Roger Penske has issued a challenge to rival Chip Ganassi, after a fantastic year for the Penske team in a number of racing series.
Penske won titles in WEC, IMSA, and NASCAR (sweeping the top two), while taking signature race wins in the NASCAR All-Star Race, the 108th Indianapolis 500, the Rolex 24 at Daytona, and the first Cup race at the Iowa Speedway.
The only major season-long title the team missed out on was the IndyCar championship, with Alex Palou taking his second straight championship for Chip Ganassi Racing, his third in four years.
Penske also missed out at the Daytona 500 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans, a pair of minor blemishes on an incredibly year for 'The Captain' and his teams.
Speaking to wrap up the season, Penske said: “Well, I guess you’d have to say it’s probably, if not the best, one of the best [year]. I think that obviously not to win the IndyCar championship, which of course it’s where we all start and build our first racing team, was disappointing. But it’s one of those things that you try and you don’t.
"(Chip) Ganassi, you have to give him credit. He continues to put up great numbers with his guys. I told him, ‘come on back to NASCAR, it’s gotten easier.'”
Ryan Blaney, who came within less than a second of repeating his 2023 NASCAR Cup Series championship, added: “I feel like our speed in general, I can only speak on us, we had great speed all year. Just wasn’t the most consistent year of getting tore up, a lot of DNFs. But I feel like our pace has been really good, and we ended the year really strong on speed, so I’m proud of that effort.
“It’s just kind of – gosh, we got through it every year, ’22, ’23, and this year we sit around at the beginning of the year and in the summer a little bit and come to the Playoff time. All of our employees have to sit around and listen to people saying that we suck and we don’t deserve to be here and why are they in the Playoffs and all that s***. And we’ve won the last three championships.”