Austin Cindric dedicates his thrilling Talladega triumph to his loyal sponsors

The 2025 Talladega Superspeedway race has finally concluded and Austin Cindric came out victorious against all odds. He became the first Team Penske driver to win since the Championship 4 race at the Phoenix Raceway. Following his victory, Cindric thanked his team and dedicated it to his loyal sponsor, Menard's.

Cindric held off Ryan Preece (who later faced disqualification) in an agonizingly close finish at Talladega on Sunday and claimed his first victory of the season. Thanks to the win, he qualified for the NASCAR playoffs and became the first Penske driver to do so amid the presence of defending champion Joey Logano and runners-up Ryan Blaney (his teammates at Team Penske).

As he crossed the finish line, Cindric did some burnouts and celebrated his victory. Once it was over, he appeared for a post-race interview where he thanked John Menard of Menard's for their thorough support of his #2 Ford Mustang Dark Horse car. He said in the post-race interview with Fox Sports after he won the race:

"I'm just so proud of this team. I've been trying for 3 or 4 years to get a Cup win for John Menard and Menard's ... just really proud of the effort."

Austin Cindric started the race in 7th place after a formidable qualifying effort. However, he was out of the Top 10 in Stage 1 but returned in fourth place in Stage 2. In the end, the #2 driver was able to lead the race and take his car home.

Kyle Larson finished the race in second, ahead of his Hendrick Motorsports teammate William Byron. Joey Logano and Noah Gragson wrapped up the Top five.

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Joey Logano shared his thoughts after Austin Cindric's Talladega win: "I wish one of them was me"

Joey Logano, the Team Penske driver and the teammate of Austin Cindric, shared his thoughts after the Jack Link's 500 at the Talladega Superspeedway. Speaking about the race finish, he revealed that he wished to be alongside Cindric on the front row.

Joey Logano (22) leads driver Austin Cindric (2) during the Pennzoil 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway - Source: Imagn

"About time one of us wins these things," Logano said of the Penske trio. "When you think about the amount of laps led by Team Penske and Ford in general, just haven't been able to close. To see a couple of Fords on the front row duking it out, I wish one of them was me, in a selfish way. But it's good to see those guys running up there and being able to click one off."

Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano had a bittersweet ending to their Talladega race. Blaney, who has been going through a tough phase coming into 2025, suffered yet another setback and ended his race in 39th place. Logano, on the other hand, came home in 5th place but improved to 4th after Ryan Preece's disqualification.