By David Morgan, Associate Editor
INDIANAPOLIS – Team Penske has been under fire in recent days following the scandal that came to light last Sunday in regards to the modifications the team had made to its cars prior to qualifying for the 109th Indianapolis 500.
Since then, the cars of two-time and defending winner Josef Newgarden and 2018 winner Will Power have been relegated to the back of the field instead of starting on Row Four, along with three of the top generals at Team Penske being axed from the team on Wednesday morning.
With race day fast approaching, all three of the Team Penske drivers (Newgarden, Power, and Scott McLaughlin) are hoping to tune out the outside noise as the trio looks to deliver a third win in a row in the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.
Newgarden and Power will have their work cut out coming from the back of the field, while McLaughlin will try to do so from 10th place in a car that has been rebuilt since his high-flying crash last Sunday morning in practice.
“It’s kind of a shock and a pity,” Power said of the release of the team executives on Wednesday. “They’re all extremely good at their job. Yeah, it was just the pressure from outside. I guess Roger had to make a tough decision, but I can tell you these were very credible people. They really were. As you know, the infraction was very minor. It wasn’t a performance gain…
“But yeah, I feel bad for everyone involved in that situation. I really do. It’s just a tough — I don’t know what else to say. They’re all extremely good people, great at their job, won a lot of races, championships, created an incredible team.
“Yeah, a real pity.”
Power added that even with all of this hanging over the entire organization, his sole focus is to go out and have the best performance possible on Sunday and hopefully turn the tide back in a more positive direction going forward.
“I’ve been around long enough to shut that stuff out and still focus on the thing that you’re here to do, and that’s to get the absolute most out of the car,” said Power.
“You still have to do your homework. You can’t be distracted by all this. My main focus is Sunday, and that’s true. I’m not too swept up in it. I’ve got plenty of time after the race to think about that, but we’re coming up on the biggest race of the year for us.
“Yeah, I think everyone — I feel like everyone on the team is positive and very motivated. I think being the driver you need to show that this is not affecting you, and you’re very focused on the job at hand, and I am. I am. I haven’t allowed too much emotional stress to take away energy that I need on Sunday.
“Tough situation, but we still got a job to do.”
Newgarden: “I Just See a Bigger Mountain”
Never before has a driver won the Indy 500 three times in a row and the tall task that Josef Newgarden had ahead of him to start the month has obviously gotten a lot harder having to start from the last row when the green flag drops on Sunday.
“Right now I’m trying to remain – what’s the way to put this – trying to remain happy. This is the Indy 500. I just said it at the very beginning, too. I look forward to this time of year every season,” said Newgarden.
“I can’t wait. We’re going to have a sold-out crowd here for the Indianapolis 500, as it should be. To see all the people that show up and make this what it is, I look forward to that.
“That’s how I feel right now. I’m ready to go racing. I know I have a good car. I’m ready to work with my team and hopefully put on a good show. There’s no guarantees, but I’m ready to rock.”
Despite the challenge of coming from the rear of the field on Sunday, Newgarden is taking it all in stride, even with the added difficulty of the poor track position at the start.
“I just see a bigger mountain. That’s all I see,” he said.
He continued, noting that even starting from the tail end of the field, the No. 2 team still has as good a chance as anyone to once again capture the Borg-Warner Trophy.
“You can win this race from any seat in the house. There’s no bad seat in this house. I like saying that, too. I love listening to where people sit and hearing their stories. There’s just no bad seat at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. I think that goes for the starting grid, too,” said Newgarden.
“I like the challenge coming from 32nd. I don’t know what the day looks like, it’s so hard to predict. We do have a great car. It just seems to be getting better every year. I’m trying to protect that right now.
“It’s one of these things where every day changes a little bit at the Speedway. You have to stay on top of it. Sunday is really going to be the day that counts. We have to make sure we’re in the right place for that day. If we can do that, we should be in a good spot.”
McLaughlin Fired Up Over Penalties, Aims to Deliver Victory for Roger Penske
While Scott McLaughlin’s car was the lone Penske entry to not be found with modified parts in qualifying, the New Zealander is still just as fired up about the shockwaves that the revelation has sent across the team and the paddock in recent days.
With the way the scandal has loomed over the entire organization, McLaughlin was quick to stand up for his team owner and those that lost their jobs in the wake of everything, explaining that it has only strengthened his resolve to go out and win on Sunday.
“At the end of the day I drive for Roger Penske. I respect the decision. I understand the decision. We move forward. I think I’m disappointed in some of my peers and people in this room, just how it was taken out of proportion in some ways,” said McLaughlin.
“At the same time, I think people forget just what Roger’s done for this sport in general, and that definitely gets thrown to the side a little bit, which I find a hard time not being passionate about that.
“But ultimately what’s done is done. This happened. We have to move forward. The penalties are accepted. Personally, I think I had the fastest car, I put it in the fence. I didn’t have what was said. Smart people in this paddock know there was no gain with that, you know?
“It’s frustrating that this is blown up like it has and it’s cost three people that I’m very close with their jobs. But overall, my view on it right now is just to focus forward and win Roger his 21st.”
Despite having to try and pull off the win in a backup car, McLaughlin remains just as confident as he was with his primary car that had been one of the fastest all month prior to his crash.
“It’s right there. It’s a brand-new car, brand-new chassis, brand-new speedway car. It’s a purpose-built speedway car. Unfortunately, in the circumstance we have a crash like this, we had a car like that ready to go. Just bolted my race motor, all the race uprights, everything that I had one earlier in practice,” said McLaughlin.
“Honestly Monday felt very close. We just had a couple things not quite at upright that affected some setup and stuff. Ironed that out, had a good week to prepare, and things should be just as fast.”
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