Roger Penske buys Indycar and Indianapolis Motor Speedway. I expect this to be April 1 headline. Turns out the date was November 4, 2019. A press conference later the news sent shockwaves throughout auto racing world. "The Captain" Roger Penske, the man who started CART with the late Dan Gurney, the most successful auto racing owner with multiple CART/Indycar, NASCAR, IMSA Sportscar, and Australian Touring Cars championships with major victories at hollow grounds of Indianapolis and Daytona, the man with successful business ventures, now owns the top open wheel series in America AND the famous 2.5 mile track of Indianapolis. If the track was to be sold he's the perfect guy to own and run it. He been around the twists and turns of the on track and business side of the racing world for over 50 years. Not only racing but the automotive industry as well held The Captain in high regards and respects. Days before the announcement of the sale he called every Indycar owner as well NASCAR to let them know of his plans. They gave them their blessing. In the press conference Roger Penkse will step down from calling racing strategy from the pits to avoid conflict. Now he hopes to open more opportunities for the series and the speedway with potential thought of Indycar/NASCAR double weekend to having endurance sports car race on the road course.
Give Tony George credit. Still dislike and resented over The Split, when the time to come sell the speedway he could have sold it to anyone even to NASCAR or Liberty (who owns Formula 1). Instead he chose to sell it to the only person who been through trenches of open wheel racing from its growth to fall to regrowth: The Captain, himself, Roger Penske.
With The Captain now running the ship in Indianapolis what more opportunities can he open up? On this day forward open wheel racing heading to brave new world.
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