![]() ![]() Roger Penske mentioned during two of the seminars held in his honor, his pride at having gone to the Pentagon a half century ago to receive the SCCA President’s Cup trophy from General Curtis LeMay and more recently having been invited to the White House on three occasions, the most recent as the winner of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Roger Penske drives a Porsche 550A onto the show field through appreciative spectators and their cameras. would score Penske’s tenth Indy 500 win in this car, still owned by Team Penske. Quickly and secretly, Team Penske, Mercedes and Ilmor designed a full-race engine to meet these rules, the only competitor to do so. In 1994 Penske saw a loophole in the regulations allowing higher boost levels for pushrod engines. Of all the Penske stories told, and there are a lot of them, a favorite has to be about “The Beast”. Appropriately the car calls the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum home. The turbocharged Offy delivered a thousand horsepower, while impressively sized wings kept it glued to the track. The first of Team Penske’s record setting 18 Indy 500 victories would come with Mark Donahue driving this ‘72 Eagle M16B/1. But it did prove that they could run with the more established teams in Indy Car racing and laid the groundwork for countless victories to come. It would appear for them three times, taking a fifth in Mosport, suffering a DNF at Riverside and being withdrawn at Indy. The Alegra Collection’s ‘68 Eagle-Chevrolet was Team Penske’s first Indy racecar. Rob Kauffman brought the 1973 Cam-Am Porsche to the AICE and left with The Ritz-Carlton, Best in Show, Concours de Sport for his effort. Mark Donahue would win six of eight races that year. After a series victory in 1972, they returned the next year with the 917/30. The result dominated the series for two years before being rendered uncompetitive by the rules makers. The McLaren juggernaut swept through the Can-Am series until Team Penske and Porsche came together to build a turbocharged version of Porsche’s 917. Our thanks to Kim & Bill Ockerlund for bringing this legendary Camaro to Amelia Island. Combining the driving of Mark Donahue, Ed Leslie and Ronnie Bucknum with immaculate preparation and significant innovations, Team Penske won 8 of 12 races and their second Trans-Am championship. The next year, a pair of ‘69 Camaros led their title defense. After their series debut in 1967, they would claim their first championship in 1968. Penske Racing achieved considerable success in the SCCA Trans- Am series, first with Camaros, later in Javelins. ![]() Roger Penske would drive it to wins in Nassau and Pensacola, as well as a second place in the 1963 Daytona Continental. ![]() John Mecum also figures into the history of this Ferrari 250 GTO after he acquired the ex-NART racer from Luigi Chinetti. It resides in the Miles Collier Collection at the REVS Institute, Naples, FL. Penske would prove more than capable, netting class and overall wins. Those cars ended up in select privateer’s hands including John Mecum who put Roger Penske behind the wheel of one. Five Grand Sports have been accounted for and documented. Famously, the project ran afoul of GM senior management after (arguably) six prototypes were built. The Corvette Grand Sport was Zora Duntov’s attempt to build a lightweight Corvette to take on Shelby & Ford’s Cobra. The Jim Hall-Petroleum Museum provided this example at this year’s, AMELIA ISLAND: ROGER PENSKE CARS. Roger Penske would appear ten times in Hall’s Chaparrals, including victories at Laguna Seca and a pair of wins at Nassau. The Chaparral 2 had an innovation plastic, semi-monocoque chassis and an automatic transmission. Jim Hall’s Chaparrals introduced numerous concepts to racing. This car is a replica of the race winner from the Team Penske Museum. Then he boarded a plane to return in time for work Monday morning. Race finishing half a second in front of NASCAR regular Darel Dieringer. Penske would travel cross-country late Friday night to qualify the car on Saturday morning. Ray Nichels hired Roger Penske to race his ’63 Pontiac Catalina stock car in the 1963 Riverside 500, part of the Pacific Coast Late Model division series. That year it would serve as George Follmer’s car and take him to a sixth place in the final series championship. Leading a line of impressive racers is Shamrock Motors’ 67 Lola T70 in the Sunoco Blue so often associated with the early years of Team Penske. They come from his years as a driver, a team owner and constructor. It’s Saturday afternoon at the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance (AICE) and cars begin moving onto the show field, including a unique array of cars associated with Roger Penske. Thanks to our intrepid Team Matune, we celebrate Roger Penske’s racing successes showcased this year at AMELIA ISLAND: ROGER PENSKE CARS. ![]()
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