Sofia

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

Forgot who but someone commented that Austin Cindric has the ability to make a room light up and at ease when he’s in it, and this interview exemplified that vibe.

After watching this had a feeling that Austin lacks the expert/veteran presence (one like Harvick’s) who can offer unvarnished advice to help him take that next step as a driver, or as a team leader.

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

All in all I think the race couldn’t have played out better for the 60, and I kind of understand their hesitation on the 4 tires vs. 2, as he seemed to lack pure pace and was behind the 2 and the 19, who was on a similar strategy in stage 2, and he came out on top of the group due to the timing of the caution.

Curious as to why someone would take fuel only on the last stop, as 2 tires vs. 1 can of fuel seemed to equal out to about the same amount of time spent.

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

I just have to ask, 4 years with Wilson on top of the 2’s pit box, can Penske honestly say this is where he’d envisioned the 2 team to be? Weeks ago Austin said he’d like to be within reach of the top 10 in pts by the regular season’s end and it’s really a reasonable expectation given the caliber of team such as Penske. Instead you’re one bad race away from below the cutline, relying on Hail Mary, counting on your driver to hold onto the oldest tires of anyone around him just for a mid-field finish. While your teammate gained 59 pts on you in just the last 2 races because his team was able to give him everything needed to be in contention, not repeatedly relying on the driver to make up the deficit.

Austin keeps getting the blame for the 2 not being up to expectations all the while his team is stuck in mid-field mentality. How much more data, metrics, or whatever else you need before realizing that the 2 needs a change in leadership?

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

@bobpockrass @NASCARONFOX I get that you and @Jordan_Bianchi in the media are always after the teams and drivers for silly season material but at some point should also recognize a driver’s personal preference should be respected.

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

@Team_Penske @IMS @AustinCindric @DiscountTire @Blaney @MenardsRacing @joeylogano @shellracingus @Pennzoil Electrical issues and zero speed, Chase cutline aside y’all really chose the Captain’s house to be straight up ass huh

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

@chrisrahn @bobpockrass @Jordan_Bianchi @jeff_gluck Him choosing not to make a big deal out of it is so on brand and lowkey hilarious actually

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

@Team_Penske @AustinCindric @DiscountTire @joeylogano @shellracingus @Pennzoil @Menards @Blaney @smclaughlin93 The more I follow Penske the more I think “effort equals results” and “Penske perfect” are just mere made up hype slogans.

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

@smclaughlin93 @AustinCindric @gosportcoffee @ODYSSEY_Battery @Team_Penske @TeamChevy @IndyCar @NashvilleSuperS Cindric: 🍑 ➡️ 💎

Scotty: I can top that

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

@bobpockrass Not letting the media know ≠ doesn’t have a deal yet

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

I have and really appreciate the explanation. Top end/optimal performance potential is nice to visualize, but it’s again, not very realistic when you’re implying someone having the optimal car the entire race. Definitely not of your doing, but I find it often misquoted in context when discussing performance for a race, which was my original intention of the reply to Jeff’s post.

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

As a mere fan trust that I’m not asking you to reveal your code lol. I have enjoyed your posts, but often found myself thinking what I recalled from the races doesn’t match the graphs you provided. Treat it as a sort of feedback if you will, as you continue to refine. In the meantime, as a fan with only the most basic access during any given race weekend, I find the median lap to still be the closest representation of what I recalled from the races.

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

@AR_Analytics @jeff_gluck Then there perhaps needs to be more transparent cited evidence and explanation as to how the optimal lap model works because it all sounds very vague. And in the case of the 9 seems a bit far from reality, at least for someone who observed the lap times/in-cars/race itself.

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

Understood median lap isn't going to be perfect but there's a reason many still utilize it and Bozi's graph makes it much easier to visualize as well. I really think the optimal lap model is too vague to be realistic just by what I recall from the race. For example, the 2 who was in the same boat as the 9 yesterday (both stuck laps down and in dirty air more than half of the race) was faster than the 9 by lap times and the fact that he passed him on multiple occasions.

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

We’re tired because every time, even when he has the speed, and he’s had arguably more consistent speed than the 22, things would inevitably keep him from a solid finish. The 22 team won because they consistently execute whether they have contending speed or speed to only run 30th, where it’s a toss-up every week with the 2 team.

Aside from the usual inadequate adjustments, he has to guess which week his pit crew decides to show up in top 10 or top 20 shape. I still don’t understand how the idea of providing water to a driver should be such a difficult task to accomplish. And I about lost my mind when they still didn’t give it to him the next pit stop, the very pit stop he lost 2 laps too. I don’t know how he never lost his wits during the night, and even came on the radio later to self-reflect and provide encouragement to his team.

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

@chasebriscoe Hope you enjoy whatever sense of satisfaction you felt while holding Cindric up for no reason, when he wasn’t even on your lap and fighting to pass the 77 directly ahead of you during the last few laps last night. It’s no different than kicking someone while he’s down, let alone someone who’s supposed to be a close friend of yours.

Stop with the “I’m a Christian, good fella” persona because your disingenuousness will only do the opposite of what you think.

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

@Angiepants @BoziTatarevic He was the only few able to match the lap times of the leaders while consistently in worse air being trapped laps down. He passed Bubba in stage 2 and was catching the 97 on pace as well before the doomed gf cycle caution. Just needed one thing to go his way and nothing did.

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

@Team_Penske This is what happens when 5 years in, you still refuse to provide what’s necessary for Cindric to take the next step. Fair weather fans like this one are all thinking Cindric’s the problem when everyone who’s been paying close attention knows that’s far from the truth; and really, it should be extremely apparent within the organization. Every week it’s a toss-up if Wilson/engineers will be able to keep up with the track, or if the pit crew shows up in top 10 or top 20 shape. It’s a far cry from the way the 22 team operates, where they always perform as a championship caliber team even when they’re 33rd and laps down on pace.

But yeah it’s all pointless because management is seemingly in a bubble and even the PR team don’t even pay attention to his races, where details of his races are consistently incorrect in the race report on the Penske website. Like last night, you didn’t even know he was p8 before the gf cycle in stage 2.

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

@BoziTatarevic Penske is only capable of having one solid, consistently competitive pit crew it seems.

[Sofia @willowmillenniu]

@UsmcDat @Team_Penske @joeylogano @shellracingus @Pennzoil I mean he was 7th before being trapped laps down by the 45/48 caution. Let’s not pretend his pit crew did him any favors tonight either. Him finishing 14th was pure determination and grit.