Penske Racing Aims for 15th Indy Win

What do the Dallas Cowboys, Pittsburgh Steelers, New York Yankees, Chicago Bulls and Montreal Canadians have in common? They all have been labeled dynasties of their sport. That being said, it is fair to declare Penske Racing at the Indianapolis 500 as perhaps the most dominating dynasty in the history of professional sports.

Simple arithmetic can support that. It is difficult to fathom how one team has been so head-and-shoulders above the rest of the competition at the greatest racing venue in the world.

Car owner Roger Penske has it all figured out. He has for a long time and he will continue to do so until God’s light shines down upon him.

24 different drivers have driven for Roger Penske at Indianapolis since 1969, and it took just three years for Penske’s dominance to take form when Mark Donahue won the Indy 500 in 1972.

Penske does not just hire drivers. He hires the best drivers. Occasionally, one or two drivers will fall through the cracks, but for the most part his drivers deliver championships.

There have been 91 Indy 500s run; 10 Penske drivers have combined to win 14 races, which is an astounding 15%.

But, that is all in the past. Penske has won only one Indy 500 since 2003, which is unacceptable in the Penske garage.

Will 2008 be the year when Helio Castroneves climbs the fence for the third time? Can Ryan Briscoe silence his critics about his inability to finish races and score an upset on May 25?

Let us dissect Castroneves, who needs no introduction. Spiderman leaped (literally) into the record books in 2001 by becoming just the eighth rookie to win the Indianapolis 500. He shattered the record books again the following year becoming the fourth overall and first driver since Al Unser, Sr. in 1970-71 to win back-to-back Indy 500s.

Castroneves has competed in seven Indy 500s and has compiled an impressive resume. Of his seven starts, he finished ninth or better in six with his lone DNF coming in 2006 after a crash with fellow Indy champ Buddy Rice. His average finish after his first three starts at Indianapolis was 1.333, which is a record that will not be touched for many years.

Castroneves starts the race as well as he finishes. He started his first two races in the middle of the pack (11th in 2001, 13th in 2002), but has started eighth or better every year since, including from the pole in 2003 and 2007.

To put it in laymen’s terms, Helio, the reigning Dancing with the Stars champion, likes the 2.5 mile oval. No matter if he starts 33rd in a back-up car, Castroneves will be a threat come race day.

His teammate Ryan Briscoe is another story. For the first time in his career with Penske Racing, Castroneves will be teamed alongside an unworthy driver. Castroneves has teamed up with Gil de Ferran (2 CART series championships, 2003 Indy 500 champ) and Sam Hornish, Jr. (2 IRL series Championships, 2006 Indy 500 champ). This season, Ryan Briscoe has taken over the No. 6 orange and white machine that was vacated by Hornish, Jr. when he was lured by NASCAR’s millions.

Briscoe is an unproven journeyman at best. He started driving for Target Chip Ganassi Racing in 2005 and posted a 10th place finish at Indianapolis, but the rest of the season was nothing but pure disaster. Briscoe completed just six events out of 15 with an 8th place at Nashville his best result. His career with Ganassi came to an end when a terrible crash at Chicagoland Speedway left Briscoe unemployed as Ganassi hired Dan Wheldon for the 2006 season.

After a brief 3-race stint with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing late in 2006, Briscoe started 2007 on the outside looking in. Then, the light began to shine. He was hired by Penske Racing to compete in the American Le Mans Series, where he won three events and finished tied for third in the series standings.

Briscoe returned to Indianapolis in 2007 driving for Luczo-Dragon Racing, which was co-owned by Jay Penske, the youngest son of Roger Penske. Briscoe drove a Penske-leased machine to a 5th place finish. With rumors already putting Hornish, Jr. in a full-time NASCAR ride the following year, the 2007 Indy 500 was a try-out for Penske Racing. With a lack of marketable free agents on the open-wheel market, Briscoe was hired to replace Hornish, Jr.

Briscoe started the 2008 IndyCar season with a bang. He crashed his Penske machine at Homestead and St. Petersburg, but has regrouped with a pair of top-10 finishes at Japan and Kansas leading up to Indy.

Briscoe will be making his third Indy 500 start with his third different team. He has two top-10 finishes thus far, which defends any inconsistency issues Briscoe must face. Unfortunately for Briscoe, he drives for Roger Penske, who demands victories, not just consistent top-10 finishes.

In years past, even dating back to the 70s and 80s, Penske Racing was always a shoe-in for at least a top-3 finish. This year is not the case. Penske Racing will go as far as Castroneves can take them, but Briscoe is the black sheep of the team who will need an inspiring finish if he wants to remain behind the wheel of No. 6 car.

WHY A PENSKE CAR WILL WIN:

Roger Penske hates to lose. He especially hates to lose at Indianapolis. Penske has 14 reasons why he has been nicknamed “The Captain.” He dedicates his entire year towards the Indianapolis 500. He finds the best drivers to strap into his superior machines (this year might be the lone exception).

If a Penske car rolls into victory lane, it will occur only after Castroneves has climbed the fence for the third time in eight years. Unlike Ganassi Racing and AGR, Penske Racing has a weak link in that of Ryan Briscoe. Briscoe does not deserve to drive in the same car driven by names such as Mears, Unser, Unser, Jr., and Fittipaldi.

Castroneves will have to carry Penske Racing with his experience, killer instinct, and his ability to dance around his fellow competitors.