. I thought we were recovering pretty well scoring stage points in both stages after starting in the back. I’m like, ‘Alright, we’re ok here. We can kind of roll through here and we’ll be alright,’ and I just got caught up in that wreck on the restart and tore something up. It wouldn’t turn after that. We tried to throw a Hail Mary with two tires, but there were too many restarts and you can’t hold them off.”
The NASCAR Cup Series heads to the Charlotte Motor Speedway Road Course for the final race in the NASCAR Playoffs Round of 12 on Sunday, October 5. Coverage of the Bank of America ROVAL 400 begins at 3:00 p.m. ET on USA, MRN, and Sirius XM NASCAR Radio Channel 90.

Penske PR