INDIANAPOLIS (AP) As the latest round of Team Penske cheating allegations swirled through Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the president of the IndyCar team stood outside the garage to address the illegal modifications discovered on two of its cars.
Lurking over Tim Cindrics shoulder was a random race fan wearing what appeared to be a Team Penske branded shirt.
It was not: Like Josef Newgarden and Will Powers cars for the Indianapolis 500, the shirt had been modified. It read: Team Cheaters with the Penske logo bar.
Perception isnt necessarily reality, but Roger Penske has a serious perception problem now that his team has been swept up in scandal for the second time in just over a year.
The first time, it was the discovery last April that the Penske drivers had access to the push-to-pass system when they should not have been able to use the extra horsepower boost. On Sunday, during the second day of qualifying for the 109th running of The Greatest Spectacle in Racing, it was discovered that Newgarden and Powers cars had an illegally modified part.
They were disqualified from making a four-lap run, and IndyCar a day later hammered Team Penske: Newgarden, the two-time defending race winner, was dropped to 32nd in the field and Power was moved to last.
IndyCar stripped both cars of points earned in qualifying, fined both teams $100,000 and suspended the strategists for the remainder of the month. It means Cindric and team managing director Ron Ruzewski will miss the Indy 500 for a second consecutive year.
This is a nightmare for Penske, who owns the three-car team, IndyCar, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Indy 500 the race he values more than any other event in the world. Penske has a record 20 Indy 500 victories.
What a shame this cloud will continue to hover over our great race until everything is fully resolved, McLaren Racing boss Zak Brown told The Associated Press.
Defending Roger Penske
The penalties were decided by new IndyCar President Doug Boles, who in February was given the title in addition to his job as president of the speedway. He was the one to inform Penske, via phone call, before they were announced Monday.
Boles also tried to lessen Penskes role in what has transpired within the team.
I dont think Roger Penske understands some of the things that might be going on. I get the optics challenge, and its definitely something we should think about, Boles said. While (issues) roll up to Roger at the end of the day, I think they are certainly below him. There are things that happen that dont ever get to Roger.
I can tell you that Roger Penske would not condone this. In fact, I had a chance to talk to Roger, and I can tell that this is devastating to him, Boles continued. Nothing means more to Roger Penske than the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Indianapolis 500. This is something that I think hes going to have to address at some point in time.
Thats what rival teams have been saying since the commotion Sunday on pit lane, when the two Penske cars were pulled off the grid and returned to the garage moments before the fast 12 shootout.
Team Penske said it accepts the penalties and was disappointed by the results and the impact it has on our organization. We will make further announcements later this week related to personnel for the upcoming Indianapolis 500.
Boles is adamant the cars were legal in Saturdays inspection and he had heard nothing about the Penske cars potentially having an illegal modification until it all unfolded. Rivals are claiming otherwise, offering photos they shows the modifications as recently as last months open test.
The AP and Indianapolis Star went to the IMS Museum on Monday and found Newgardens 2024 winning car that is on display. It had the same illegal modification.
What others are saying
The biggest problem I see is theres a bit of a theme going on here and its just a bad look, right? said six-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon, who believes IndyCar needs an independent governing body without any Penske employees.
Dixons boss, Chip Ganassi, was one of many who complained to IndyCar inspectors and Penske executives that the cars were illegal on Sunday. The next day, he remained disappointed in the drama that is now overshadowing the biggest race in the world, one that is sold out for the first time since 2016.
All the teams in the sport have a responsibility to protect the integrity of the sport, none more than the Penske team, Ganassi told AP.
Newgarden is attempting to become the first driver to win the Indy 500 in three consecutive years, but no driver has won after starting on the last row. Power, meanwhile, is in a contract year and Team Penske has maintained it wouldnt begin discussions on an extension until after the 500. Asked last week about Powers future with the team, Cindric told AP: Well, if he wins the 500, that would make for a much easier conversation.
Now, Newgarden and Power are in deep holes despite having nothing to do with the situation.
What comes next
Penske, who places tremendous value on his reputation and strong belief that effort equals results, is now having his integrity questioned. Boles and Penske Entertainment CEO Mark Miles had a Monday meeting with the rest of the owners that Brown described as contentious.
Im very concerned, as are my fellow team owners, to find that Team Penske has been found with a multi-car major technical infringement for the second time in two seasons, Brown told AP. In racing you can sometimes have mechanics who make miscalculations and you can sometimes have manufacturing issues that can all lead to honest mistakes. I dont believe thats what happened here or last year, which raises questions over the integrity of the decision-making within that team.
Brown did not place blame on IndyCar technical director Kevin Blanch, who he said does an excellent job. But, he said there were questions about IndyCars ability to continue to run the series under the current set up.
Its clear IndyCar needs more depth and technical resources to examine and spot violations, flagrant or not, Brown continued. While I appreciate and support IndyCars position to move those two cars to the back of the field, there obviously remains a question mark regarding their compliance on Saturday.
Brown said it was unfair that Jacob Abel of Dale Coyne Racing was bumped from the 33-car field.
If it turns out this technical infringement was on their cars when they qualified Saturday, then its incredibly unfair that Jacob Abel and his team were bumped by non-compliant cars, Brown said. However, I have complete confidence in Roger Penskes commitment to look at that situation and to ensure that any such wrongs are righted.
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AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
印第安纳波利斯（美联社）——随着最新一轮的潘氏车队（Team Penske）作弊指控在印第安纳波利斯赛车场（Indianapolis Motor Speedway）传开，印第安纳车队（IndyCar team）的总裁站在车库外，就两辆车上发现的非法改装问题发表讲话。
蒂姆·辛德里克（Tim Cindric）的肩膀旁有一个随机出现的赛车迷，他穿着一件看起来像是潘氏车队（Team Penske）品牌的衬衫。
这与约瑟夫·纽加德（Josef Newgarden）和威尔·鲍尔（Will Power）在印第安纳波利斯500赛上使用的赛车不同，这件衬衫已经经过了修改。上面写着：“Team Cheaters”，并附有潘氏（Penske）的标志条。
感知并不一定是现实，但罗杰·潘斯克（Roger Penske）目前正面临着严重的认知问题，因为他的团队在不到一年的时间里第二次卷入丑闻。
首次发现是在去年四月，当时Penske车队在不应具备使用额外马力提升时却能够访问到“push-to-pass”系统。在周日，即“The Greatest Spectacle in Racing”第109次赛事的第二天资格赛期间，发现Newgarden和Power的车辆存在非法改装部分。
他们被取消了四圈赛程的资格，而一天后，印地车赛（IndyCar）重锤击打了潘斯车队（Team Penske）：卫冕两届冠军的纽加德（Newgarden）在赛场中被降至第32位，而波尔（Power）则被移至最后。
印地赛车协会剥夺了两辆赛车在资格赛中获得的积分，并对两支车队分别处以10万美元的罚款，同时暂停了两队策略师一个月的剩余时间。这意呸着辛德里克和车队管理总监罗恩·鲁泽夫斯基将连续第二年缺席印第500赛。
对拥有三辆赛车队伍、印地赛车、印第安纳波利斯赛车场以及印第安纳波利斯500大赛（他比世界上任何其他赛事都更重视的比赛）的潘思克而言，这无疑是一场噩梦。潘思克在印第安纳波利斯500大赛中创造了20次胜利的纪录。
真可悲，这团阴云将持续笼罩我们伟大的比赛，直到一切完全解决。
为罗杰·潘斯克辩护
新任印地赛车总裁道格·博尔斯（Doug Boles）决定对Penske进行处罚，他在二月除了担任赛道总裁的职务外，还获得了这个头衔。在周一公布之前，他通过电话通知了Penske。
波尔斯还试图减少潘斯基（Penske）在车队内部所发生的事情中的角色。
波尔斯（Boles）表示：“我不认为罗杰·潘斯（Roger Penske）了解可能发生的一些事情。我理解光学的挑战，这确实是我们应该考虑的问题。”他接着说：“虽然（问题）最终会向罗杰汇报，但我认为这些问题肯定低于他的级别。有些事情发生后，罗杰却从未知晓。”
博尔斯继续说道：“我可以告诉你，罗杰·潘斯基（Roger Penske）绝不会容忍这种事。事实上，我有机会与罗杰交谈过，我可以感觉到这对他的打击是毁灭性的。在罗杰·潘斯基（Roger Penske）心中，没有什么比印第安纳波利斯赛车场（Indianapolis Motor Speedway）和印第500赛（Indianapolis 500）更重要了。我认为他迟早会对此事作出回应。”
自从周日维修区发生骚乱以来，对手队伍就一直在说这个事情。当时，两辆潘思克车队（Penske cars）在12辆快速赛车开始前几分钟被从起跑线上拉下并返回车库。
潘氏车队表示他们接受惩罚，并对于结果及其对我们组织的影响感到失望。本周晚些时候，我们将宣布与即将举行的印第安纳波利斯500赛相关的进一步人事变动。
Boles坚信周六的赛前检查中，这些车辆是合法的，而且他直到一切被曝光之前，都未听说Penske车队可能存在非法改装的情况。然而竞争对手则持不同看法，他们提供了照片，表明这些改装是在上个月的公开测试中进行的。
美国联合通讯社（AP）和《Indianapolis Star》周一参观了IMS博物馆，并发现了纽加德（Newgarden）的2024年夺冠车辆，该车正在展出。该车同样存在非法改装。
他人观点
我看到最大的问题就是这里有一个小主题，看起来不太好，对吧？六届印地车赛冠军斯科特·迪克森（Scott Dixon）表示，他认为印地车赛需要一个独立的监管机构，而没有彭斯（Penske）的员工。
Dixon的老板，Chip Ganassi，是众多向IndyCar检查员和Penske高管抱怨赛车在周日是非法的人之一。第二天，他对于现在正在笼罩着自2016年以来首次售罄的世界上最大赛事的剧目仍然感到失望。
甘地西向美联社表示：“在这个体育项目中，所有队伍都有责任保护其完整性，而彭斯克车队（Penske team）的这份责任尤为重大。”
纽加登（Newgarden）试图成为首位连续三年赢得印第500（Indy 500）的赛车手，但没有任何一位从最后一排起跑的赛车手能够夺冠。与此同时，鲍尔（Power）正处于合同年，潘斯克车队（Team Penske）已表明，在印第500结束后才开始讨论续约事宜。上周当被问及鲍尔与车队未来的情况时，辛德里克（Cindric）对美联社（AP）表示：「如果他赢得了印第500，那将使讨论变得更容易。」
尽管与事件无关，但纽格伦和鲍尔现在仍深陷困境。
接下来的发展会如何
潘斯克（Penske）非常重视自己的名声，并坚信“努力就会得到结果”，现在他的诚信却受到了质疑。波尔斯（Boles）和潘斯克娱乐公司首席执行官马克·迈尔斯（Mark Miles）在周一与其余所有者进行了一次会议，布朗称这次会议是充满争议的。
布朗向美联社表示，他和同为车队老板的团队成员一样，非常担心潘氏车队在两季内第二次被查出多车重大技术违规。“在赛车领域，有时机械师可能会做出误判，有时也可能存在制造问题，这些都可能导致诚实的错误。我不相信这里或去年发生的就是这种情况，这引发了对该队决策完整性的质疑。”
布朗并未将责任归咎于印地车赛技术总监凯文·布朗奇，他说“布朗奇干得很好。”然而，他表示，对于印地车赛在现有设置下继续举办系列赛事的能力存在疑问。
布朗继续说道，很明显，印地车赛（IndyCar）需要更多的深度和技术资源来检查和发现违规行为，无论其是否为明显违规。虽然我理解并支持印地车赛将这两辆车移至赛道后方的决定，但显然周六的合规性仍存疑。
布朗表示，达尔·科恩（Dale Coyne）赛车的雅各布·阿贝尔（Jacob Abel）被淘汰出33辆车的比赛是不公平的。
如果事实证明他们在周六的资格赛中确实存在技术违规，那么雅各布·阿贝尔（Jacob Abel）和他的队伍被不符合规定的车辆淘汰，这真是非常不公平。
美国新闻社（AP）汽车赛事：请访问[https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing](https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing)了解更多信息。
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