Austin Cindric’s Supercars debut ends in heartbreak after rival wipes him out

NASCAR Cup Series Bass Pro Shops Night Race - Qualifying - Source: Getty
Austin Cindric, driver of the #2 Discount Tire Ford, looks on during qualifying for the NASCAR Cup Series Bass Pro Shops Night Race at Bristol Motor Speedway on September 12, 2025 - Source: Getty

NASCAR Cup Series driver Austin Cindric made his Supercars debut this weekend at Adelaide Parklands Circuit. Wheeling Tickford Racing’s Armor All/Repco Rewards No. 5 wildcard entry, the Penske star ran the first few laps of the event without any major damage.

Ad

But things went southward when Cindric’s fellow Supercars driver, Chaz Mostert, drove into him. While trying to make it to the end, Mostert hit Cindric, pushing the latter into the tire barrier. This put Cindric seven laps down in the 78-lap event.

Here is a video of the incident (via Supercars on X):

Ad

While Mostert went ahead and finished second, Cindric had to settle for a P23 in his one-off appearance. Broc Feeney won the race and is now 23 points ahead of Mostert. The duo will face off once again on Sunday.

For Cindric, next up is the Cook Out Clash at Winston-Salem’s Bowman Gray Stadium. However, the 200-lap event isn’t the first points race of the 2026 NASCAR Cup Series season. That would be the Daytona 500, which is scheduled for February 15, 2026.

Ad

Cindric finished his 2025 season 14th in points with one win, two top fives, five top-10s, 325 laps led, and a 20.9 average finishing position. He now has three career victories at the Cup level.

Austin Cindric’s Tickford stablemate impressed by the Penske recruit’s Supercars start

Austin Cindric finished Thursday’s practice in P23 with an impressive 1:20.7125 run. Friday brought trouble due to persistent rain, making the track wet and forcing Cindric to prepare for something he had never done before: making his first wet-weather standing start.

Ad

All things considered, Cindric showed great promise through his practice run at the Adelaide Parklands Circuit. And he did all that without burning any extra tires. Cindric’s Tickford teammate, Cam Waters, was impressed by his approach.

“I think it's an awesome start for him, obviously he had a plan that he had to stick to in that session, and he did that," Waters said of Austin Cindric. "I think the great thing for him this weekend is that he's got multiple sessions to build up to it, go through data, get back in the car.”
Ad
"We went and did some testing at Tailem and he was really good around there straight off the bat. I think he's going to surprise a fair few people this weekend, and we'll see how he goes,” he added.

Five-time Supercars champion and Hall of Famer Mark Skaife was particularly impressed with how Cindric stayed on older tires when he had the option to get newer ones in the closing minutes of the session.

Ad
“Great job. For him to end up 23rd with a 20.7, they didn't put an extra set of tyres on," Skaife told the media. "He was a second away from the fastest guy, but without a set of tyres. That is a really credible performance, that is an excellent job."

Adelaide wasn’t about chasing victory for Austin Cindric. He didn’t have his Shane van Gisbergen moment in his Supercars debut, but it’s safe to say that the 27-year-old speedster earned respect on a track even seasoned Supercars drivers struggle to tame.

Get the latest NASCAR All-Star race news, Xfinity Series updates, breaking news, rumors, and today’s top stories with the latest news on NASCAR.

Quick Links

Edited by Sankalp Srivastava
Sportskeeda logo
Close menu
WWE
WWE
NBA
NBA
NFL
NFL
MMA
MMA
Tennis
Tennis
NHL
NHL
Golf
Golf
MLB
MLB
Soccer
Soccer
F1
F1
WNBA
WNBA
down arrow icon
More
Manage notifications