"It's a results business"- NASCAR crew chief reveals why Penske and Wood Brothers switched crew chief

Austin Cindric and Harrison Burton have failed to make an impression in their sophomore NASCAR Cup Series season. With both drivers in their sophomore slump, Team Penske and Wood Brothers Racing announced a crew chief swap ahead of the 2023 playoff season.

Cindric will be reunited with Brian Wilson, with whom he won the 2020 NASCAR Xfinity title. His former crew chief Jeremy Bullins will now serve as the crew chief working with Burton in the #21 Ford. The changes will last for the remainder of the season and into the 2024 campaign.

After splitting up with Austin Cinric, Bullins spoke about the brutal reality of the sport where results dictate the business. Speaking on NASCAR SiriusXM radio, he admitted that the #2 team underdelivered this season.

"I had a great time working with Austin [Cindric], we had some success together, we had some good times," Bullins said.

"But unfortunately, it's a results business and for us it was just one of those years, where for a number of different reasons we just weren't getting the results and finishes that we needed to get."

Bullins returns to Wood Brothers Racing after his stint with Brad Keselowski and Austin Cindric in the #2 having achieved eight wins including the 2022 Daytona 500. He previously worked as the crew chief for Ryan Blaney in the #21 car, with whom achieved one victory.

Jeremy Bullins wished the best to Austin Cindric, who will be reunited with Brian Wilson, who has been under the Team Penske umbrella for the past 20 years. He hopes that the two rekindle the relationship to repeat the success they achieved previously.

Bullins reckons that the switch makes sense, as it could help both teams rebound from their recent doldrums.

"So I think this switch makes sense... Austin and Brian had a lot of success in the Xfinity Series," Bullins said.

Both Burton and Cindric have failed to make it to the playoffs, having only achieved two and three top-10 finishes respectively.

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Kyle Larson recalls second year of NASCAR's next-gen cars has brought consistency

The 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion reckons that the second year of the next-gen cars has seen consistent front runners compared to the previous season.

“I think this year has been fun,” Kyle Larson said in a press conference at Phoenix.

“Last year was interesting, because it was the first year of the Next Gen car. This year, I think it’s been a little more consistent with drivers running up front and such.”

Last year, 16 different drivers visited the victory lane in the regular season. This season, the tally dropped to 14, including Shane van Gisbergen. This year drivers are well versed in the nuances of the next-gen car and hence a few names frequently top the charts.