"I told him, you’re his wingman": When Roger Penske sacrificed Ryan Blaney’s win for the bigger Team Penske picture

Ryan Blaney is currently in his eighth season competing for Roger Penske's team in the NASCAR Cup Series and is regarded as one of the best drivers in the sport. The 31-year-old was left frustrated with the season he had in the Cup Series in 2022, when he remained winless for the entire year.

The 2022 season saw 19 winners, which was the most since 2001. However, Blaney was left disappointed despite winning the NASCAR All-Star race; he was unable to seal a victory in a points-paying race. The driver was close to winning during the race at Phoenix Raceway, but had to play a team game and sacrifice his chances of winning.

Joey Logano led the race and was all set to achieve his second NASCAR Cup Series championship while Blaney was in second, pulling off faster lap times compared to his teammate, but was unable to find a way past. The pass wouldn't have made any change in the championship, but the team noticed Ross Chastain running up at third, who was a title contender as well, which led to Blaney having his hopes of a win shattered.

"I think I told him on the radio with about 10 to go, ‘You’re his wingman’. I think we were fine the way we were." Roger Penske said after the November 2022 race (via Kickin' the tires).

Roger Penske's team won the Cup Series championship with Ryan Blaney the following year in 2023. The driver won three races during the season, including the prestigious Coca-Cola 600 race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway.

Zak Brown delivers clear message to Roger Penske in Detroit

McLaren CEO, Zak Brown, recently met IndyCar owner, Roger Penske, during a rare trip to the United States. Brown offered his insight to Penske on topics that would help make IndyCar better.

The McLaren boss felt that the IndyCar team owners do not provide complete truth to Penske and are critical of the sport while speaking to the media. He said that when the team owners meet Penske, they tell him the series is fine without telling their true opinions and feelings.

Brown shared details about his conversation with the 88-year-old businessman recently.

"I had a good meeting this morning with ‘The Captain’. We spoke about everything, and it was very productive."

"But I am disappointed in some of the team owners that when ‘The Captain’ is not around, they say another thing. And I think that does a disservice, actually, to Roger, because he probably gets conflicting information when he’s not around the teams, and when he's around, it's like, ‘Hey, everything's great'. I was like, 'That’s not what you said 20 minutes ago'," Zak Brown said via Forbes.

Zak Brown felt that true feedback and information are necessary to help Roger Penske make IndyCar popular and successful all around the world, and also make communication within the organization better.