Just two races into the 2025 NASCAR season, and there is already plenty to discuss. Transitioning from the Daytona weekend to Atlanta, Carson Hocevar became the hottest topic of discussion, thanks to his on-track run-ins and post-race driver confrontations. Thanks to the same, the crash between Austin Cindric and Kyle Larson went under the radar, but not anymore.
The two drivers spoke on the phone a day after the Sunday race, hashing out the events that unfolded from their perspectives. Cindric suffered the larger part of the brunt, given he ended up wrecking out of the race alongside William Byron. While he feels he could have said much more on the call, Cindric claimed to have held back, further highlighting just how upset he was.
Austin Cindric Had Much More To Say but Kept Lid on His Words
Once the race was over, a silent Cindric helped his team load up the car and empty the garage. Given that he wasn’t in a good headspace, the Team Penske driver was in no mood to speak to anyone. Had anyone come up to him, Cindric would just give them his phone number, as he wanted to discuss things with Larson first.
The next day, the two drivers connected, and Cindric claimed they had a “good talk.” Larson took responsibility for the crash that ended Cindric’s race. He added, “Talking about it doesn’t really in-wreck my race car, but I think we’re on the same page as to what the expectations are moving forward racing together.”
But the incident still gets Cindric’s blood pressure going.
“I feel like I could have said a lot more than I did. I like to honestly keep that behind closed doors, so maybe, if you felt like I spoke up, I felt like I was holding back, that tells you how upset I was with the situation.”
Austin Cindric on his talk with Kyle Larson about their contact when racing for the lead Sunday at Atlanta. pic.twitter.com/RvTLV6Qh3X
— Bob Pockrass (@bobpockrass) February 26, 2025
While the No. 2 driver understands he isn’t the only one to suffer such a crash, he claims it doubled down as it happened twice in two weeks. And at this level of racing, wins don’t just “fall out of the sky.”
It’s still early in the season, but Cindric’s concerns make sense when his results are likened to that of Chris Buescher’s from last season. Buescher was a top contender to make it into the playoffs in 2024 but several unwanted wrecks sent him down the pecking order.
While Cindric is nowhere close to suffering similar fate, the unpredictable nature of racing might have a shock in store down the line.
