Cindric, Wilson aiming to ride their groove deep into NASCAR's playoffs

Austin Cindric had wrapped his interview with this outlet in the hauler of the No. 2 team when crew chief Brian Wilson came out of the lounge.

Wilson, who had done a similar interview a few days prior, wanted to know how it went with his driver. Were the questions the same? Some of them were, he was told. And there was one answer that was the same for both of them.

“For us, success would be a deeper playoff run,” Wilson said when asked to preview the NASCAR Cup Series postseason. “We came into this season and said, ‘OK, we took a step in performance in the playoffs last year, we have to bring that into this season.’ We’ve been scoring more stage points. We’ve been qualifying better. If we can take another step like that that’d be incredible and I think if we do, we can possibly contend for the championship. But if we simply stay on the path we’re on right now, I think we can make a deep run into the final four, and then at that point, you never know what is going to happen.” 

And from Cindric’s point of view?

“I’ve been super-close to making it into the Round of 8,” Cindric said. “Obviously that is the next step. I don’t think we’re in any better or worse position than I’ve been in before, just from a numbers standpoint and how we’ve run throughout the year. It’s definitely my best season to date… But as far as what would be best to come out of all of it, I think making a Championship 4 in the Cup Series is a huge deal. It would be one of my biggest accomplishments; I think it rivals the Daytona 500.”

It's no surprise that the duo think in a similar manner, and not just because they work together. Cindric and Wilson work together as leaders of their team, and their relationship has grown stronger over time. This is the second full season they’ve spent together in the Cup Series, plus the final 10 races from the 2023 season.

On the competitive side of their personalities, Cindric and Wilson share a similar process-driven approach. Both constantly strive to improve their own performance, and that of those around them. But as individuals, Cindric cracks that he wouldn’t say he’s obnoxious, but he has been known to catch Wilson off-guard with his jokes.

“We like to keep it fun,” Cindric said. “As serious as (this) is, I feel like we do a good job of balancing that.”

Wilson describes them as being on the same side of the spectrum. To him, it seems they are creatures of habit and routine, and they enjoy delving into information. But one of the biggest things that works in their relationship is their ability to be honest.

The bigger key, however, is having those conversations behind closed doors. You won’t find them doing it in public, and certainly not over the in-car radio. Cindric acknowledged it’s a matter of knowing when and where to get down to business.

Cindric and Wilson said their shared belief in being open has led to some "tough conversations", but it's all part of the process of getting the team to click. Sean Gardner/Getty Images

“There have been some tough conversations this year, just about the finer details,” Wilson said. “It might be something my spotter sees or my engineers are talking about. I have to be the one who facilitates that conversation and ensures it happens. I push Austin and Austin pushes me; we push the engineers. But never want to show those cracks or weaknesses. So, yeah, there have been some tough conversations, even as recently as the past few weeks. But I think that’s part of what makes us strong and keeps us growing.”

In late 2023, Team Penske reunited Cindric and Wilson in the Cup Series. Across the 2019 and 2021 seasons, the two won 13 races in the Xfinity Series and the 2020 championship. And while they both moved into the Cup Series in 2022, it wasn’t together. Cindric was paired with Jeremy Bullins, who was already on the No. 2 team, and Wilson moved to Wood Brothers Racing and Harrison Burton.

“I think coming back together at the end of ’23, it was honestly like riding a bike,” Cindric said. The exact phrase also used by Wilson.

Except that the Xfinity Series was not the first time the two had worked together. Wilson was quick to recall an ARCA Menards Series win they shared in 2016 and the races they competed in together in the Craftsman Truck Series in 2017, when Cindric was still a teenager.

“Early, early on in his career, he was frustrated and disappointed, and he was sitting on the pit wall after the race with his head down,” Wilson recalled. “I was like, ‘No, come on. We’re not going to let our competitors see any weakness or frustration. If you want to do it, we’ll do it in the lounge. I don’t mind having those conversations, but you don’t show it publicly.’ He was probably 16 or 17 years old then.”

Cindric believes it’s a benefit to work with someone who has known him for so long, and how comfortable they have become with each other. It has also helped the two adjust to life in the Cup Series when success has not come as easily or been as bountiful as it was in the Xfinity Series. Understanding that, however, and having a strong bond has made sure the struggles don’t tear them apart.

“I’m still as impatient as I was my first year in Cup as far as finding success,” Cindric said. “I think that is one thing Brian has expressed a lot of trust in because he doesn’t do a whole lot of micromanaging me or any of our guys. He’s always been that way as a leader. So, he lets me fail on my own and helps guide me through what I did wrong. But when it is that hard, it’s that much more important to have that strong core relationship.”

The 2024 season ended as a career year for Cindric in the Cup Series under Wilson’s leadership. Cindric led the most laps he has ever led in a single season and finished 11th in the standings. Now, with the final few weeks – the most critical weeks of the season – ahead, they try to take it one step further.

“Last year, Austin got to race No. 100 in his career, and I did a comparison of him versus where Joey [Logano] and Ryan [Blaney] were at with their 100th race,” Wilson said. “He’s very similar. So, I think the foundation is there. I think the growth is there, and this year we’re starting to show that on our best days, we can run as fast as them or sometimes be the fastest Penske car. It’s a lot of having that belief in each other that we’ve done it before and we’re going to do it again.”