Did You Notice? … There has never been a time where Roger Penske has been more powerful in motorsports?
At 87 years old, when most people are enjoying retirement or, let’s face it, simply struggling to survive, Penske sits on the throne of a championship empire.
Consider the accomplishments for him and his organization in 2024 alone.
- On the NASCAR side, he’s now won three straight NASCAR Cup Series titles with Joey Logano and Ryan Blaney. The duo finished the Phoenix Raceway finale 1-2, the first time Penske’s had that championship finish in NASCAR since expanding to a two-car team full time in 1998.
- Only two other car owners have won three straight NASCAR titles: Rick Hendrick (1995-98, 2006-10) and Junior Johnson (1976-78). During this three-year span, Penske has racked up 17 victories, including a NASCAR-high eight in the playoffs.
- Penske won the 2022 Daytona 500 with Austin Cindric, the 2023 Coca-Cola 600 with Ryan Blaney and the first Cup race in Iowa Speedway history in 2024, also with Blaney.
- For the last five years, Penske Entertainment Corporation has owned Indianapolis Motor Speedway, host of the premier motorsports event in America (the Indianapolis 500) along with the entire NTT IndyCar Series as a whole.
- Penske landed on a multi-year deal with FOX Sports for a new IndyCar television contract, starting in 2025, that’s reportedly a 25% increase from its former deal with NBC.
- While falling short of a championship in IndyCar, Penske arguably holds the larger prize: Josef Newgarden is a two-time defending Indy 500 winner.
- After a several-year build in the sports car division, Penske won his first Rolex 24 at Daytona since 1969. His entries finished first and fourth, with Newgarden again among the quartet that visited victory lane.
- Those efforts were the springboard for what became two sports car championships this year: IMSA and the WEC championship Penske secured just last week.
What’s driven Penske to the top of the motorsports food chain?
“It’s attention to detail, and it’s being able to adapt to change, I think,” Mark Rushbrook, the global director of Ford Motorsports, said Sunday (Nov. 10). “Anytime there are new rules or especially a new car, the best team will rise to the top to be able to learn that new car. … It’s that work ethic, it’s attention to detail, and [they] don’t leave anything on the table.”
That adaptation has always been evident at Penske. When his team moved from CART to the IRL, for example, it didn’t lose a beat in the transition. 2001 champions in the old league, Penske won the Indy 500 in 2002 with Helio Castroneves and wound up 2-3 in the title chase with its full-time drivers. A decade later, it took less than two years for it to re-emerge as a title contender, making Brad Keselowski a six-time winner with Ford after he won the 2012 championship with Dodge.
It’s a work ethic even more important with the Next Gen chassis, which is designed to leave all teams created equal. A limited amount of things you can adjust in NASCAR makes it that much harder to find an edge.
“The car has never been more alike,” Logano agreed. “So the details never mattered more than they do right now.”
Along with adaptation comes consistency. Logano has now been with Penske’s NASCAR program for a dozen years, and 2012 champion Keselowski was there for over a decade. Blaney is now in his seventh season driving inside the main Penske outfit and is signed to a long-term deal that’ll keep him with the organization through the peak of his career.
“It’s all about the people,” Penske said. “When you look at our team and you look at the domain knowledge, we have a big chart as you walk in the shop, and over half our people have been there 10 years. I think that continuity has been terrific.”
To have the type of culture where people don’t leave, you need a firm hand in control of it all. Ask any driver, in any series, and they’re quick to mention that “Penske perfection,” a drive to win and attention to detail that resonates throughout the organization.
“You’ve got to think that it starts at the top and starts to work its way through,” Logano said. “They’ve done a good job at hiring people. They say it all the time, it’s hard to get in and it’s hard to leave. That’s what Team Penske is.
“We’re expected to win, and the culture is that, exactly, that we’re going to win and we’re going to do it in a professional way. It doesn’t have to be said anymore. That’s our brand.”
For Penske to be at the head of it all, at his age, is truly something to behold. At the same time, something to be celebrated is also a warning sign for how racing is going to transition into the next generation of leadership.
Penske isn’t the only octogenarian with outsized power in the sport. NASCAR CEO Jim France turned 80 years old this year. One of Penske’s top rivals in NASCAR, Joe Gibbs, turns 84 this month. Jack Roush, now partnered with Keselowski, is 82 while Richard Childress (age 79) just misses the cut. 75-year-old Rick Hendrick is like a young buck by comparison.
Let that sink in for a minute. The current NASCAR championship owner is nearly a decade past the average life expectancy for an American male. And as Stewart-Haas Racing closes down, there isn’t a single owner out there with a Cup title younger than Hendrick’s 75.
Who will be the next generation to lead racing forward? Tony Stewart has bowed out, focusing on NHRA and building a family. Michael Jordan and 23XI Racing are embroiled in a lawsuit against NASCAR. 40-year-old Keselowski hasn’t been able to quite reach the levels of success with RFK Racing (still partnered with Roush) as he did with … well, Penske.
Penske is the most powerful person in motorsports today. The hope is he’s around a long time. But the future is … in the hands of people who likely won’t be here to see the next generation succeed or fail behind them.
It’s a fascinating time in the sport.
Did You Notice? … Quick hits before taking off …
- It’s hard to find a person in the garage who wasn’t privately rooting for Justin Allgaier to win his first NASCAR Xfinity Series title. The highlight of the weekend, that race might have been the best we’ve seen in any series since the sport first came up with its current playoff format in 2014.
- Agree or disagree with Christopher Bell, his aggressive weekend presser where he accused NASCAR of race manipulation was the most personality we’ve ever seen out of him. The circumstances may be terrible, but it was nice to see Bell come out of his shell. Can you remember a memorable soundbite from him the last five years before Phoenix? Let’s hope it’s a sign of things to come.
- Most importantly … THANK YOU to all our loyal Frontstretch readers that have kept this site growing by leaps and bounds this year. One of my basic tenets of journalism is it isn’t a story if no one hears it … and, more than ever, you’re stopping by to listen and be a part of our growing community. I’m so grateful. And I can’t say enough about our loyal, dedicated staff that continue to believe in our mission and each other.
I’ll be back around soon, but until then… ENJOY THE START OF THE OFFSEASON!
Follow Tom Bowles on X at @NASCARBowles
About the author
The author of Did You Notice? (Wednesdays) Tom spends his time overseeing Frontstretch’s 40+ staff members as its majority owner and Editor-in-Chief. Based outside Philadelphia, Bowles is a two-time Emmy winner in NASCAR television and has worked in racing production with FOX, TNT, and ESPN while appearing on-air for SIRIUS XM Radio and FOX Sports 1's former show, the Crowd Goes Wild. He most recently consulted with SRX Racing, helping manage cutting-edge technology and graphics that appeared on their CBS broadcasts during 2021 and 2022.
You can find Tom’s writing here, at CBSSports.com and Athlonsports.com, where he’s been an editorial consultant for the annual racing magazine for 15 years.
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enjoy the off season Tom. before you know it will be january and february will be on the horizon.
happy holidays to you and your family.
Thanks Tom, and all the Frontstretch staff!
Jeff Gordon and Chad Knaus will probably be the next leaders of Hendrick.
Austin and Ty(?) Dillon will probably lead RCR.
Ty Gibbs will eventually take over JGM.
I don’t know who Penske’s successor will be.
doesn’t penske have a son who is involved with open wheel and the track at indy?
Let’s hope whoever it is does a better job than Brian did with his new toy!
His sons names are Roger Jr and Greg. Also has some step siblings.