Scott McLaughlin hits back at those dragging ‘Roger Penske’s name through the mud’

IndyCar star Scott McLaughlin says he is unhappy with people trying to tarnish Roger Penske’s reputation in the wake of the squad’s Indy 500 qualifying controversy.

Penske was found to have modified the rear attenuator on the cars of Josef Newgarden and Will Power on the final day of qualifying, despite it being a spec part that must not be altered in any form or shape.

IndyCar took action a day after the news broke, sending Newgarden and Power to the back of the grid and imposing a fine of $200,000 on Penske.

The controversy has become a major talking point in the world of motorsport in the run-up to the event, with several rival drivers and teams criticising Roger Penske and his eponymous team for their involvement.

Both Chip Ganassi and McLaren’s Zak Brown questioned Penske’s “integrity” in the wake of the scandal, while Pato O’Ward was forced to think about his lost victory to Newgarden in 2024, when Penske was also running the same illegal accentuator.

Some of the criticism also stems from the fact that Roger Penske has owned IndyCar and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway since the end of 2019, thus creating a potential conflict of interest with his own team.

But McLaughlin, the only Penske driver to escape sanction after qualifying inspections, is unimpressed with the reaction from the paddock, including fellow teams and the media.

The Kiwi said he would take any comment against Roger Penske’s sportsmanship “personally”.
 
“I’m disappointed with how Roger’s name has been thrown through the mud,” the seven-time IndyCar race winner said.

“His integrity, our team, the people on the floor, the people that spend hours away from their families trying to build these cars, basically they’re being thrown to the mud.

“I take that personally.”

Team Penske sacked three key members following the cheating saga, with team president Tim Cindric, managing director Ron Ruzewski and general manager Kyle Moyer all being ousted from the organisation.

Cindric and Ruzewski were already suspended from the race by IndyCar in their role as Newgarden and Power’s race strategists.

In a statement, Penske cited two organisation failures at the squad for these sackings, an indirect reference to Newgarden and McLaughlin having been caught having illegal access to push-to-pass at St Pete in 2024.

McLaughlin said it’s important to remember the contribution of Roger Penske to IndyCar and motorsport before pointing fingers at him for a car tweak that the team claims brought no performance benefit.

The former Supercars champion was also sad that Penske had to part ways with staff like Cindric, who had been with the team for decades and had played an important role in its success.

“Ultimately, those three guys are friends of mine and have done a tremendous amount in my career to get me to this point,” McLaughlin said.

“I guess you could say there’s sadness from my perspective.

“At the end of the day, I drive for Roger Penske. I respect the decision. I understand the decision. We move forward.

“I think I’m disappointed in some of my peers and people in this room, just how it was taken out of proportion in some ways.

“At the same time, I think people forget just what Roger’s done for this sport in general, and that definitely gets thrown to the side a little bit, which I find a hard time not being passionate about that.

“But ultimately, what’s done is done. This happened. We have to move forward. The penalties are accepted.

“Personally I think I had the fastest car, I put it in the fence. Smart people in this paddock know there was no gain with that.

“It’s frustrating that this is blown up like it has, and it’s cost three people that I’m very close with their jobs. But overall, my view on it right now is just to focus forward and win Roger his 21st.

“There’s that much motivation in our garage, within the team, within my stand. I’m excited to work with Ben [Bretzman] even closer than I have before.

“We’ve got amazing people coming in from a substitute perspective helping us out, Jonathan Diuguid, Raul Prados, people that have won this race before.

“Yeah, you haven’t heard from me because I wanted the chance to just say that. I’m not really going to speak too much more on that.”

McLaughlin will start the race from 10th on the grid. He achieved a best finish of sixth in 2024, as teammate Newgarden romped to his second straight victory.