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Austin Cindric had a difficult afternoon, bouncing around in the second group following a pit-road speeding penalty and ending 25th, a lap down.
He would not like to be remembered for this particular weekend at the Phoenix Raceway.
Austin Cindric took to Twitter to convey his disappointment:
"Sped on pit road under green. Not happy with the driver on that one. Definitely ruined our day."
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Kevin Harvick seemed to be on his way to his 10th victory at Phoenix International Raceway, but a yellow with 10 laps to go ended the No. 4 car's hopes, despite the fact that it was significantly better on long runs. William Byron took a chance on the pit stop, taking only two tires, but it put him in front for the re-start, caution, and overtime.
The subsequent restarts did not go his way, and it was the HMS driver who took the checkered flag once more. William Byron won for the second week in a row, giving him his sixth Cup victory. After a frantic finish at Phoenix Raceway, NASCAR has its first repeat winner of the 2023 season.
Alex Bowman had his fourth top-ten finish in a row and went into the points lead when Denny Hamlin and Ross Chastain collided again at the end of the race. But a small fault from Cindric ruined his entire race and possibly his entire weekend.
Austin Cindric and the No. 2 Menards/Richmond team completed the third and final leg of NASCAR's "West Coast Swing" at Phoenix Raceway, finishing 25th. Cindric began in 20th but dropped positions throughout the first run, indicating that he needed to tighten up as he crossed the line 27th at the end of Stage 1.
Following a set of changes, the Team Penske driver began to recover ground in the early stages of Stage 2 before getting penalized for speeding on Lap 120, putting the Menards/Richmond Ford Mustang deep in the field. Cindric pushed on, climbing to 27th place by the time the flags flew to flag the finish of Stage 2.
The No. 2 car returned to the pit road for another service stop before starting 26th in Stage 3. Cindric rallied in the final section, coming to a halt under yellow with only a few laps remaining before finishing 25th.
During the post-race interview, Austin Cindric reflected on how he felt about finishing 25th and felt responsible for not giving his team a good result in Phoenix:
"I feel bad about the result today. I definitely feel responsible for speeding on pit road under green. It really took us out of contention and trying to make the car better after the first stage. Overall, I learned a lot about the package."
"I just probably put ourselves in a worse spot than any other adjustment we could have made throughout the day. I'm looking forward to getting back at it next week."
Fans showed their support on a disappointed Austin Cindric
At Phoenix Raceway, Austin Cindric and the No. 2 Menards/Richmond team finished the third and last leg of NASCAR's 'West Coast Swing', placing 25th overall.
During a second pit stop, the No. 2 car returned to the pit road and lined up 26th for the Stage 3 restart. With only a few circuits left, Cindric made his final pit stop of the day under caution after battling through the final section to finish 25th overall.
Austin Cindric tweeted about how speeding on the pit road ruined his entire race. Fans immediately showered him with positive messages to show their support:
