Roger Penske, Jack Roush named to NASCAR Hall of Fame

Roger Penske, left, celebrates with driver Brad Keselowski, right, after winning NASCAR’s Sprint Cup during the 2012 Ford EcoBoost 400 Sprint Cup NASCAR race at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Fla., on Nov. 18, 2012. Photo credit: REUTERS

Longtime race team owners Jack Roush and Roger Penske have been elected to the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s Class of 2019.

Drivers Davey Allison, Alan Kulwicki and Jeff Gordon were also elected to the Hall of Fame Class of 2019, NASCAR said Wednesday.

Penske is the founder and chairman of Penske Corp. and Team Penske, which has captured 489 victories, 556 pole positions and 32 championships across open-wheel, stock car and sports car racing. Penske is also chairman of Penske Automotive Group, one of the nation’s largest new-vehicle dealership groups. 

In NASCAR, Team Penske captured the NASCAR Cup Series Championship in 2012, the NASCAR XFINITY Series Championship in 2010 and four of the last five NASCAR XFINITY Series Owners’ Championships — in 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2017. The team has captured 108 NASCAR Cup Series victories, including two Daytona 500 wins — in 2008 and 2015.

Penske also helped build and or operate several of NASCAR’s major race tracks, including Michigan International Speedway, Auto Club (then California) Speedway, Nazareth Speedway, Homestead-Miami Speedway and North Carolina Motor Speedway.

Over the course of its 52-year history, Team Penske has won 16 Indianapolis 500 victories, a Formula 1 win and overall victories in the 24 Hours of Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring.

Roush, founder of Roush Entrprises, a major supplier to the auto indusry, is a former Michigan-based drag racing owner and enthusiast. He started a NASCAR team in 1988. Since he founded Roush Racing — now Roush Fenway Racing — the mathematician turned engineer and entrepreneur has captured a record 325 races across NASCAR’s three national series.

Roush has won five NASCAR national series owner championships and his drivers have won an additional three driver championships.