Tension at Team Penske: Cindric and Logano in the spotlight
Talladega, Ala. – The atmosphere at Team Penske could be a bit tense. After Sunday’s race at Talladega Superspeedway, the relationship between drivers Austin Cindric and Joey Logano seems to be in question, at least according to Baseball Hall of Famer Chipper Jones.
The conflict arose at the end of the second stage of the race, when Cindric did not help Logano as he expected. This allowed Bubba Wallace, a Toyota driver, to win the stage and score valuable points. Logano expressed his frustration over the radio, visibly annoyed with Cindric.
“Well done, Austin. You gave it to him. You gave a Toyota the stage victory. Good job. Very good… put it in the book.”
Joey Logano
Jones’ reaction on social media was forceful, accusing Logano of being selfish and celebrating his subsequent disqualification. For his part, Cindric tried to downplay the incident, although he acknowledged the need to improve communication within the team.
“I feel like I got caught up, trying not to hit the cars in front of me, including Joey. It was a messy stage finish… Joey probably could have done better, we let one get away there,” Cindric said. “I can understand his frustration without seeing the whole picture. These are the things that, when you expect someone to have your best interest, those are the challenges, right? We have a lot of meetings focused on that. I feel like it requires constant maintenance. It’s not always pretty. The conversations aren’t always easy.”
Austin Cindric
Michael Nelson, president of Team Penske’s NASCAR program, downplayed the situation, assuring that it will be resolved internally. He emphasized the importance of teamwork and improving communication.
While Cindric celebrated his victory at Talladega, he seemed oblivious to any possible conflict with Logano. For Cindric, who won the Daytona 500 in his rookie season in 2022, this victory broke a streak of 30 races without winning and made him the first Team Penske driver to win a race in the first 10 of the season.
Cindric views the success of his teammates, Logano and Ryan Blaney, as motivation. Currently 14th in the Cup standings, Cindric is the only Penske driver locked into the playoffs.
“Whenever you can have an example, you try at least not only to meet that example, I want to be better. I want to be the best, right?” said Cindric. “Just being that good in my mind, as far-fetched as it may seem as a Cup driver of two or three years, to say that I want to be better than the champion, that’s how you have to think.”
Austin Cindric
