Austin Cindric’s Father Makes Swift Exit From Team Penske

What’s Happening?

On Wednesday Morning, Team Penske announced the “departure” of several executives, including Tim Cindric, a long-time staple of the Team and the father of NASCAR Cup Series driver Austin Cindric.

Team Penske statement and Roger Penske quote on Team Penske INDYCAR personnel changes: pic.twitter.com/EmzWY7YUnX

— Team Penske (@Team_Penske) May 21, 2025

Cindric’s departure follows a controversial weekend of Indianapolis 500 qualifying, during which two of the three Penske entries were sent to the back of the field. This is the second year in a row that Team Penske has been at the center of a major controversy in INDYCAR.

Cindric, Team President, INDYCAR Managing Director, Ron Ruzewski, and INDYCAR General Manager Kyle Moyer have all departed Team Penske after this controversy.

In a statement released by Team Penske, Roger Penske said:

“Nothing is more important than the integrity of our sport and our race teams. We have had organizational failures during the last two years, and we had to make necessary changes. I apologize to our fans, our partners, and our organization for letting them down.” — Roger Penske

On Jan 31, Team Penske announced that Cindric, then the President of Team Penske, working in both NASCAR and INDYCAR, would “step back” from that role. In exchange, Cindric, who joined Penske in 1999, moved to Team President of Penske’s INDYCAR effort.

Will this Affect Austin Cindric?

When Cindric left NASCAR in February, fans speculated that it could affect his son, Austin’s, racing efforts for Penske in the NASCAR Cup Series. Despite dominating in the Xfinity Series and winning the Daytona 500, Cindric has struggled to match the pace of his Penske teammates.

Cindric has already won this season and is perhaps the best superspeedway racer in NASCAR. But, fans often view the No. 2 team as the weak link at Penske. Now that his father is out as a Penske executive, the question could shift to when, rather than if, the team could move on from Cindric.

However, though he has been rather quiet, Cindric is already piecing together a career year, with a career-best starting position and an average finishing position. Regardless, should the opportunity to sign someone better emerge, both Cindrics could be gone from the organization in the coming years.

For now, Tim Cindric’s departure from Penske likely won’t affect Austin’s career immediately, but the 26-year-old will be under the microscope of fans now more than ever.

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