Everything was looking rosy for Scott McLaughlin as he led the field into Turn 1 from pole position at the Indianapolis 500. The New Zealander flew high in the No. 3 Team Penske Chevy as he led a race-topping 64 laps, but McLaughlin’s day was a bit …
Everything was looking rosy for Scott McLaughlin as he led the field into Turn 1 from pole position at the Indianapolis 500. The New Zealander flew high in the No. 3 Team Penske Chevy as he led a race-topping 64 laps, but McLaughlin’s day was a bit like a balloon with a slow leak.
The longer the race went, the lower McLaughlin went as the Indy 500’s most rewarding – or problematic – dynamic played out with the timing of cautions and how they affected pit strategies, and the Kiwi found himself on the wrong end of the equation.
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All of those 64 laps spent at the front of the field were produced in the first 125 laps; he’d fall as far back as 11th before recovering to take a rather unrewarding sixth as teammate Josef Newgarden went on to win a thriller in the No. 2 Chevy.
“I just gave it my all, all month,” McLaughlin said. “It’s just emotionally draining. Unfortunately, that’s my best run and I’m upset about it obviously. You’re a competitor. But Team Penske won and that’s the main thing.
“Congrats to Josef. This place just kicks your butt and you’ve got to come back stronger next year.”
Patrick Morgan has a special relationship with the cars that were powered by his family’s engines. The Briton also has a special talent for bringing those cars back to life, to a state of perfection with period-correct restorations through his Dawn …
Patrick Morgan has a special relationship with the cars that were powered by his family’s engines. The Briton also has a special talent for bringing those cars back to life, to a state of perfection with period-correct restorations through his Dawn Treader Performance Engineering firm in the U.K.
Founded in 1983 by Mario Illien and Paul Morgan — the ‘Il’ and ‘Mor’ of Ilmor — with financial backing from Roger Penske, Ilmor became synonymous with success as its 2.65-liter turbocharged Chevrolet V8 CART IndyCar engine dominated the CART series, and often in the back of a chassis built by Penske Cars.
The late Morgan’s son Patrick, who worked at Ilmor as an IndyCar engine technician, formed Dawn Treader in 2004 and has taken on a number of significant projects, including Penske PC26 chassis 05, the last race-winning chassis built by Penske Cars.
Driven by Paul Tracy, the chassis won at Gateway — known today as World Wide Technology Raceway — in 1997, which also marked Penske Racing’s 99th IndyCar victory and the final with a vehicle of its own creation.
A dark period would follow as the Reynard chassis ruled CART and by the end of 1999, Penske chose to halt production on his own design made at Penske Cars’ base in Poole, England, and switch to Reynard.
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Having acquired PC26 chassis 05 and its Mercedes-badged Ilmor engine in an interesting fashion, Morgan took on a task that was steeped in immense personal and professional meaning.
“By mid-1997 I was training as a trackside engineer at Ilmor Inc, the U.S. branch of my late father’s company,” he told RACER. “Towards the end of that year, I was seconded from Ilmor to work in the Penske engine shop in Reading, Pennsylvania, so I have a personal connection to the car. I was very privileged to be at Penske during the last few weeks of Karl Kainhofer’s career, where I learned a great deal and made many life-long friends.
“After the ’97 season finished, PC26 05 was shipped back to the UK where it lived in Roger Penske’s home. When Penske Cars closed down, it was due to return to the U.S., but on a whim, Nick Goozee, then Ilmor’s managing director, asked me if I would like to purchase it on the condition that I returned it to running order. I agreed, but with no real idea of what would be involved… It just seemed like such a terrific opportunity.”
Very few cars from CART’s fastest era exist in running condition, and especially those from the late 1990s where the series’ fierce engine manufacturer battles saw most of the motors return to their builders and remain under lock and key today. For Morgan with the PC26, there were no concerns about supply restrictions.
“The Penske took 18 months to restore and is fitted with the correct Mercedes-Benz IC108D engine and Delco Gen V electronics package which was exclusive to the team for 1996 and 1997,” he said. “The electronics was a huge challenge, but once up and running proved to be a beautiful system.
“We run the car at 200rpm below ‘race spec’ which in the day was 14,400rpm (qualifying was 14,800rpm), but at the full 40 inches of boost with functioning SWOL (shift without lift), SLIM (pit speed limiter) and just about everything else except a functioning weight jacker. That’s something I’m keen to get working after we’ve finished the restoration of the 1998 PC27 we are deep into at present.”
The PC26 was raced prior to the use of high-definition cameras on IndyCar broadcasts, and well before GoPros were invented. Morgan was motivated to bring modern filming technology to capture chassis 05 in action, which forms the basis of the short film below that was recently completed.
“While we have run the car at events like the Goodwood Festival of Speed, there is little onboard footage of Penske cars in general from that era,” he said. “Inspired by the wonderful story of Colton Herta buying his father’s ’98 Reynard, we set about for a day’s recording with filmmaker James Ward at Sywell, the small WWII aerodrome on which my restoration company is based.
“I’m an engineer, not a driver, so it’s a real privilege to be able to get a taste of what these cars can do and how demanding they actually were to drive. By way of example, even running up and down an airstrip, you very quickly come to appreciate how changes in wind direction and strength have such a huge, and at times unnerving, effect on the aerodynamics both in steering input and grounding against the track surface.
“I hope viewers get as much enjoyment out of the film as we did making it. The cars of this era are wonderful things to work on, to watch, and listen to. While V6s, V10s, and V12s sound incredible, there is nothing quite so special as the haunting noise of a single car of this period reverberating around the grandstands of a one-mile oval. The memory still makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.”
Ryan Blaney is no longer the other Team Penske driver. In his eighth full season as a NASCAR Cup series driver, Blaney is now a champion. It wasn’t so much about how much time had already come and gone in Blaney’s career, but the organization he …
Ryan Blaney is no longer the other Team Penske driver.
In his eighth full season as a NASCAR Cup series driver, Blaney is now a champion. It wasn’t so much about how much time had already come and gone in Blaney’s career, but the organization he drives for and the teammates he’s stacked up against.
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Blaney was always the third guy in the Penske lineup behind Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano. Keselowski was a champion, Logano has two championships. Both drivers are consistent winners in the Cup series, averaging two or three wins a season, with multiple appearances in the Championship 4.
It hasn’t been the same for Blaney. Although the weight may have shifted to Austin Cindric, who replaced Brad Keselowski last season, it wasn’t until 2021 that Blaney won multiple races in a season, and it wasn’t until this year that he finally advanced out of the Round of 8 (in his fifth attempt) in the postseason.
“I think when you go back and he came on board, he came up running in Xfinity for some races, won championships and he was the third driver,” Roger Penske said. “When you look at Brad and you look at Joey, they were very complimentary to him and supported him, and I think the fact Brad came up here on the podium…
“They’re all champions. We try to run our business very flat. You might be No. 3 coming through the door, but on race day or in the business, we’re all the same. I think that’s where he is today. Joey has taken over when Brad moved on as the senior guy. I think you’ve seen that. We’re working with Harrison [Burton] and working with Cindric. I think this is all part of it.
“But I don’t want to have a one-two-three-four (pecking order), quite honestly. I want to have all ones, and I think he’s one of those.”
There is a meme often used on social media that mirrors Blaney’s Cup Series career until the 2023 postseason. It uses an illustration from the webcomic White Ninja, which is holding a long stick to poke at whatever has been photoshopped into the picture with the phrase, “C’mon, do something.”
Blaney was that meme. For years many have been waiting for him to do something championship-worthy and to the caliber of a Penske driver. Blaney fans have waited for him to bust out and start contending for wins on a weekly basis and then translate that into regular trips to victory lane.
Blaney, for a long time was in the shadow of champion teammates Joey Logano and Brad Keselowski. Motorsport Images
There has always been hype around Blaney and his potential, but the numbers haven’t always reflected the noise. In his first five full seasons (three of which were in-house at Team Penske), he won a single race each season. He didn’t finish higher than seventh in the championship standings.
Not only does Blaney no longer have to face questions about trying to advance out of the Round of 8, but he’s already taken care of claiming a championship. Some of Blaney’s peers have made the final round time and time again and come away empty-handed.
“Yeah, (it’s) out of the way,” he said with a smile. “No, it’s nice to make our first final four; obviously that was the main goal this year, something we haven’t done. To achieve that last week, it’s like, all right, great, that’s awesome, check that one off. It’s just a double whammy that we get to come here and win the championship, as well.
“[I’m] super-proud of everybody. It all happened, gosh, was it Chase [Elliott] and Kyle [Larson] doing the same thing – their first Champ 4, they won the championship? I think they did. It’s nice to come here and be one for one. Hopefully, we can continue to build off this and be able to have more shots here at Phoenix where we can contend as well.”
It won’t be remembered as a dream season for Blaney, but it had a dream ending. He and the No. 12 team peaked at the right time after getting into the semifinals of the playoffs. The last two weeks of the season were all about Blaney, and he performed like a champion at Martinsville Speedway with a clutch win – coming from 13th – and driving with passion and determination at Phoenix Raceway.
Blaney executed behind the wheel. He closed the deal. Over the years, there have been races and opportunities that got away. It was easy to criticize him for appearing to be too nice, or to argue that he simply didn’t get the job done when the wheel was in his hands.
None of that can be said now. And as a Cup Series champion, no more can Blaney be overlooked on track or at Team Penske.
“I don’t really think it matters to me very much,” Blaney said of his place. “(Roger) has always done an amazing job of there’s not like a No. 1, No. 2, No. 3 driver, right? But personally, as a driver, when you’re not winning as many races as Brad and Joey when I came into it, you feel like that. The No. 3 driver or No. 2 driver now. That’s just like a personal mindset that drivers get.
“Now I think Joey has two, I have one. So, it’s like, still a half a percent down of him. No, we have a great group over there. Joey has been fantastic to work with and Austin is awesome. Harrison is fantastic, as well.
“I just enjoy driving for amazing people like Team Penske folks and Mr. Penske, Walter [Czarnecki], Bud Denker, Jonathan Gibson, Tim Cindric, Mike Nelson. They’re all amazing to me. It’s just fun to be there. I really couldn’t imagine myself anywhere else. They’ve been fantastic with me for over 10 years and hopefully, I get to spend another at least 10 more over there.”
The formation of Penske Entertainment’s Race For Equality & Change program is approaching its third anniversary. Created in the wake of George Floyd’s murder on May 25, 2020, Roger Penske and his leadership team created the RFE&C with a mission to …
The formation of Penske Entertainment’s Race For Equality & Change program is approaching its third anniversary.
Created in the wake of George Floyd’s murder on May 25, 2020, Roger Penske and his leadership team created the RFE&C with a mission to address the lack of diversity within North American open-wheel racing and to broaden the NTT IndyCar Series’ and Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s hiring and business engagement practices.
Progress has been made, without question, but where is the RFE&C headed?
It’s marquee Force Indy program, launched in 2021, introduced Myles Rowe (pictured above with Roger Penske and Rod Reid) to the USF Championships by Cooper Tires where the college student from Georgia won a race, and in his second season run by Pabst Racing, Rowe won five races and finished runner-up in the USF2000 series, validating the faith and investment demonstrated through the RFE&C.
Stepping up to the series now known as Indy NXT by Firestone, Force Indy introduced seven-time Trans-Am champion Ernie Francis Jr to the top step of the junior open-wheel ladder in 2022, and in 2023, the Floridian and the Force Indy effort have been transferred under the HMD Motorsports tent while Rowe and Pabst Racing have moved up to USF Pro 2000 where they lead the championship on the strength of three wins from six races.
Ernie Francis Jr. transitioned to open-wheel racing from Trans-Am. James Black/Penske Entertainment
Of the two Force Indy-backed drivers, Rowe has established himself as a remarkable talent on the rise while Francis Jr, a newcomer to open-wheel racing, has a slightly longer trajectory ahead in his quest to reach IndyCar. Speaking with Penske Entertainment CEO Mark Miles, plans are in place to continue with both drivers as they ascend towards the RFE&C’s most visible goal.
“The first thing I’d say is with respect to the Race For Equality & Change and Myles and Ernie, one of Roger’s initial aspirations was to find a way to get one or more diverse drivers ready to qualify for the Indy 500,” Miles told RACER. “So I can’t say that happens for one or the other next year, and I can’t say it wouldn’t. But it’s an obvious next step when they’re ready. And we’ll be excited about that.”
The next item explored with Miles was whether the RFE&C’s Force Indy program is meant to continue with new drivers after Rowe and Francis Jr reach their ultimate destinations.
“What we’ve tried to communicate about all parts of the program is that it’ll never end,” he said. “This has got to become a way of life. This is what we need to be. But as to your question, I don’t know for sure, but I can’t imagine that we won’t keep finding ways to give legs up, on a targeted basis, to where we think we can have the biggest impact and hopefully keep growing momentum.”
Under the RFE&C banner, Penske Entertainment also aligned itself with Beth Paretta’s Paretta Autosport IndyCar team in 2021, helping the women-led program to compete in its first Indy 500. After seeking and finding the sponsorship to return, Paretta completed a multi-race program last year in partnership with Ed Carpenter Racing, but the team has been absent from the grid so far this season, unable as yet to find a competitive partner to make use of the funding she’s found.
If there’s been one ongoing criticism of the RFE&C, it has been the absence of a sustained effort to identify and support women racers in the same sustained manner as Rowe and Francis Jr. As Miles reveals, there could be a new televised component to RFE&C activities to address the matter.
The RFE&C has also aligned itself with Beth Paretta’s team. Jake Galstad/Motorsport Images
“With respect to women, we’re talking with a group that is a major Hollywood studio that wants to do a reality-type competition series and we’ve talked to them half a dozen or more times,” he said. “Their concept is that they would identify young women drivers who are already quite engaged, but obviously are not yet near the top. They would have a fantastic budget and they’d work with one of our solid teams and they would conduct a series of competitions. And there’s obviously no guarantees. But if any of them show they’ve got the stuff, then that would lead to a qualifying opportunity.
“Now, you can imagine how skeptical many of us were about the idea that you could manufacture a process that would get you to the point where [IndyCar president] Jay Frye would say, yeah, they’re approved to get a license so they can try to qualify, but these people are very engaged and they have a serious budget. They’ve studied this, they know something about it in the first instance, and I think it’s if it can be done, there, they and their approach have a chance of doing it. So that could be something that would be conspicuous. And not just as an entertainment thing, but as the development of new female driving talent.”
Shifting from the off-track aspects of the RFE&C, Miles spoke to the growth Penske Entertainment has made in nearly three years with hiring, spending, and job placement within the IndyCar.
“For us, an emphasis has always been on being the right kind of organization with Penske Entertainment,” he said. “We’ve worked really hard at it, and we’re a long way from where we want to be, but more than 40 percent of our hires last year were people from diverse backgrounds. Our spending with diverse vendors and suppliers and the like is nowhere near the total that I wish it were, but it’s increased meaningfully–more than doubled a couple times since we started this.
“In Indianapolis, we’re engaged with the Urban League, 100 Black Men, and other similar organizations, and we’re doing what we can to support them. And that also opens channels for recruiting. We’re trying to develop programs with the [IndyCar] teams using our job portal with the teams where it’s more seamless so that every time they have an opening, we find a way to get in front of these organizations to present those opportunities to candidates. We’re trying to help infuse the team talent pipeline, which is foundational for us.”
