Roger Penske Is Closing In On His First Rolex 24 At Daytona Victory Since 1969 – News18

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.: Roger Penske was in place to win the Rolex 24 at Daytona for the primary time since 1969 when one in every of his two Porsche entries — the one with Indianapolis 500 winner Josef Newgarden within the lineup — was main with beneath 4 hours remaining Sunday.

Penske final gained probably the most prestigious endurance race within the United States 54 years in the past with a lineup of Mark Donohue and Chuck Parsons, who was flown within the day earlier than the race as a result of common driver Ronnie Bucknum fractured his finger in a bike accident.

Team Penske additionally gained the GT class in 1966 however has been chasing the general Rolex victory since ’69.

Cadillac dominated your complete lead-as much as the twice-round-the-clock race at Daytona International Speedway, and it appeared sure that both defending IMSA sequence champion Action Express Racing or Chip Ganassi Racing would win when the checkered flag waved Sunday.

But the Ganassi automobile was eradicated with an engine failure in the course of the in a single day stints, and Penske took the lead with just below six hours remaining. Felipe Nasr handed Jack Aitken on observe to take the lead and constructed a lead of greater than 4 seconds.

A win would cap a exceptional stretch for Penske, probably the most embellished group proprietor in motor sports activities historical past. In the final eight months, he gained a report-extending nineteenth Indy 500 with Newgarden’s victory, claimed again-to-again NASCAR Cup titles when Ryan Blaney gained in November and celebrated the achievements at business occasions in early December and final week. He and Newgarden have been feted on the Henry Ford Museum in Michigan and offered with their very own duplicate Indy 500 trophies.

Newgarden had been asking Penske for years to drive Team Penske vehicles in different racing sequence, and he wasn’t sure the Indy 500 victory was sufficient to earn him a Rolex seat. But he was critical about not being a hinderance to a lineup that features Nasr, Dane Cameron and Matt Campbell.

“He’s fit in perfectly with the team, he’s easy to get along with and obviously very experienced within the Penske organization,” Campbell mentioned. “That makes it quite easy for him. It’s good having a guy like him, he brings a lot of experience in different ways. I know coming from IndyCar, it is quite different. But he’s brought some new ideas to the table.

“Having someone with his expertise in a different style of racing has really boosted us, and he’s been able to adapt very well.”

Newgarden mentioned his solely aim was to be a constructive addition to the Porsche group.

“When I come to work with guys like Matt or Felipe or Dane, I’m learning something new and I’m seeing a new perspective that I’ve never seen before,” Newgarden mentioned. “I haven’t run sports cars that often, definitely not as much as these guys. So they have a way of looking at things or approaching situations much differently than we do.

“I think that can be really positive. When I say be an additive, it doesn’t mean have 100 good ideas and they are going to take all of them. But if you have 100 good ideas, there might be 10 that are applicable, and that would be an additive. I’ve got that fresh perspective.”

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AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

(This story has not been edited by News18 employees and is revealed from a syndicated information company feed – Associated Press)