NASCAR Cup Series

Penske's NASCAR program running strong

Published Jun. 12, 2010 1:00 a.m. ET

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Roger Penske is enjoying a tremendous resurgence in NASCAR.

Although Penske Racing has set the standard in open-wheel racing with 13 championships over the past four decades, there always has been a question of the company’s commitment to stock car racing. Now the company is flourishing after nearly two decades of trying to compete against NASCAR’s powerhouses.

Penske ran a full NASCAR season with Bobby Allison in 1976 but didn’t put forth a continual effort until 1991, when Penske South made its debut with Rusty Wallace.

In 2001, the organization added a second team with Jeremy Mayfield. Ryan Newman jumped in the No. 12 car the following year, and he and Wallace finished among the top 10 in the point standings. Newman continued that trend for the next four seasons despite the transition from Ford to Dodge in 2003 and the introduction of the Chase to Sprint Cup racing the following season.

Wallace grabbed a Chase spot in his final season (2005), but his inability to be a team player never allowed the two-car operation to blossom.

After Wallace’s retirement in 2005, Kurt Busch joined the Penske fold. There appeared to be a better spirit of cooperation between the Nos. 2 and 12 Cup teams at the new Penske Racing facility located on 105 acres in Mooresville, N.C.

At the end of the 2006 season, Penske moved his IndyCar shop from Reading, Pa., to North Carolina, placing all motorsports operations under one roof. Penske considers this move to be the turning point for the organization.

“Overall, I think it’s good teamwork, everything under one roof,” Penske said. “We’re getting a lot of cross-pollination from the Indy teams and NASCAR teams, as far as the things we’re doing engineering-wise. And also just the hard work the guys are doing.”

In 2007, the Sprint Cup program expanded to include three-time IndyCar champ Sam Hornish for a part-time deal. Hornish went full time in 2008, but performance dipped across the board and Ryan Newman made plans to leave the organization for Stewart Haas Racing. His replacement, David Stremme, was short-lived after not reaching expectations.

However, last year Penske Racing laid the groundwork for a Nationwide program that has appeared to reinforce the core of the NASCAR operation with an abundance of young talent that had been missing since Newman evolved. The acquisition of Justin Allgaier, Dakoda Armstrong and Parker Kligerman was the first time Penske had a true development program. The additional signing of rookie sensation Brad Keselowski toward the end of last year further solidified the youth movement at Penske.

Not only do the four youngsters provide a well of talent for the future, but also the company already is earning dividends with Keselowski leading the Nationwide point standings and Allgaier sitting fifth.

This season Penske has moved into the enviable position of being the only Dodge team in NASCAR. Penske acknowledges being a sole factory-backed operation has its benefits.

“Dodge has been very supportive of us,” Penske said. “We’re getting all the support we want from the wind tunnel. Their engineering people, they came in and helped us with a robotic welder, and we can do our chassis — something we didn’t have.

“They’ve been a real resource for us. Obviously, we don’t have the benefit of cross-pollination with so many different teams, but, at the moment, I don’t feel it’s a disadvantage. I wouldn’t change, unless they didn’t want to go racing.”

Kurt Busch has eased comfortably into the senior role as well. His relationship with new crew chief Steve Addington has provided Busch with a high degree of structure he was missing, and the results — two wins and two poles, including starting on the front row for Sunday‘s Heluva Good 400 — is a testament to how solid the No. 2 Dodge has become.

But Penske said Busch has been “a championship contender from the day we hired him.”

“He went through a rough patch, but to see him run those races last week and lead 250 laps, he’s on his game. All we’ve got to do is give him the best car.”

Penske sounds optimistic about where the program is going, but said he “can’t get overconfident” with 12 races before the Chase and Keselowski and Hornish still outside the top 20 in points.

“The last two weeks other than Indy have been pretty strong. I think that Kurt and Steve Addington obviously have jelled. I see that Brad is getting a lot more experience with the Cup car — qualifying well at Pocono, 11th, and never even been here. Sam just can’t get a good finish. He’s run well.

“On the other hand, Brad has shown what he can do in the Nationwide. We’ve got a good crew chief there in Paul Wolfe. He’s brought a lot to the team. Justin’s run well. It takes a commitment to these younger guys to try to give us the depth, and we’re starting to see it pay off now. We’ve got Parker Kligerman, trying to get him in a car to do better, one that will be competitive. At the moment, I feel good, but there’s a lot of racing to go.”

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