Roger Penske Becomes First Team Owner To Win Nascar Cup Series And NTT IndyCar Series Championships In The Same Year

There isn’t much left for Roger Penske to accomplish in a stunning career in business and auto racing.

The international businessman and the greatest auto racing team owner in history scored another impressive career accomplishment in Sunday’s Nascar Cup Series Championship Race at Phoenix.

With Joey Logano becoming the first driver at Team Penske to win two Nascar Cup Series Championships, Penske becomes the first team owner in history to win both the Nascar Cup Series and NTT IndyCar Series Championships in the same season.

On September 11, Team Penske’s Will Power won the 2022 NTT IndyCar Series Championship with a third-place finish in the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey. It was also Power’s second IndyCar title at Team Penske.

There have been many seasons in the 56 years that Penske has owned racing teams and race cars and he has had multiple championships in the past. But 2022 is the first time he has won Nascar’s biggest prize the same season he won an IndyCar “National Championship.”

“I think we’ve tried it for 31 years, so it’s about time,” Penske said, referring to the years that he has been a Nascar team owner. “What a special weekend for us.

“Joey did a great job. You’ve seen what he’s been able to do as he’s come on the team, and for us to have two championships in the same year, that’s what we’re here for. That’s the goal we have every year.

“I think we’ve been close, but we got it this year.”

When former Team Penske driver Rusty Wallace won his only Nascar Cup Series championship in 1989, he drove for drag racer Raymond Beadle’s Blue Max Racing Team. He joined Team Penske in 1991 and came close to championships, but never earned one for Penske.

Neither did Ryan Newman.

In fact, Penske’s first Nascar Cup Series championship came in 2012 with Brad Keselowski. That season, Ryan Hunter-Reay won the IndyCar Series championship for Andretti Autosport.

Logano delivered Penske’s second Nascar Cup Series championship in 2018. Scott Dixon of Chip Ganassi Racing won the fifth of his six NTT IndyCar Series championships that season.

Walt Czarnecki is the Vice Chairman of Team Penske Corporation as well as Executive Vice President, a member of the Executive Committee and a Director of the Penske Corporation.

He has been involved with the Penske Corporation since 1970 when he was with American Motors and joined the Penske Corporation in 1978.

“I was actually looking at some statistics earlier in the week, and since 1967, we have been multiple champions in seven years, seven seasons, and in three of those seasons, we won three championships,” Czarnecki said. “It was either an IndyCar championship, Nascar Xfinity owners’ championship, Australian Supercars championship, Nascar Cup Series, but never, to your point, IndyCar, and Cup.”

That changed Sunday at Phoenix.

When the complete history of Auto Racing is written one day, there will be volumes written about Roger Penske.

From the early days of Penske Racing in 1966 at a small garage in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, to the massive, mega shop that houses Penske’s IndyCar, Nascar and Porsche Penske Motorsports Sports Car operation in Mooresville, North Carolina, the numbers are impressive.

Penske has the record for most Indianapolis 500 victories as a team owner with 18, most IndyCar National Championships with 17 and now three Nascar Cup Series Championships.

Overall, Team Penske has 611 race victories and 674 poles.

Logano’s 2022 Cup Series title gives Penske 43 Championships since 1966.

The greatest drivers in auto racing history have driven race cars for Roger Penske.

“It’s a great team effort for everybody here today at Phoenix to end up in the Winner’s Circle and also winning the Championship is special,” Penske said. “What a day for Ford. What a day for Pennzoil and what a day for our team. It’s just tremendous.

“It took 31 years to do this. It shows you I’m getting pretty old. Can you believe it? I can’t.

“It was a full team effort and I’m so thrilled to be here. I told Ryan Blaney on the radio, ‘You’re Joey’s Wingman’ with 10 laps to go. I thought we were fine with where we were.”

Penske has used his auto racing success to help create opportunities at the Penske Corporation. With automotive businesses and transportation companies throughout the world, Penske understands the concept of “Business-to-Business” as well as any business and industrial giant in the world.

Racing remains his true passion, however.

“It’s something we love,” Penske said. “It’s a common thread through our company and our family. To me, this whole team that comes together every year to compete on the highest level.

“To be here is special.

“I think I’ve said it before, racing is the common thread through our company. The success we’ve had out on the race track has really built our brand. To me, it’s part of our everyday — really, it’s a menu for every single day about winning.

“I think racing shows it on the weekend. I said to people who are in the investment business, it’s like having your quarterly earnings every weekend, so it had better be good.”

It’s been quite a special year for the 85-year-old Penske. One of his three NASCAR Cup Series drivers, Austin Cindric, won the Daytona 500 on Penske’s birthday back in February to open the racing year.

On Sunday, Logano closed the year by delivering the Nascar Cup Series Championship to Penske.

“Well, I hate to say one is better than the other, but I’d have to say — put them all together, they’re all first place as far as I’m concerned,” Penske said. “What it does as a team, the momentum it gives not only the race team but the 70,000 people that are in our company because they’re all watching.

“We don’t win every day, do we? But it teaches us how to win and how to stay in the game, and I think that’s what it’s done.

“Really three super days, super accomplishments for the team. I can’t say one is better than the other. I’m just glad to be here.”

Friday, November 4, was the third anniversary of Penske purchasing the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway, IndyCar and the Indianapolis 500 from the Hulman-George Family that owned it since 1945.

There remains one more racing mountain for Penske to climb and that will be his next goal beginning next year.

It’s the famed 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race. He is preparing for that challenge with a race team currently being developed at Porsche Penske Motorsport.

“I would say that’s the mountain we’re going to try to climb in a year, to go to Le Mans, and win for sure,” Penske said.

There is more to Roger Penske than the highly successful businessman, or the greatest team owner in auto racing history.

There is Roger Penske, the man, and he showed that side of him on Sunday night, too.

Penske was celebrating the Nascar Cup Series Championship on the same stage where Coy Gibbs, the Vice Chairman of Joe Gibbs Racing, celebrated his son Ty’s 2022 Nascar Xfinity Series championship 24 hours earlier.

Coy Gibbs died in his sleep Sunday morning in his hotel room. He was 49.

Penske paid tribute to Gibbs on Sunday night.

“I want to do is say a prayer for Joe Gibbs and his family for the loss he had,” Penske said. “That certainly is more important than a win or a championship.

“I just want him to know we feel that as a team, I do personally, and our family.”