“It hurts me in my gut”: Roger Penske’s painful reflection on Indy 500 cheating scandal hours after axing his team’s top executives

Roger Penske has fired three top executives from Team Penske just days before the 2025 Indy 500. This comes after two of his IndyCar entries, the No. 2 and No. 12 cars, were found in violation of technical rules ahead of last Sunday’s Top 12 Qualifying session. Penske called it a painful moment, saying, “It hurts me in my gut,” during an interview with FOX Sports.

On May 21, Team Penske confirmed that its President, Tim Cindric, IndyCar Managing Director Ron Ruzewski, and IndyCar General Manager Kyle Moyer are no longer part of the team. The decision followed rule breaches found on Josef Newgarden’s and Will Power’s cars, involving an unapproved rear attenuator, which was a violation of INDYCAR Rule 14.7.8.16.

This marked the second time in two years that Team Penske has been caught breaking the rules. Roger Penske, who also owns the series and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, said he felt let down by his own team in a conversation with FOX Sports’ Jamie Little:

"I really have to go back four and a half years ago when we bought the speedway and I said that I would invest capital, I'd get the best people, and we take the series and certainly Indianapolis Motor Speedway to higher levels.” (0:25 onwards)

“I think we've done that, then I look at my right hand and say, ‘What about Team Penske?’ And when I think about Team Penske, we really had an organization failure two times, not once but two times, and believe me, it hurts me in my gut when you think about it,” he added.

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Team Penske also said more announcements about staff and replacements will come later this week. Despite the scandal, Roger Penske said the focus now shifts to race day, with hopes still high for a strong result.

The third Team Penske car, driven by Scott McLaughlin, passed inspection and will start 10th on the grid. He was not involved in the rule breach.

"I’ve got to take the role on," Roger Penske promises to take action after rule violations

Roger Penske said he is taking full responsibility for the violations made by his team. When Jamie Little asked what he would do to ensure this doesn’t happen again, and how he plans to restore trust with fans and other team owners, Penske said it starts with leadership and accountability.

He acknowledged that the incident has hurt the integrity of the sport and that he bears some of the blame.

“I think the integrity of the sport, I didn't help it any from my perspective,” Penske said. “What I have to do, and I told this to the team owners, I've got to take the role on along with the Pensky Entertainment leadership and gain back that credibility.” (5:50 onwards)

As the owner of the IndyCar series and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Roger Penske said that the Indy 500 is one of the best sporting events in the world. The last thing he wants to do is to tarnish its reputation with these kinds of rule violations by his team.