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"Penske Material" provides an inside look at some of the personalities, stories and moments that make Team Penske so unique. 

It seems that everyone that has ever been employed by Team Penske has had that moment where it clicks in and they realize that “I work for Team Penske,” – one of the most successful and prestigious sports teams in the world.

It might be the first moment of walking into the team’s impressive facility in Mooresville, N.C. and seeing the remarkable organization and execution of the team at work or the gleaming trophies on display in the lobby. Or it could be their first day at the track wearing the team uniform or firesuit and walking into one of the immaculate race transporters. One of the truly great things about Team Penske is the diverse group of people that work within the organization and they all have their own personal moment when it hits them that they’ve become part of a special team.

Cale Phillips, named after his father’s favorite driver Cale Yarborough, joined Team Penske in 2015 after finishing up school. Cale knew he wanted a career in motorsports after playing four years of basketball in college. The Raleigh, NC native started racing motocross when he was 14 years old and he gradually earned his license to compete in the NASA Pro Racing Series after college. “Ever since I hit the track, I have been hooked,” said Phillips, who works in accounting for the team. It was his determination that led him to Team Penske after he applied to multiple teams looking for an opportunity to begin his career in motorsports. Phillips recalls his “Welcome to Team Penske Moment,” when he was honored to be in attendance at the Team Penske 50th Anniversary celebration. He had only joined the team a few months earlier, but Phillips remembers sitting in the ballroom at the NASCAR Hall of Fame in awe of all the racing legends in the room honoring Roger Penske and all that the team accomplished over five decades. He said he knew at that moment he was excited to be a part of history and that he was looking forward to many more years with Team Penske.

Hoover, Ala. is where Team Penske pit crew member Dwayne Ogles hails from. Ogles grew up working on street cars throughout high school and he was into drag racing. Knowing that he had a passion for motorsports that was growing day by day, Ogles decided to relocate to Mooresville, NC. After working at a car dealership and attending a pit crew school, Ogles worked his way into the sport as a tire changer on an ARCA team owned by Frank Kimmel. Ogles then transitioned to Roush Racing where he spent seven years before he saw an opportunity to join Team Penske. For Ogles, it was an ideal situation as his brother Jeremy was already working for the team and Dwayne had gotten to know some members of the team through Jeremy. Even though Dwayne knew when he came aboard that Team Penske was a great team, his special moment came on September 7, 2014. Dwayne and his brother were teammates on the No. 2 car and that day the team and driver Brad Keselowski won the NASCAR Cup Series race at Richmond Raceway and secured the 400th overall victory for Team Penske. It also happened to be Dwayne’s birthday and that feeling of victory and being a part of team history is something that Dwayne will always remember.

Back in 2002, Jimmy White was the Media Relations Director for the NASCAR Raybestos Rookie of the Year program and he worked closely with Team Penske’s then rookie driver, Ryan Newman. “I was impressed with how everyone in the company was professional, friendly, and easy to work with,” recalls White of his experiences with Team Penske back then. After several years of working indirectly with the team through the Rookie of the Year program and later when Team Penske was affiliated with Dodge Motorsports, White joined Brad Keselowski’s Truck Series team as a PR representative. When that team closed its operations in 2017, Keselowski encouraged White to apply for a position at Team Penske. A few weeks later, White joined the team as the PR rep for Keselowski and the No. 2 Ford Mustang team – a position he continues to hold to this day. For White, the moment he realized he was in a truly special place was in 2018 when Keselowski parked the No. 2 Mustang in Victory Lane at Daytona after his win in the Clash. Seeing the excitement from his driver and the presence of the Captain Roger Penske celebrating with the team was the moment White said let him know that he had truly arrived at Team Penske.

Justin Bosch is the driver of the No. 12 Cup Series hauler. The native of Miami, Fla. had some friends that worked at Team Penske and in 2012, Bosch applied for a position to become a transport driver for the team. “Fatback” as he is affectionately known, joined Team Penske as the driver of the No. 12 INDYCAR team transporter. Over the years he's driven the truck that carried the cars raced by some of Team Penske’s top competitors including Helio Castroneves, Juan Pablo Montoya, Keselowski, Joey Logano, and now Ryan Blaney. Bosch’s “Welcome to Team Penske Moment” came while preparing for an INDYCAR test session at Sebring Raceway in 2012. Bosch helped organize the transporter and setup for the test and he was so impressed with the organization and attention to detail from the team. “It was like the Taj Mahal of setups,” said Bosch, who was also proud to be part of Montoya’s team when he won the Indianapolis 500 in 2015. Starting with that moment at the Sebring test, Bosch said he is still impressed by how Team Penske does things the right way, or maybe the best way to put it is, “the Penske Way.”   

Whatever the moment is for Team Penske team members, they all share a commitment to excellence and their passion and determination continues to be the driving force that keeps the team running at the front of the pack.