Roger Penske issues a statement
Roger Penske is the owner of Indycar’s Team Penske. At the same time, he’s also the owner of Indycar and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
This week, two Team Penske cars failed pre-qualifying inspection for the Indy 500. Those cars were driven by Josef Newgarden and Will Power.
Indycar threw the book at the team. Each entry was fined $100,000, a total of $200,000 for Team Penske.
Additionally, the cars of Newgarden and Power who qualified into the Top 12 were relegated to the back of the field. Additionally, crew members for each team were suspended.
Indycar team fined $200,000 after Indy 500 qualifying violation
On Wednesday, the owner of Team Penske has stepped in. The following people have been let go from the team:
Tim Cindric, Team Penske’s team president and race strategist for Newgarden. He had been with the team since 1999.
Ron Ruzewski, managing director and race strategist for Will Power. He has been with the team since 2005.
Kyle Moyer, general manager and race strategist for Scott McLaughlin. Moyer signed with the team in 2015.
Personnel replacements have not been announced.
Indy 500 Starting Grid: May 2025 (Indycar)
Roger Penske comments
“Nothing is more important than the integrity of our sport and our race teams,” team owner Roger Penske.
“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.”
This is not the first violation.
Back in 2024, Penske cars were caught with illegal software after the St. Petersburg Grand Prix. That software allowed cars to use a push to pass during a period of the race that it wasn’t allowed. Newgarden and McLaughlin were disqualified after the event.
Team Penske details the Indy 500 infraction
2024 Indy 500 winning car is on display with an illegal attenuator (Video)
Links
Josef Newgarden | Will Power | Team Penske | Indianapolis Motor Speedway | Indycar
