TEAM REPORTS (VARIOUS LOCATIONS) - PENSKE RACE REPORT

Penske Racing Race Report

NASCAR NEXTEL CUP SERIES

LOUDON, N.H. (July 1, 2007) - Ryan Newman led the Dodge contingent in Sunday's LENOX Industrial Tools 300 with a 10th-place finish, but Kurt Busch encountered problems on the final lap and had to settle for 21st at New Hampshire International Speedway.

Busch was battling rookie David Ragan for 15th on the race's final lap when Ragan slid up and into Busch in turns three and four. That sent Busch into the outside wall and then spinning across the track. By the time Busch had collected his wounded Miller Lite Dodge Avenger and crossed the finish line, he had dropped to 21st.

After reaching the garage, Busch, who started second and led twice for 10 laps, quickly jumped from his car, went straight to his team transporter, changed into his street clothes and left the garage without comment.

Ragan apologized for the incident after stepping from his car.

Busch's crew chief Pat Tryson said his driver was "really frustrated right now" and he understood.

"We'll keep trying until we get it right," Tryson said. "I know Kurt and the whole team is really looking forward to getting back to Daytona for next Saturday night's race. He's really been on a roll in the plate races and we'll be looking to win one of them at Daytona next weekend."

With nine races remaining before the "Chase for the Championship" begins, Busch is 15th in the standings, 236 points behind Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 12th, this year's cut-off position for the title chase.

Newman's seventh top-10 this year kept him 13th in the standings, 127 points behind Earnhardt. Like Busch, Newman appeared to be a contender for the win early in the race until a miscue on a pit stop during the third of six caution flags.

When the yellow flag waved for debris on the 1-mile track on lap 121, Newman pitted for right-side tires, fuel and a chassis adjustment. He returned to the track in third. However, a problem had occurred during the pit stop and NASCAR told Newman to return the Alltel Dodge Avenger to his pit stall.

The problem occurred after front-tire changer Ben Brown finished putting on the right-front tire. The air hose he was using was not pulled back to the pit wall and Newman ran over the hose, pulling it apart and sending the air gun into the pit lane. Clint Bowyer's car ran over the air gun, tearing an oil line under his car that proceeded to dump oil on the track. The incident forced Newman to restart in 26th. Newman spent the rest of the 300-lap race clawing his way back through the field. His 10th-place finish made him the event's top performing Dodge.

"I guess they didn't get the hose pulled back across the car and it got caught in the front of the car," said Newman, who led once for three laps. "We snagged it and that was pretty much the end of it. That cost us a lot of track position. That cost us a good top-five finish and potentially a shot at winning the race.

"We had a good top-five car and we lost track position. It's so hard to get it back here, especially with how the race track runs and having to pass the lapped cars."

This weekend NASCAR's NEXTEL Cup Series travels to Daytona for the Pepsi 400. A single round of qualifying at 4:35 p.m. on Friday will determine Saturday's 43-car starting field and the cars will be impounded immediately after qualifying. Saturday's Pepsi 400 has a 7:55 p.m. EDT starting time and will be broadcast by TNT and MRN Radio.

IRL INDYCAR SERIES

RICHMOND, Va. (June 30, 2007) - For Team Penske, Saturday's SunTrust Indy Challenge at Richmond International Raceway was not a race to remember.

Both Penske drivers struggled with Helio Castroneves finishing 11th and Sam Hornish Jr. placing 15th; results that didn't help the drivers in their quest to win the 2007 IndyCar Series championship. Hornish is now fifth in the standings, 102 points behind series leader and race winner Dario Franchitti, while Castroneves is sixth, 114 points in arrears to the leader.

"All I can really say is I apologize to the guys who worked on my car," Hornish said. "They do a great job, and that was unfortunate."

Hornish and his No. 6 Team Penske Honda/Dallara spun onto the grassy frontstretch apron on the first lap, and Hornish spent most of the race trying to catch up.

"It was a frustrating night," Hornish said. "We had a pretty good car, and I got a little bit of a jump on the start and tried to pull down to go around the guys in front of me. As soon as I did, the back end came around on me. It wasn't the way we wanted to start the race."

Hornish finished three laps down, while Castroneves was one lap behind. It was Hornish's worst finish of the season, and Castroneves' third-worst.

The IndyCar Series resumes next weekend with the Camping World Watkins Glen Grand Prix at Watkins Glen International.