Special Indianapolis 500 Edition with Indy 500 Pole Winner Scott McLaughlin, Roger Penske, 2021 NASCAR Cup Series Champion Kyle Larson, Jeff Gordon and much, much more

ROGER:

This is Roger Penske and you're listening to Pit Pass Indie, sponsored by Penske Truck Rental.

BRUCE:

IndyCar fans, it's time to start your engines. Welcome to Pit Pass Indy, a production of Evergreen Podcast. I'm your host, Bruce Martin, a journalist who regularly covers the NTT IndyCar Series. Our goal at Pit Pass Indy is to give racing fans and insiders view of the exciting world of the NTT IndyCar Series in a fast-paced podcast featuring interviews with the biggest names in the sport. I bring nearly 40 years of experience covering IndyCar and NASCAR, working for such media brands as NBCSports.com, SI.com, ESPN SportsTicker, Sports Illustrated, AutoWeek and SpeedSport. So let's drop the green flag on this episode of Pit Pass Indy. Welcome to this week's edition of Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental, as we continue our fourth season of giving IndyCar fans a behind-the-scenes look at the NTT IndyCar Series and the drivers and teams that compete in the Indianapolis 500. It's race week for the 108th Indianapolis 500 on Sunday, May 26. It's the biggest day of the year for many residents in the state of Indiana and for IndyCar fans worldwide who have a deep love and appreciation for the history, the traditions, and the magnitude of the Indianapolis 500, the world's largest single-day sporting event. This episode of Pit Pass Indy reviews a thrilling qualification weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Saturday, May 18, and Sunday, May 19. When it was all over, Team Penske's Scott McLaughlin won the Indianapolis 500 pole for the first time in his career as he was the fastest driver in both the Fast 12 and the Fast 6 that determined the pole position. McLaughlin's four lap average of 234.220 miles per hour in the number three Pennzoil Chevrolet for Team Penske is the fastest pole speed in Indianapolis 500 history. Team Penske swept the front row with McLaughlin on the pole. 2018 Indy 500 winner Will Powers number 12 Verizon Chevrolet in the middle of row one and defending Indy 500 winner Josef Newgarden on the outside of row one. It's just the second time in history the same team has swept all three positions on the front row. The only other time that happened was in 1988 when team Penske's Rick Mears won the poll, teammate Danny Sullivan was in the middle, and Al Unser was on the outside of row one. Mears went on to win that year's Indy 500, the third of his four Indianapolis 500 victories. McLaughlin's pole is a record 19th Indy 500 pole for Team Penske. It's the second fastest field in Indianapolis 500 history with a field average of 231.943 miles per hour, falling just short of last year's record. I had a chance to spend time in McLaughlin after he won the pole for this exclusive Pit Pass Indy interview. Joining us now on Pit Pass Indy is a man who you can now call an Indianapolis 500 poll winner. It's Scott McLaughlin of Team Penske. Scott, all the way back to the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, your teammate willpower guaranteed that a Penske was going to win the poll for the Indianapolis 500. Today you backed it up. with a team Penske sweep of the front row. How big a day is this in your career?

SCOTT:

Huge. This is probably the biggest moment of my career in terms of just pole positions, but yeah, Will put a lot of pressure on us, I guess. I don't know why he said that, but he's a very instinctive person and yeah, it's full credit to him for having the belief in the boys. It's not that I didn't have the belief in the boys, but at the end of the day, it's It's very hard to do this and to do this nowadays in this competitive era, it's amazing to be the front row for Penske the first time since 88.

BRUCE:

It's the fastest pole speed for an Indianapolis 500 pole winner. You had a four-lap average of 234.220 miles per hour over a four-lap run, 10 miles. Nobody's ever gone faster that's won the pole. There has been a driver that's gone faster in qualifying, but it was Ari Leyendijk in 1996. But it came on the second day, so it didn't count for the pole. He had to start back around 21st position. You now have the record as the fastest pole winner beating Alex Pillow's time from last year. But to have a record at the Indianapolis 500 so soon after you joined IndyCar, how do you even begin to describe how far you've come in adapting to IndyCar racing?

SCOTT:

That's amazing. And ultimately, probably the last time that we do it in the non-hybrid era. So it's a pretty special moment. But yeah, it's taken a lot of hard work. You know, at the end of the day, this has been our happy hunting ground from a qualifying perspective for a long time and at least since I joined the team. So, to deliver Roger 1-2-3 is super special and it's his house now. So, it's cool to be able to give him that opportunity.

BRUCE:

It's his house now and I noticed that he walked down pit lane and joined the celebration on pit lane with your team. He looked not only happy but satisfied in the fact that After everything that's happened with the team over the last three weeks, that this is now a huge signal that Team Penske's back.

SCOTT:

Yeah, I mean, we believed it. And it takes something like that, that's an amazing opportunity that we just did there to do what we did and put the car on the pole. What a cool thing for him. And I'm privileged to be able to do that. And the speed we did it at to do a record was fantastic. I still kind of count Ari's record for sure. But at least it's in the top three, which is pretty cool. But now it's full focus, man. We've got good race cars. Certainly all three of us do. And we want to focus on what's ahead next week.

BRUCE:

All cars in the Fast Six were Chevrolets. The front row is all Team Penske Chevrolets. And the top eight cars are Chevrolets. What is it about Chevy power that is the power to have at this year's 108th Indianapolis 500?

SCOTT:

Look, Chevy, from the get-go last year, have done such an amazing job working hard, listening to our feedback. We've said that from the start from St. Pete. You know, that was just, it's been fantastic. So we knew we had decent power even before we came here, which was going to help with making our cars better as well. But yeah, true testament to everyone in Detroit and Elmore and the people that put things together. That's an amazing feat and I actually didn't know that until you told me that.

BRUCE:

But in Saturday's qualifications, there was a couple of plenum fires. Six Chevrolets suffered plenum fire issues. Which easiest way to explain what a plenum fire is, is the fuel builds up, and then when there's a downshift, it'll ignite. Basically, it's a backfire in a car. For people that used to have cars that had carburetors, you would get too much gasoline into the carburetor, it would ignite, and you'd get this loud backfire sound. But were you surprised that there were that many? We hadn't seen any plenum fires since probably when Pat O'Ward was leading at the end of the 2023 race at St. Pete. He had a plenum issue, cut the power. Marcus Ericcson went on and won that race. Were you concerned about the plenum issue?

SCOTT:

A little bit, to the point that we didn't shift today. you know, that's how close we have to be to the limit. You know, Honda's doing the same thing, we're doing the same thing. I guess we've had a couple issues with that, you know, with plenum fires over the last few years since I've been in the category, but they've worked pretty hard to stop that. But, you know, we're getting to the end of the... time with this motor before the hybrid era that you're trying to look for every little bit in the boost level now and we only get to run the boost level basically on Friday to get a feel for everything. I think Chevy did an amazing job at least communicating to us exactly the problems that they were having within reason and we're able to at least tune for it.

BRUCE:

So the way the Fast 12 works, the fastest driver out of that session will go last in the Fast 6. You were the fastest driver in the Fast 12, which meant you got to go last. Next to last driver that got to go out was Will Power, and he turned a four-lap average of 233.917. Pretty big number to shoot for, but it became apparent on your first two laps when you were in the 234 range that if you complete all four laps, you're going to win the poll. How did you have that much better speed?

SCOTT:

Look, obviously going last is a good thing, especially when your teammates are ahead of you. We tuned it to make sure it was feeling good and the track temp was going down. So you ultimately have the best conditions if you hit the balance at the right time. But at the end of the day, we were second last out in the fast 12 and we did a better job than the 12 to get that fast six positioning. Ultimately, I think the pole came from our performance in the fast 12.

BRUCE:

And also Josef Newgarden, starting on the outside of the front row, 233.808. He's working with a new race strategist and working with a new race engineer for this race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He gets Tim Sendrick and his race engineer back when we get to Detroit. Will Power and Newgarden had a couple of different people working for him on the stand. You were one of the lucky ones. You got to keep your crew intact. And how valuable has that been during the month of May here at the Indianapolis 500?

SCOTT:

Well, I did lose my spotter. John Buzlog was my turn three spotter, and we worked for the last couple of years together, but now I've got Chris Yoder, which is great. But at the end of the day, we drive for Team Penske. Roger makes decisions, and you respect it. We all ask questions and whatnot, and that's what he determined were the people that were going to be suspended. It sucks in all round, but it shows the depth of talent we've got to fill those roles. They're up to scratch of Tim and all those people. But yeah, thankful that I was able to mostly keep my team for sure.

BRUCE:

The bench is so deep at Team Penske that I would say that your third and fourth string may be stronger than most IndyCar Series first strings.

SCOTT:

But that comes with a lot of hard work too. Your performance and the way you look after your people, and Roger's amazing with that.

BRUCE:

You're going to be a father. You and your wife Carly are going to have a daughter coming up here this year. What a way to kick off 2024 with an Indy 500 pole. You're in the bright yellow Pennzoil submarine on the 40th anniversary of Rick Muir's victory. In that 1984 Indianapolis 500, it's the last time the winning driver beat the field by two laps.

SCOTT:

I don't know if that's going to happen this year.

BRUCE:

I doubt that that'll happen with the current rules in IndyCar, but when you think of the history, everything that's involved with Rick Mears, the yellow submarine, how honored do you feel to be wearing those Pennzoil colors?

SCOTT:

privileged and then to have him in my corner is an absolute bonus as well. Forty years since he won, as you said, and ultimately I feel like that's a little bit of an omen. So we'll just keep working our tails off and hopefully we can put it in.

BRUCE:

The other thing about Rick Mears is that was the second of his four Indianapolis 500 victories. Other important thing about team Penske in 1988, they swept the front row. No single team had ever done that in the history of the Indianapolis 500 until then. Nobody has done it since until today. Wow. I didn't know that. So you're part of a second team that's ever done this, and how cool is that to be part of that?

SCOTT:

That's actually probably the coolest thing of the day. I didn't know that. You know, one, getting the record for pole, but then to know that that record is the first since then, that's pretty awesome. But it's come with a lot of hard work, and I'm just privileged to drive the car, and I'm proud of everyone down there.

BRUCE:

So turning the page here at Team Penske, like I said, the dark days of the last couple of weeks are now over. Now on to bigger and brighter things. It's the week of the Indianapolis 500. A lot of personal appearances. It's the best week of the year to be an IndyCar driver. You're the star of the show. Everybody talks about the Indianapolis 500. So what's the rest of your week going to be like? Cause I'm sure you're going to be pretty busy talking to a lot of sponsors, going to a lot of dinners and trying to squeeze in when I need to be in bed, get ready to race on Sunday.

SCOTT:

Oh, you've got to control it. And the team are really good with that. But it's going to be a busy week. I don't know what's going to entail. I mean, it's 7.30 right now after getting pole about three hours ago, two hours ago. So, you know, it's already got pretty busy. But look, end of the day, it's part of the business. And I'm just going to soak this in as much as I can and start my fourth Indy 500 from the pole for the very first time.

BRUCE:

And how important is Carb Day? It's the final two-hour practice for the team. After that, the cars get put away. You have the parade and the driver's meeting on Saturday. You go to another dinner or two on the night before the race. What time do you try to be in bed the night before the Indy 500?

SCOTT:

Normally 10. Yeah, I don't try and change my routine too much, but knowing that the cannon goes off and you can hear it well and truly from the bus slot and the fireworks and whatnot, you're always up at 6 a.m. and you can't get back to sleep. So I'm always trying to get back 9, 30, 10 and expect to be woken up pretty early.

BRUCE:

You're already a legend in Australian supercars, three-time champion, you won the Bathurst 1000, now you are an IndyCar driver. And does it surprise you how quickly you have become an IndyCar star?

SCOTT:

I believe in my talent, I believe hard work prevails, and I'm also very lucky that I have an amazing team, and an amazing car to drive for, and cars to drive, and people to work with. I'll just take this in my stride, but ultimately the biggest win of my career awaits, and that's winning the Indianapolis 500.

BRUCE:

And what does it take to win the Indianapolis 500? It's not often that we see the poll winner necessarily win the race, but it has to be an advantage, at least in the early going.

SCOTT:

Yeah, I think so. I mean, we'll just take it bit by bit, control what we can control, but, you know, I'm happy to change that stat a little bit. And, um, yeah, I think it's going to be, you're just going to need a perfect day of execution. You know, it's, it is what it is. And it's like Christmas day. Not everyone gets a present. The only person that's going to be happy is a guy that wins at the end of the day. So that is what it is.

BRUCE:

Well, you're going to have a little one for Christmas, so you're going to need to buy a lot of presents if you're going to, you know, when you become a dad. But the one thing's for sure, this week leading up to race day at the Indianapolis 500, Scott McLaughlin is going to be the king of Indy for this week. I'm sure that's a crown that you are more than happy to put on your head. I'll look after it for anyone. Thanks. There he is, the poll winner for the 108th Indianapolis 500, Scott McLaughlin, driver of the Pennzoil Chevrolet for Team Penske. Congratulations on a record Indy 500 poll run. Congratulations to the team for sweeping the front row at Team Penske. Good luck in the Indy 500, and thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental.

SCOTT:

Thank you for having me, Bruce, as always.

BRUCE:

Behind every great qualification attempt is an engineering staff that helps create the setup on the race car that is faster than the competition. For Scott McLachlan, that man is race engineer Ben Bretzman. Here is my exclusive interview of Ben Bretzman on pit lane shortly after McLachlan and his team celebrated the Indy 500 pole. Joining us now on pit pass Indy is Ben Britsman, the race engineer for Indianapolis 500 pole winner Scott McLaughlin.

BEN:

It's got to be one of the great moments of your career. Oh, yeah. I mean, this one's hard to get, particularly today. Track temp got up to like 130 degrees. It was 90 degrees ambient. It was hot, so you had to go earn this one. Scott has been working his tail off the last three or four days, trying to really focus in on this race. We haven't left any stone unturned and yeah, very proud, very proud of what he did and all the effort everybody's put in.

BRUCE:

You also have to be very proud of the team because it's been a rough couple of weeks for the team. You're here without Tim Sendrick and Ron Rzewski, two key members, and also two key members of the engineering staff, Luke Mason and Robbie Atkinson, but it seems like the team only dug deeper and came back even stronger.

BEN:

Yeah, for sure. It's been a lot. I don't think people realize When they're here, it's, you know, our operations have been affected pretty drastically. So Kyle Moyer and Dave Faustino and myself had to kind of step up and fill some voids, and everybody on the team's had to step up because operationally it's been a pretty big hit. But everybody dug deep and did a great job, and I'm super proud of everyone.

BRUCE:

And the fact that Scott McLaughlin, star on the rise, has come in here and added his name to a very important statistic in the Indianapolis 500, that of being a poll winner, How proud are you of the development of Scott McLaughlin here at Team Penske?

BEN:

Oh, he's amazing. It's to the moon, as always. He got his first pole last year in Gateway. Super proud of that effort, and he's figuring these things out. It's not easy, right? You look back at Will Power, you look back at Simon Paginot. That took him a little while, and then all of a sudden they're really strong, and he's the same way. He's soaking it up like a sponge and doing everything he needs to do, and he's doing a great job.

BRUCE:

and also the 40th anniversary of Rick Mears driving the yellow Pennzoil submarine to victory in the 1984 Indianapolis 500. The last time the Indy 500 race has been won by more by two laps. I don't think There's going to be a two-lap margin of victory this year, but when you think of that historic achievement, and on the 40th anniversary, to put Pennzoil back at the top, how important is that for the team?

BEN:

It's massive. Let's face it, we haven't run well enough with the Yellow Submarine in the last few years, and it's such an iconic car around IMS, and to kind of have that car on the front row, particularly on pole, I think it means a lot to not only the Pennzoil folks, but I think, you know, for Team Penske as a whole, for as much history as we have with that car, it's a really big step for us to try to keep that thing, you know, keep its history strong.

BRUCE:

And how much do you get to celebrate this tonight before you have to get up bright and early tomorrow and turn the car back over to race trim?

BEN:

We'll do a little bit, but yeah, tomorrow's gonna be even hotter than today, and we gotta do this with all of our 32 other friends, so it's gonna be a lot of work in the morning for sure, but we'll celebrate. You have to always celebrate when you have accomplishments, and that's a big key of mine.

BRUCE:

Well, Ben Bretzman, race engineer for Scott McLaughlin at Team Penske, congratulations on winning the poll for the 108th Indianapolis 500, and thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental. No worries, thank you so much. We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

SCOTT:

Hi, I'm Scott McLaughlin, driver of the number three team Penske Chevy, and you're listening to Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Trucking.

BRUCE:

Welcome back to this week's Pit Pass Indy. Another key storyline at the Indianapolis 500 is 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson's first attempt at the Indy 500. Larson has proven why he is considered one of the best and most versatile drivers in the world. The rookie driver has been fast nearly every day at the Indy 500 and made the fast 12 on Saturday and advanced into the fast six during Sunday's qualifications. Here is my exclusive interview with Kyle Larson after he easily made the Fast 12 during Saturday's qualifications for Pit Pass Indy. Kyle Larson is joining us again on Pit Pass Indy. Kyle, you're getting the full Indianapolis 500 experience. Things have gone so well for you until this morning on the first run. What exactly happened on your last lap to where the engine cut off?

KYLE:

Yeah, I don't know the exact terminology for it, but I'm gonna butcher this penile, penilem? Plenum. Plenum. The plenum. Plenum fire. There was a plenum fire, and the engine shut off, or, you know, cut power, so, yeah, I just, I, and then I, I don't know, I didn't know what to do to get that to kick back to normal, so, yeah, I pitted.

BRUCE:

I guess you've never had a plenum fire on a cup car before. I don't know what plenum is, so. I think it's the part of where the manifold connects in, but anyway. You just know how to drive it. Taking it back into the garage, correcting the problem, going back out. Your second run, heat of the day, pretty good run. You're sixth at the moment. To be able to do that in the heat of the day, how important is that for you to see how good the car is under different weather conditions here?

KYLE:

Yeah, no, that was good. I was pleased with it. I did not expect to go that fast. I thought, you know, maybe we would be around 10th or worse, but I could tell early on in the run, you know, based off the RPMs and the speed that I felt like I was carrying into turn three with the tailwind, I thought it could be good. So I was just hoping the balance wasn't gonna go away too much, and thankfully it didn't. So yeah, happy about that run.

BRUCE:

Six at the moment, looks pretty good for you to be in the fast 12. Would you say right now that you're in, you're not going to do any more running today, or is there a possibility to just be prepared just in case later on we see a free-for-all of activity?

KYLE:

Yeah, I mean, I think at this point our team feels confident that we'll make the Fast 12, but I did hear that we might make another run just to try and gain some knowledge for tomorrow.

BRUCE:

All in all, what do you think of your first Indy 500 effort? Like I said, you've experienced some really good moments. It wasn't really a bad moment, except for the rain and your first qualifying effort today.

KYLE:

Yeah, no, it's been a really good experience. A lot of fun here. Qualifying days is way less stressful than I thought it would be. I think maybe if your car speed wasn't there, it'd be more stressful and chaotic, but it's been pretty organized and flowing smooth.

BRUCE:

You're a popular guy in NASCAR Sprint Cup racing, but what do you say about the way the fans have taken you here at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway?

KYLE:

I definitely feel way more popular here. I think just because I'm doing something unique, but it's been a lot of fun. I've tried to take as much time and sign autographs and take pictures for fans. I feel like I've signed more than 1,000 autographs since I've been here, so it's been enjoyable. I've loved seeing all the orange and blue, 17 gear, and yeah, look forward to seeing more fans turn out the rest of the week.

BRUCE:

How about some of your sprint car and dirt track gear? Have you seen a lot of your fans wearing that?

KYLE:

Yeah, definitely a little bit of the 57 gear. some number six late model stuff as well. So yeah, Indiana's obviously got a ton of dirt racing fans here. So yeah, I've seen my fair share and it makes me feel good.

BRUCE:

Also to have Jeff Gordon and Jeff Andrews here today. How cool is that to experience your first Indianapolis 500 qualifications with Jeff Gordon and Jeff Andrews at Hendrick Motorsports?

KYLE:

Yeah, no, it's been special. I mean, it's been special for me to experience this, but I think what makes it even more enjoyable for me is getting to have all these other people experience it with me. So, Jeff Gordon, Jeff Andrews, we'll get to have Rick Hendrick here next week. My five team's gonna come on carb day. you know, my family, my kids, friends, like anybody who's close to me, getting them to come here and enjoy the experience as well has been very nice. So, glad to have Jeff here, glad to put in a good run with them here, and look forward to talking to Rick here on the phone a little bit.

BRUCE:

So tonight, do you now just think about what it's gonna take tomorrow, two runs, hopefully two runs, to win the pole?

KYLE:

Yeah, I guess. I don't know. I think for me, I just try to go out there and hit my marks and let the car speed end up wherever the car speed's at.

BRUCE:

And then how do you prepare for the race? I know in the past you said you just drive. You don't spend too much time thinking about it. You just drive the race car. Are you going to take that same approach in a race week?

KYLE:

Well, I mean, I do my fair share of studying. So, yeah, I just keep Watching film, I mean, there's no SMT and stuff to match up with all that, so it's a little bit tougher to learn, I feel like, on this side, but just watch some video and try to be ready.

BRUCE:

And final question, experience this with the family. Can't get any better than that.

KYLE:

Yeah, no, it's been great. I think you've enjoyed it, right, Owen? Yeah, yeah, he's enjoyed it.

BRUCE:

All right, Kyle Larson, good luck. Good luck in next week's Indianapolis 500. By making the Fast 12, Larson advanced in the Sunday's round of qualifications that trimmed the group to the Fast Six. A final round among the Fast Six determined the Indy 500 pole winner and the order of position in the first two rows. I caught up with NASCAR legend Jeff Gordon, who is vice chairman of Hendrick Motorsports, Larson's team in NASCAR that is partnering with Arrow McLaren for this year's Indianapolis 500. Gordon is a racing legend who spent his formative years in nearby Pittsburgh, Indiana, and earned a special place in Indianapolis Motor Speedway history as the first winner of the Brickyard 400 in 1994. He would win five Brickyard 400s, the most of any driver in the NASCAR race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Here is my exclusive interview with Gordon for Pit Pass Indy. When you came up with the idea, or granted Kyle Larson the idea that you'd be able to come up here and do the Hendrick 1100, did you think he would be a candidate for the Fast Six this quickly?

JEFF:

You know, you never know what to expect. So many things have to line up, right? And the people you surround yourself with and the team and power plant, you know, and then getting Kyle up to speed. But, you know, I will say that a lot of planning has gone into a lot of hard work, and that's what's paying off, you know, today. But, I mean, nothing really surprised me what Kyle does anymore. Used to, but not anymore. You know, we're just excited that we've had a few bumps in the road, but rebounded really well.

BRUCE:

He's living up to his title being the most versatile driver in racing by how quickly he's adapted to this.

JEFF:

Well, I think because he drives so many different types of race cars, you know, he adapts to things very, very quickly. And so that part's not surprising. But this is such a huge change, right? I mean, you're talking about, you know, rear engine car and and going out running four laps all the adjustments that you have to make it there's a lot that goes into this so been pretty impressed but at the same time not surprised because Kyle you know he's not just a talented driver he puts the effort in of what it takes to be in the lead or be at the top so I know he's had to study a lot for this one going well right now and Kyle's doing an amazing job he's you know had so much to learn and yet he's applying all of it as well as you could ever imagine anybody could. Yeah and your timing is everything you know about getting here and with the team and the power plant. The arrow, everything, and right now it's looking really good. Things have lined up well. We'll see if we can continue to make that work for Kyle and the team all the way through next Sunday.

BRUCE:

Oh, by the way, he's got a million dollars to race for later tonight at North Wilkesboro Speedway in the NASCAR All-Star Race.

JEFF:

Yes, he does, and he reminds us about that all the time. And I can tell you, nobody's more eager to get down to North Wilkes-Barrel after this day's over than he is to go for that million.

BRUCE:

And finally, how cool would it be to take an Indy 500 pole trophy with you back to North Wilkes-Barrel?

JEFF:

That's going to be a tough, tall order. I mean, we just saw Rossi run fast. We know how strong those Penske cars are. See if we can tweak on a little bit for this next six, but not going to get too far ahead of ourselves. Do you ever wish that was you in that ride? You know, of course I would have loved to have had this opportunity way back in the day, but today I couldn't be happier with who's behind the wheel of this car.

BRUCE:

Jeff Gordon, good luck. Thank you. Afterwards, Larson continued to be impressive in the Fast Six and will start his first Indianapolis 500 in fifth starting position after qualifying with a four-lap average of 232.846 miles per hour in the number 17 Chevrolet. Here is a quick interview I had with Larson after his final qualification effort, and before he hopped a helicopter, then a private jet, to fly to North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, where he finished fourth in the NASCAR All-Star Race Sunday night.

KYLE:

Yeah, just happy. It's really cool. It's gone much better than I ever could have anticipated or ever hoped. So just proud of everybody at Arrow McLaren. We're proud of everybody at Hendrick Motorsports. Thankful for Rick Hendrick and Linda Hendrick for allowing me to do this. And yeah, it's been a great week so far. So look forward to now switching to qualifying mode, or sorry, race mode, and see what I can learn there to get ready for the race. I'm happy to not have to run another qualifying run. I'll be honest like it It wasn't that stressful, but then each time you go out, it just gets more stressful because you know that they're going to trim the car out more. You know they're trying to find that extra little speed. And you just, in my mind, who doesn't have experience, you think it's going to be harder to drive. So just the nerves going out each time is more and more every time. So glad we've made it through it, and glad I don't have to run another four laps in qualifying trip.

BRUCE:

How much fun was it to go through that whole experience, fast 12, then fast six?

KYLE:

Yeah, no, it's really fun. And, um, yeah, I was hoping to make you a fast 12. Uh, and then, yeah, we, we qualified well, you know, yesterday and, um, and then, you know, I thought we might have a shot at fast six. So, yeah, just, uh, you know, Again, proud of the team, really. I mean, I'm just holding it flat. Obviously, I've got to hit my marks and stuff, but the car has got to be fast, so they did a really good job.

BRUCE:

As a race fan, are you just excited to see the crowd reaction with these speeds we're seeing right now from the other drivers?

KYLE:

Yeah, qualifying is a fun atmosphere. Everything about Indy is a great atmosphere, so yeah. But now I'm ready to go drive a stock car, so I'll talk to you guys later.

BRUCE:

Now you've got a million dollars to win. We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

JOSEF:

Hey everybody, this is Josef Newgarden, winner of the 107th Indianapolis 500, and you're listening to Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental.

BRUCE:

Welcome back to Pit Pass Indy. Just two years ago, Marcus Ericcson won the Indianapolis 500 in 2022. Last year, he finished second in a wild one-lap dash to the checkered flag against Team Penske's Josef Newgarden. Past success at Indianapolis means nothing, though, and Ericsson discovered that when he was among the four slowest drivers in Saturday's qualifications. That sent him into last chance qualifying, where the four slowest drivers were competing for the final three positions in the starting lineup. Ericsson made a major error on his qualification attempt on Sunday when he got off the throttle after three laps instead of four. He had to wait for his Honda engine to cool before he could make one last qualifying effort. He posted a four-lap average of 230.027 miles per hour in the number 28 Honda for Andretti Global. That put him 32nd on the grid and moved Graham Rahal to the bubble. 19-year-old rookie Nolan Siegel was the last driver to make an attempt, but when he hit the Turn 1 wall at the beginning of his second lap, it assured both Ericsson and Rahal were in this year's Indianapolis 500 lineup. Here is my interview with Ericsson on the pit wall just moments after last chance qualifications came to an end.

MARCUS:

Sure made it hard for myself this week. Yeah, there was a lot of pressure there in the end and Yeah, it was tough to wait for that last run. And I know I had one shot, so, yeah. It's tough, but it's good. We had to trim out, and the car's been really hard for me to drive all since my crash, you know, so... It was a very, very tough mental challenge, for sure. You live and learn, right? No, that was all on me. We've done the same all week. We've been doing, I don't know, 58 qualifying runs this week, and it feels like it's always been the same countdown, so... It's just all me, I messed that up and I shouldn't be doing that with my experience. We're going to change procedure going forward for sure. The issue was that I backed off a lap too early. I thought I'd done the run. It was my mistake. The team did a really good job and gave me a good car. The run would have been good enough to make it safely through. But it made it quite tough the next 45 minutes after that because of that mistake. It was extremely tough because around here, especially on a day like today, You do a lot of cool-down with the cars before a quali run, and when we'd just done one, I knew my car was going to be quite a bit slower, so we had to trim out. It reminded me of the last two years here. The last two years have been red flagged, and at the end of the race, I've been leading both those two years. I've been sitting here waiting for green with all the pressure in the world on my shoulders. I think that somehow helped me there in the end when I was sitting there waiting and knowing that I had one shot to get into the race. Yeah, this place sure brings a lot of pressure for me for some reason, but yeah, made it work today. Our race car before the crash was one of the best in the field. I don't know if we can get this car to that feeling in the practice sessions we have left, but we're sure going to try. This team has worked so hard the last few days and it's been incredible to see that. I'm very thankful to make sure we're in the biggest race in the world next weekend. I know my way around here, I know how to race here and anything can happen on race day. Looking forward to that. It was tough, man. especially after what I did on the first run. It's one thing if you don't have the speed and you can't make it, but when you have the speed and you have a run that's good enough and you do a complete error, then it's... If I didn't get into this race, I don't know. I probably should just fly home to Sweden and retire. That was important for me that I got it done in the end. Yeah, I mean, let's work on race car now. Thank God for this weekend that it's over.

BRUCE:

Does that just illustrate the pressure that happens at Indy 500 qualifying? It's the best drivers getting to make a mistake like you made on that cut.

MARCUS:

Yeah, I think it does. I felt like I was really in a good place mentally for that last run. The first run, I felt like I executed it perfectly, but obviously missed the count of the laps, so that's... Unacceptable on my level, but it happened and I had to regroup and get it done.

BRUCE:

Rough 24 hours for you?

MARCUS:

Rough couple of days, I gotta say. Since that crash, it's been an uphill battle, but we kept fighting, the team kept fighting, and we're in the race.

BRUCE:

Last year, Graham Rahal was bumped from the Indianapolis 500 starting lineup in last chance qualifying. He had to endure that round of qualifications again in 2024, but this year he survived. Here's my exclusive interview with Rahal on pit lane after it was all over. Kramer, after what you went through last year, it seemed like you were a little better mentally prepared to deal with it this time.

GRAHAM:

You have no choice, you know? I mean, for me, yeah, I just had to pull my head down and just be patient and wait it out. I mean, honestly, there's nothing else you physically can do in that instance, as tough as it is.

BRUCE:

Did you visualize yourself, though, getting in like you did today?

GRAHAM:

Yeah, I mean, I thought that if we just did four good ones, we'd get in, but, again, Bruce, like, when we started that fourth, that first lap, and I saw a 30.4, I was in shock. I mean, I thought it'd at least be a 31-something based on the scrub in the corner and based on the way that it pulled sixth gear down the back, and it just wasn't there, so... You know, there's, as I keep saying, there's something finicky going on. I thought, if anything, if I could say one thing, I thought the team did a wonderful job keeping a clear head the last couple of days. It's easy to hit panic mode and get yourself really in the SHIT, and we didn't do that.

BRUCE:

It seems that a lot of times when teams get involved in this situation, it's completely new to them. They don't know the experience how to, you know, deal with it. I think we saw a little bit of that with Andretti Global today, but you guys seem to have benefited from having dealt through this last year.

GRAHAM:

You never benefit from being in an LCQ. It just takes years off your life, so I hope this is the last.

BRUCE:

And as far as all those race, I mean, new beginning, 33 car starting lineup, you're in the field again, up, up, and away.

GRAHAM:

Yeah, I mean, you got a chance at it. If you're in it, you got a chance at it. So that's what we're going to do, just try to do the best that we can and hope our race cars fast. And, you know, I was fairly pleased with the balance last week. So if we can keep that going and find our way through, you know, I think it'll be OK.

BRUCE:

Graham Rahal, congratulations on getting into the field of 33. And good luck in the 108th Indianapolis 500. Thank you. And now let's hear from Rahul's team owner and father, 1986 Indianapolis 500 winner Bobby Rahul. Well in the end it all worked out for Bobby Rahul.

BOBBY:

I can get drunk. I knew I was gonna be drunk tonight but I didn't know if it was because I was happy or because I was depressed.

BRUCE:

Did it just boggle your mind yesterday that for the second year in a row that poor Graham and you had to go through this again?

BOBBY:

Well, you know, we've struggled this week. You know, the first week went reasonably well, but towards the end of this week, we struggled and couldn't really seem to find the, you know, find the key to it all. You know, I think a lot of the things may not look good, but I think a lot of the things that we did over the year were a benefit. You know, I think we closed up on the lead group, you know, Tacoma, third fastest Honda, I think. You know, but you gotta have the setup, too. And, you know, if your setup isn't quite right, that can negate all those improvements that you made. So, I'm just, you know, our guys, Graham's guys, really worked hard last couple days and they were rewarded for it today. What was lacking on the setup? Just straight line speed. You know we're at 235 going into 3, 235, maybe 236. Chevy's there at 241. You know that's Five or six mile an hour difference. You can't make that up in the corners.

BRUCE:

But on the good side, though, you got Takuma, qualified very, very well.

BOBBY:

Yeah, I was very pleased with... I mean, frankly, I think Takuma did better than I thought we were going to do. But that's Takuma. You know, he sucks it up and goes for it.

BRUCE:

Has this just been a gut-wrenching 24 hours? Oh, not 24. For me, probably the last 72.

BOBBY:

because I could kind of see the handwriting on the wall. And yeah, I'm really relieved. I think it added a couple more years onto my life, but I'm really relieved.

BRUCE:

But once you're in the race, anything can happen.

BOBBY:

And we've seen good in the race. I don't think there's any doubt of that. So. You know, I'm optimistic. You know, Graham finished third from the back row a couple years ago. You know, it's possible. If you have a good car, I think we'll have a good car. Were you proud of the way the boy handled it, though? Oh, yeah. He's... You know, I mean, I think Graham's a first-class guy. And I don't think I'm the only one who thinks that way. Bobby Rahal, good luck in the Indianapolis 500.

BRUCE:

Thank you. We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

WILL:

This is Will Power of Team Penske and you're listening to Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental.

BRUCE:

Welcome back to Pit Pass Indy. We wrap up today's Pit Pass Indy with an exclusive interview with Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Roger Penske, who also owns the Indianapolis 500, IndyCar, Team Penske, and is the chairman of the Penske Corporation. He is one of the most successful business leaders in the world and is the winningest team owner in Indianapolis 500 history as he attempts to extend his victory record to 20 Indy 500 wins this year if one of his three drivers wins the biggest race on earth. Here is a Pit Pass Indy exclusive interview with Roger Penske. As always, it's an honor on Pit Pass Indy presented by Penske Truck Rental to be joined by Roger Penske, the chairman of the Penske Corporation. Roger, we're at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway preparing for the 108th Indianapolis 500. I guess in a lot of ways, there's no place you'd rather be today than the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

ROGER:

Well, Bruce, you know, I've got to go back to 1951 when I came here for my first time with my dad, and I feel the same way now. Every time I come through the tunnel, you know, I see this place and see it's so amazing for racing. and what it drives from a brand perspective. It's an iconic race. Really, it's a generational race because, you know, we're sitting here almost with a sellout of our 234,000 seats. Hopefully that'll happen in the next few days. The Snake Pit is up, way up. Carve Day is up. So we should have a record crowd here come race day. But it's an amazing place. And we're just thrilled to have the opportunity to try to build it to even be better.

BRUCE:

Well, that was one of my first questions, the fact that the Indianapolis 500 is back and the big crowds are back. How have you been able to regain and restore the popularity of this event? It seems like the key difference now is you're getting younger crowds to realize how cool it is to be part of the Indianapolis 500.

ROGER:

Well, I guess if you look at the demographics, we still have a very loyal, what I would call old timer base, including myself, obviously. But no, it's exciting to see the people that are turning out. But remember, we have a metric that says 500 hours after the previous race, you can have your ticket for next year if you come back and make that decision that we will honor that and you'll have your same seat. And typically we get in that 500-hour period somewhere between 130,000 and 140,000 people come back and want to buy their tickets now for next year. So that's why I call it generational. That's why I call it iconic. It's the greatest racing, obviously, event in the world. And there's no question that the interest, you know, by the fans, not only locally here, but worldwide is just amazing.

BRUCE:

How important is the month of May? It's been a rough couple of weeks for the team and for yourself. You took decisive action with something that happened with Team Penske that was discovered at Long Beach. How important is it to change the storyline now? You're going into this year's Indianapolis 500 without some of the key people that helped you in last year, but you have such a deep bench. that in a lot of ways, you may not be able to miss a beat with some of the guys that you bring in to replace Tim Sendrick, Ron Razuski, Robbie Atkinson, and Luke Mason.

ROGER:

Let me say this, Bruce. The storyline to me is over. It was certainly over once we did our, really, review of what happened. I'll repeat it again. We went back, and eight months ago, We put software in the cars and we're doing durability testing on hybrid back at Sebring. Unfortunately, because of a process failure, that software was not taken out of the car. But ironically, anybody in the pit lane Any officials could see that if we had it, obviously, once they saw it at Long Beach. And there was no reason or no way we would try to hide something like this. On the other hand, It certainly was our problem from the standpoint of communication, you know, to New Garden and his team that it wasn't, uh, shouldn't be used. And he obviously we looked at it, he's pressed the button 26 times a year ago just to see if it was on. And of course he did this and took advantage of it, which obviously, uh, he was penalized the wind taken away from him and obviously some points and certainly financial impact. And the same thing, and Scott obviously hit it once and never did it again. And guess what? Will Power never used it at all. But the fact that he was on our team and the information was in his car, he also got docked points. So to me, No malicious intent. I realize people want to make a story out of it. As far as I'm concerned, case is closed. We went on to Barber. We sat on the pole, ran one-two there. We had a good run here at the road course. And our goal is to win number 20.

BRUCE:

One of the things that's been impressive is Will Power. Since all of this happened, Will Power's been Mr. Reliable for you. Scott McLaughlin won at Barber. Will Power has finished very well in both races since. He could be very fast in this week's Indianapolis 500 pole qualifying and also great in the race. So do you really look at Will Power as a bit of a steady hand right now on the team?

ROGER:

Well, I think all three drivers are on it. I wouldn't say one's better than the other. Only one can win a race on the team, any one weekend, but I think we're very fortunate to have the experience and certainly Scott hasn't won the 500, the other two drivers have, and I think that he's a prime candidate for this year. I think we have a deep bench. We put people in place. John Duguid, Jonathan Duguid came over from our Heads Up, our whole Worldwide in Porsche program and has taken a week and a half to be the lead guy, you know, certainly on New Garden's car. And he's won Indianapolis here before. So we've got a really a steady hand.

BRUCE:

You're ahead of last year's pace for tickets. Last year, you told us the day after the race that you said there was about 330,000 fans here on race day in 2023. How far ahead are you at this point in 2024, and what do you expect maybe the final total to be by race day?

ROGER:

Bruce, I can't give you a number, and remember when I told you 330, I can tell you this, that we're going to have more than 300,000 people here on race day, and that's five times the Super Bowl.

BRUCE:

When they arrive at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, there's going to be some big improvements for some of these fans. You've got more big screen video boards and TV screens mounted on the fence and the spectator mounts so that people who sit in the infield can still follow the race from every corner of action. Just how have you been able to improve the experience? And you're always looking for ways to improve the customer experience when they come to your track.

ROGER:

Well, number one, we've changed our vendor for our food and concessions. We've gone to Aramark and they've really stepped up. We've got a new kitchen up in the Holman Terrace Club off of Turn 4. Many of the areas and concessions have been redone, the technology there. We've got a grab-and-go store at the Paddock Pagoda level now, which has really been exciting. And of course, we've upgraded, spent several million dollars on the sound system. And to me, one of the most important things is safety. We replaced all the softwall detail this past several months. We also put it fence and softwall all the way from the entrance of turn three on the inside, all the way through turn four. So safety first, taking care of our customers, obviously. And you mentioned the mounds. We felt that all these people had come in with their kids sit on those mounds the first year. We want to give them the same look that people have in the stands. We put, I think, 17 small video screens along the mounds so they can see as they come off of Turn 4.

BRUCE:

Now that's looking forward to the 108th Indianapolis 500, but I want to take you back to some of the great accomplishments you've had at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. 19 Indy 500 wins far and away the most for any winning team owner of this race. It's the 30th anniversary of the beast, and we all know that was one of the great innovations in Indy 500 history. We talked about it at length five years ago when it was 25th anniversary, but that seems to be, in a lot of ways, as Paul Ray once described it, it was the Manhattan Project of the Indianapolis 500. You were able to get such secrecy and come up with such a secret weapon that blew away the competition back in 1990.

ROGER:

You know, Bruce, it's interesting. I was at Ilmore over in the UK last week or the weekend before, and we had the 40th anniversary of Ilmore, and to see the guys there that were involved in building the pushrod, obviously the relationship we had with Mercedes-Benz at that time, but it was a real project, and we got, obviously, the outcome we wanted. Ironically, They reduced our boost, I think by eight or 10 pounds a day after the race and a week later they outlawed the engine. So we came in, we stole it and then we were sent home. So it was quite an exciting execution by the team and certainly the partnership with Mercedes at that point.

BRUCE:

We're talking to some of the key members of the team at that time, such as Chuck Sprague. He says there was a lot of things that a lot of people don't know about that we, it was not as easy as it looked, that there was all the way up to race day. You guys were discovering potential problems or things that could develop with the engine that may keep you from making it to the checkered flag. So how much anxiety, I don't want to say anxiety, but just the fact that this was such an unknown project, how much concern was there whether the engine was going to make it to the finish line?

ROGER:

Well, I think it's ironic. On qualifying day, we were on the pole, and I got a call from Mario Illion, said that they lost a couple of engines on the dyno because the wrist pin lock had come out. So we were worried about, did we have the machine groove properly? Was the wrist pin key something wrong with that? I remember we looked at each other and said, look, we're going to leave them as they are. So that was the last probably thing we concerned about. At the same time, I think we had Tracy running a 500 mile test. at Michigan Speedway. So he started with a snowsuit on running at Nazareth in the wintertime, and he ended up running a 500 mile test at Michigan, which was the first time we hit 500 miles.

BRUCE:

Chuck Sprague also said when they were changing an engine, there had been such small bearings that were in that motor to make it run the way it did that some of them are still in the crevices of the concrete in the garage at Michigan Speedway from some that had gotten out of the engine. How revolutionary was some of the designs and the fact that there was such precision that was put into this type of engine?

ROGER:

Well, you gotta think about, we had seen the Buicks come here and blow us off in qualifying with, quote, a stock pushrod engine. So obviously when we looked at that, we thought that we could build something or we could design it was what Mario Illion said, he and Paul Morgan. And quite honestly, as we look at it, You know, it was just technology that they had from their race engines. And we built a stock block that had to have pushrods, and we ended up with more boost. So that was a little gift we got with a little ingenuity.

BRUCE:

Chuck Sprague also said, it is absolutely fact that you went in to turn three at Indy at 252 miles an hour on one of the laps. And I don't think anybody's had a trap speed that high ever at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Just how great was it some of the numbers that you guys were seeing that engine produce?

ROGER:

Well, I think if you stand down and turn three today, And watch the cars come in there at 240 or 242. You almost can't turn your head fast enough. And when you think about 250 plus miles an hour, it set a record that we'll probably never see broken again. You know, obviously, a creation by Mary Elliott and Paul Morgan and Elmore, and certainly, you know, the partnership with Mercedes.

BRUCE:

And also it created such torque that when the Goodyear tire engineers would put the mark by the valve stem, when you'd come back after a run, that mark might be eight inches from the valve stem. Somebody pointed out, is that eight inches or is that a complete turn in eight inches? And then apparently Rick Mears says, might be more than one turn before that valve, that mark made it to.

ROGER:

I know we had to rough up the inside of the wheel bead in order to keep the tires from moving because of the torque.

BRUCE:

Is that the most torque that you've ever seen on a race engine?

ROGER:

Well, I've seen more torque on a NASCAR engine. I'm assuming a 400-inch engine. But look, for an IndyCar engine, it was compact. It was certainly powerful. And guess what? It was reliable when it had to be.

BRUCE:

Speaking of anniversaries, the 40th anniversary of Rick Muir's victory in 1984, his second win. with Team Penske's second win at Indy. It's the last time the winning driver has won the Indy 500 by two laps. I know there's an interesting backstory to that race because that's when you decided to move away from the Penske chassis and get the March chassis earlier that year. If you could maybe describe how everything came to play back in 1984 with that decision and how it ended up being the winning decision.

ROGER:

We were not competitive and if you had to throw your own car away to win this race, you'll do that. And I think we were able to get access to a March car. We had a world-class driver and a 500 winner. I remember we had our pit stall was up towards the entrance of pit lane. And it was amazing when we saw the lead we had on the field and obviously Mears was a super that day. Everything went our way.

BRUCE:

He says he was gearing up for the end of the race shootout with Tom Sneba, but Sneba ended up having a problem with his car. And by the time it was all over, he had such a large lead on the field that there wasn't really anybody else that could compete with him. At that time, though, I don't think we're ever going to see in the modern era of the Indy 500, a driver win by two laps. I doubt whether we'll ever see a driver win by one lap anymore.

ROGER:

Well, Bruce, I can tell you that to win by one lap and win by two here is, you know, is a dream. And I guess it came true back in 1984.

BRUCE:

And also that was the Pennzoil ride that Rick had at that time. This year, Scott McLaughlin's driving that ride. It's the 40th anniversary. There's going to be some Pennzoil livery around that, some attention to that livery. How important is it from a business standpoint that a company like Shell Pennzoil is able to memorialize and honor these great Indy 500 victories that the team has had in the past?

ROGER:

Well, I think, you know, Pennzoil and Shell are really business partner of ours on and off the track. And they've been loyal to us. We obviously utilize their product in our trucks. It's available to our customers and our retail automotive businesses. And it's not just here in the United States, it's worldwide.

BRUCE:

And also one of the keys to your businesses have always been loyalty with your sponsors and your vendors, Shell Pennzoil being one of them, and also how they've stepped up the game with IndyCar, with the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with the Indianapolis 500, and even with the Brickyard 400 NASCAR race.

ROGER:

Well, what we've tried to do is cross-pollinize. You know, our partners have been, you know, on IndyCar and NASCAR over the years. And obviously, as we invested in the Speedway, we were able to give them options where they could take their brand in front of large crowds and certainly show this place off to the worldwide TV audience with certainly their cars in the winner's circle like we had last year with Josef.

BRUCE:

If you win this year, it'll be your 20th victory. I've asked you this in the past. You said, I'm not stopping at 20. We'll think about 21 after we get 20. But how important is the number 20 to you?

ROGER:

Well, 20 is an important number when you have 19. But let me tell you this, there's 32 or 30 other cars out there that want to be sure we don't win. But obviously, we're going to do our best. We're looking forward to qualifying this year, and hopefully that we can carry the speed not only if we qualify well through the race.

BRUCE:

And as far as just would you celebrate 20 any differently than 19?

ROGER:

Not really. I think it's the pride that goes with winning the Indy 500. It's inside how you feel. And more importantly, it's the team effort, the people, the human capital that have made the difference. And they're the ones that should really get the pat on the back and look up to the sky and drink a beer.

BRUCE:

How important was your 100th sports car victory at Monterey?

ROGER:

That was an amazing time at Laguna. You remember back in the 60s, I think it was in 64, I won the San Francisco Grand Prix there in a car that we built, the Xerox Special. Or maybe I was in the Chaparral, I forget which. But anyhow, that track has a lot of history with me. And for us to win our 100th pole with a Porsche over in Spa on Saturday and then to come back on Sunday and win our 100th sports car race. But again, that's the partnership that we've built. with Porsche over the years and other manufacturers. And to be able to finish 1-3 there, up with two guys on the podium, it was an amazing time for me because of the track, my history there as a driver, but more importantly, to get us in a position now we're leading both championships, both the World Endurance Championship and IMSA with the Porsche program. So the big goal, the big hill to climb now is Le Mans.

BRUCE:

You've always been able to tie racing into your businesses at the Penske Corporation. The company has become a master of the business to business philosophy. And when you look at the growth of the Penske Corporation, what are some of the exciting things you've got going on in 2024? And basically, how is business this year?

ROGER:

Well, of course, business has changed a little bit with interest rates, which affected all of us from the standpoint of our business. We're now up to 440,000 units in our truck fleet on a US and Canadian operations. Our auto business has been strong. We're excited about our stock in the stock market. It's been at records this past year, but more importantly, You know, we've gained market share with our brands and our markets. And certainly when you look at the turnover of our people, we've had the lowest turnover in the total company with 74,000 people that we've had ever.

BRUCE:

You're always a man who has a plan and you're always looking to build, improve and grow. Are there some things that you could share with us, some areas in Penske Corporation that you would like to maybe acquire new businesses or expand the automotive dealership?

ROGER:

Well, look, We always want to acquire and get bigger, but I think the last couple of years we've talked about what can we do with the businesses we have to make them better. A better guest experience, a better service experience. How can we use AI? What are the other things that we can do across our network? And that's where my focus is.

BRUCE:

The COVID pandemic in 2020 got you off to a little bit of a rough start with the IndyCar and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and you more than weathered through that storm. Are we now seeing a lot of the great things that you had in store for IndyCar and for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway when you bought it in 2019?

ROGER:

Well, there's some people think we haven't done anything, but I guess that's a chosen few. You know, right now, from my perspective, we're continuing to invest in the series. Certainly the promoters are having record crowds, so I think they're now in gear. I think what we have to do now is execute the full year. We got to get our TV contract done. Hopefully we have some other opportunities that will make the series even better as we go forward.

BRUCE:

Is there anything you can share right now on the TV contract when you hope to have it announced?

ROGER:

We were really not ready to do that at this point. And how about the charter system? Charter system, obviously, is something we're in discussion with the car owners. It takes time. It's complicated. But we hope to have a deal put together that over the, you know, maybe the next couple of months.

BRUCE:

I'm going to wrap up with this question. You have accomplished so many great things in your business career. You've accomplished so many great things in your racing career. It probably takes a lot to maybe impress you, but how cool is it when you step up to that microphone on race day at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to announce drivers start your engines?

ROGER:

Well, obviously it's an honor when you think about the people, Tony Holman, particularly Mary Holman. you know, certainly Tony George and the rest of people that really carried this track to where it is today to be part of that select group. So I'd say it's exciting. I'm looking forward to it here in 2024.

BRUCE:

Roger Penske, it's always an honor to have a chance to visit with you. You've been a loyal supporter of your companies with Pit Pass Indy, and we appreciate that. And we love going out there and telling the IndyCar story. And there's a lot of time left in 2024, so full speed ahead. Thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indy. Bruce, thank you. And that puts a checkered flag on this edition of Pit Pass Indy. We want to thank our guests, 108th Indianapolis 500 pole winner Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske engineer Ben Bretzman, 2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion and Indy 500 rookie driver Kyle Larson of Arrow McLaren Hendrick Motorsports, Hendrick Motorsports Vice Chairman Jeff Gordon, Marcus Ericcson of Andretti Global, Graham Rahal of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, and team owner Bobby Rahal. And a special thank you to our special guest, Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Roger Penske for joining us on today's podcast. Along with loyal listeners like you, our guests help make Pit Pass Indy, presented by Penske Truck Rental, your path to victory lane in IndyCar. On the highways, the raceways and every pit stop in between, Penske Truck Rental keeps you moving forward. Gain ground with Penske. Pit Pass Indy is at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the month of May, culminating with the 108th Indianapolis 500. We'll have much, much more from the Speedway with the next episode, so be sure to tune in, download, and subscribe to Pit Pass Indy from your favorite podcast platform. For more IndyCar coverage, follow me at Twitter at BruceMartin, one word, uppercase B, uppercase M, underscore 500. This has been a production of Evergreen Podcast. A special thanks to our production team, executive producers are Bridget Coyne and Gerardo Orlando. Recordings and edits were done by me, Bruce Martin, and final mixing was done by Dave Douglas. Learn more at evergreenpodcast.com. Until next time, be sure to keep it out of the wall.