Team Penske bans key team members for two races after scandal

The fallout from Team Penske’s push-to-pass scandal is still coming, and the team has announced that several high-ranking team members have been suspended from two races, including the series’ flagship race, the Indianapolis 500.

You may recall that all three Team Penske cars were penalized before the Long Beach Grand Prix when two of the team’s cars – driven by Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin – were found to be misusing the push-to-pass button had used during starts and restarts at the season-opening Grand Prix in St. Petersburg

The push-to-pass button provides additional power on street and street circuits to make overtaking easier, but was used improperly.

Newgarden was stripped of the race win and the team faced a series of points penalties and fines.

Now Team Penske – owned by motorsports legend Roger Penske, which also owns the NTT IndyCar Series and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway – announced self-imposed suspensions for several team members, including team president Tim Cindric.

Cindric, as well as race engineer of Newgarden’s No. 2 car Luke Mason, senior data engineer Robbie Atkinson and Team Penske general manager Ron Ruzewski, will all miss the Sonsio Grand Prix – held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course – and the Indy 500.

“I recognize the magnitude of what happened and the impact it continues to have on the sport to which I have dedicated so many decades,” Penske said in a statement. “Everyone at Team Penske, as well as our fans and business partners, should know that I apologize and deeply regret the mistakes made.”

That was a difficult and unfortunate situation. Sorry if people miss the IndyCar Series Super Bowl, but the optics of the team that owns the entire series were not good.

I think the team handled it pretty well.

Last month, the team claimed that software used during a test of the IndyCar Series’ still-in-development hybrid system was left in the car, allowing push-to-pass to be used.