AUSTIN Cindric just keeps on getting thrown curveballs through his Supercars debut and he just keeps on surviving.
As if being a long way from home, racing a V8 Gen3 beast he only sampled for the first time within the past fortnight, at a track he’d never before visited, sitting on the opposite side of the car to what he’s used to, tasked with the unfamiliar procedure of a standing start, and so on, wasn’t enough.
Add in torrential rain – something which isn’t encountered all that often in NASCAR racing.
Cindric again did himself no disservice, staying out of trouble to finish the Friday Adelaide sprint in 23rd.
Austin Cindric (right) with engineer Rhys Lenegan. Pic: Ross Gibb
“My first Supercars race was wet!” he reflected in a Tickford Racing video.
“I didn’t finish last, but obviously a lot going on.
“First standing start was also done in the rain. Conveniently the guy in front of me (i.e. Jayden Ojeda) decided to stall, so that got pretty involved.
“Followed the queue around for a while and figured out the limit. By about Lap 5 or 6 we were in and a lot of the cars in front of me pitted, so I had the track to myself for a while, kind of learned the tyre.
Pic: Ross Gibb
“Then it started raining again, then it really started raining again and we had that red flag.
“The Armor All Repco Ford Mustang is in one piece.
“We still have two races left in the weekend. Today was a good day to really learn… I would say I’m mildly satisfied, but I want to keep improving.”
Saturday Supercars qualifying is scheduled for 10:05am local (10:35am AEDT). Up to 4mm of rain is forecast across the day.