Dominant. That’s the right word to describe Roger Penske’s NASCAR team in the Next-Gen era. Ever since the new car was introduced in 2022, Team Penske has dominated the Cup Series championship, winning every year since then. This year, too, despite Joey Logano’s underwhelming season and Hendrick Motorsports team owner Rick Hendrick’s under-confidence in him, those close to the No. 22 knew that if he made it to the final 4, it was highly likely that the 34-year-old would pull a rabbit out of the hat. And that’s exactly what happened, prompting his team owner to give it right back to the HMS main man…

To give you some context, Logano’s third Cup Series win had almost not happened. But thanks to Alex Bowman’s disqualification at the Charlotte Roval (owing to his car being too light during post-race inspection) the Team Penske driver progressed into the Round of Eight by default. That’s when Roger Penske knew that they were going to be a force to be reckoned with, even though others didn’t see it quite as clearly.

After all, 2024 has been a great year for Roger Penske, hasn’t it? Not only did the team owner win the Indianapolis 500, and the Cup Series Championship, but also took home the World Endurance Championship (WEC) Drivers’ title, and the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Title. It was also the first time Team Penske finished first and second at NASCAR’s highest level, a significant achievement in the team’s history. Joey Logano’s victory at Phoenix Raceway meant that the team managed to do a three-peat, which has only been accomplished by two other team owners, Junior Johnson and Rick Hendrick in the past.

However, despite dominating the Next-Gen era, Logano’s inclusion in the Round of Eight was underestimated by a prominent figure in the NASCAR community, which Penske revealed in a post-race conversation. Recalling the cheeky warning he had given to Hendrick after Bowman’s misfortunes at ‘The Roval’, the team owner said, “When we got in because the 48 (Bowman) was disqualified, I talked to Rick (Hendrick), and he said, ‘I’m glad it was you that got in’. And I said to him, ‘Hopefully you don’t feel that same way at the end of the season’.” Hendrick was perhaps alluding to the driver’s overall season, where he failed to leave a significant mark—he finished over P30 in seven races, among six DNFs, seven Top-5s and 13 Top-10s.

But everything changed with Bowman’s elimination as Logano climbed up the ranks with a win in the very next race at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, securing a place in the Championship 4.

Hendrick Motorsports driver William Byron also made it to Phoenix Raceway. Eager to live up to the challenge, Roger Penske said, “Anyhow, it’s great. It’s just another opportunity for us that we were able to conquer.” Even though Rick Hendrick was “glad” that Joey Logano got in, the smiles vanished when the No. 22 Ford was the first car to pass the checkered flag in the championship race, closely followed behind by teammate Ryan Blaney.

Notably, the #22 became the 10 driver in NASCAR history to win three or more titles, after winning the championship in 2018 and 2022. He held off his teammate Ryan Blaney for the last 20 laps to take the checkered flag. “I love the playoffs, I love it, man. What a race, what a Team Penske battle there at the end,” Logano continued. “Had a good restart, was able to get in front of the No. 12, had good long-run speed and that was all I had to hold him off. To get three of them, that’s pretty special,” an exuberant Logano told media after the race.

As for Hendrick, he was absent from the Championship race, reportedly due to a sinus infection. Ultimately, NASCAR’s most successful team paid the price for underestimating their opponent, even though all evidence pointed towards another Team Penske victory.

Team Penske owner reflects on what makes them tick

Luck can only take you so far. After the season Roger Penske has had across various motorsport disciplines, it’s not a coincidence that they have been so successful. Stability, consistency, and momentum have been some of the key pillars for Team Penske in the last few years, ensuring that they are currently in the most dominant era of their 76 years of existence. The sentiment is shared by the man himself, who said, “If this season isn’t the best, it’s one of the best”, highlighting that his team has found a secret formula to get results when it matters the most.

Revealing the secret behind their success, Roger Penske candidly said, “It’s all about the people. When you look at our team, over half of our people have been there for 10 years and that continuity is terrific. Our sponsors have been with us for a long time, and we have a great team. I just can’t thank everybody enough. To think the Shell car won the Indianapolis 500 and won the championship today, maybe we can get a renewal.”

Despite being 87, Roger Penske is showing no signs of slowing down. The team owner is hungrier than ever to get more success on the racetrack and will already set his sights on achieving four Cup Series championships in a row at the end of the 2025 season. Sharing his expectations after the race in Phoenix, he said, “We want to win championships, and we want to succeed.” While other teams will use the off-season to analyze what went wrong, Team Penske will be back on the drawing board, improving their secret sauce to continue their dominance in the world of motorsport.