PENSKE RACING REPORT - October 13, 2008

Kurt Busch Leads Penske Racing Results at Lowe's Motor Speedway

CONCORD, N.C. – Penske Racing drivers Kurt Busch, Ryan Newman and Sam Hornish Jr. finished third, 21st and 22nd respectively in Saturday night's Bank of America 500 NASCAR Cup Series race at Lowe's Motor Speedway.

After adverse weather forced officials to cancel qualifying on Thursday, No. 2 Miller Lite driver Busch started the race from the 19th spot. Despite fighting a tight-handling Dodge for most of the early portion of the race, he made progress and cracked the top 10 after a quick stop by the Miller Lite crew under the fourth caution period. Tire-changing strategy, quick pit work by Busch's Pat Tryson-led crew, coaching by team owner Roger Penske and a display of championship-caliber driving skills kept Busch in the mix with the leaders for the remainder of the race. Busch maintains the 18th position in driver points with five races remaining in the 2008 NASCAR Cup Series season.

"Man, we had a good run and I'm real surprised by it," Busch said immediately after the race. "We mixed the 77 (car) setup with the 12 (car). It feels real good to have team communication and bring all this together. This is the first time for the new engine, the R6, in the top five. We were pushing hard trying to get numbers on it (the new engine) for next year. It feels really good for all of our sponsors, Mobil 1, Dodge and especially Miller Lite."

Newman and the No. 12 Alltel Dodge team battled a loose-handling race car for most of the Saturday night race, despite leading 10 laps and running in the top 15 for a large majority of the night. An untimely caution with 80 laps remaining in the race led to Newman falling one lap down, which he could not make up, and he ended the night in 21st place. Newman is currently 15th in the NASCAR Cup Series driver point standings, 392 points out of the 13th spot as the top non-Chase driver.

Hornish and the No. 77 Mobil 1 Dodge finished the Bank of America 500 in 22nd place after starting from the rear of the field due to the team's use of a backup car. The Mobil 1 team worked methodically to improve the balance of the car throughout a race filled with obstacles, resulting in the team's best finish in eight weeks. For his performance, Hornish received "Rookie of the Race" honors after finishing one spot in front of fellow series newcomer Regan Smith.

The Penske Racing trio returns to action on Sunday, October 19 for the TUMS QuikPak 500 at Martinsville Speedway in Martinsville, Va. The race can be seen live on ABC at 1 p.m. EDT and coverage on MRN Radio begins at 12:45 p.m. EDT.

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Justin Allgaier Finishes 34th In Impressive Nationwide Series Debut

CONCORD, N.C. – Justin Allgaier, making his debut in the No. 12 Penske Truck Rental Dodge in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, survived wet weather, near-misses with spinning competitors, multiple caution periods and a tight-handling condition only to get caught up in a multi-car incident in Friday night’s Dollar General 300. The 22-year old Penske Racing newcomer was posted in the 34th position at the end of the event.

After starting in 14th place in the 200-lap, 300-mile race, Allgaier and the Penske Truck Rental crew worked hard and, by lap 119, cracked the top-10 in a field filled with NASCAR Cup Series regulars. On lap 125, when Allgaier was running strong in 13th spot, the No. 66 and No. 31 cars collided and caused a multi-car incident which ended the day of the No. 12 Penske Truck Rental Dodge.

“It’s just really unfortunate,” said Allgaier after being released from the Lowe’s Motor Speedway infield care center. “All the guys on the crew really worked hard and we got the car where I wanted to be at. The car was really starting to come to us. Unfortunately we got caught up in someone else’s mess and we’ll just have to go onto the next race with the Penske Truck Rental Dodge.”

Penske Racing Development Driver Allgaier Wins ARCA Crown

TOLEDO, Ohio – Less than 48 hours after his NASCAR Nationwide Series debut at Lowe's Motor Speedway, Penske Racing driver Justin Allgaier won his first ARCA Re/Max Series championship with a decisive victory at the Hantz Group 200 at Toledo Speedway.

After the 22-year old Allgaier qualified 14th and finished 34th in Friday night's Dollar General 300 Nationwide Series race, he and his family returned to their No. 16 ARCA machine to take on current series' and NASCAR stars. He started the 200-lap event in ninth place and third in the ARCA Championship standings.

After the first two championship competitors took each other out on the challenging half-mile oval, Allgaier jumped into the race - and championship - lead. Overcoming a variety of factors, including many caution periods and threats from multiple-championship winning driver Frank Kimmel, Allgaier captured the checkered flag and the series title for a storybook finish.

This win, his sixth of the 2008 ARCA season, was the perfect way to close out his long ARCA career. "Wow, what a great finish to 2008," said an excited Allgaier as he emerged from his family-owned No. 16 machine. "I just want to thank everyone who's helped myself and my family with this championship and over the past years. Now we're off to competing on a bigger stage, but I know I'll never forget how I got there."