Team Penske bids for its fourth straight victory

Owner Roger Penske is hoping to make race history.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- The sight was enough to make Indy 500 regulars gape in wonderment.
There, climbing the fence alongside 2002 race winner Helio Castroneves, was team owner Roger Penske. The distinguished billionaire entrepreneur was calm amid the chaotic post-race scene, every gleaming white hair in place, his Marlboro Team Penske shirt still crisply starched despite a long, hot afternoon in the pits.
Even when his team wins at Indy, which it has done a record 13 times, Penske usually keeps his celebrations private. This time, though, he was keeping a promise.
When Castroneves won the race for Penske in 2001, he celebrated by climbing the fence, a la Spiderman, while his boss watched calmly from the pits.
"I told Roger, 'If I win again next year, you have to climb the fence with me.' He said he would," Castroneves said.
Penske is a man of his word -- even if it makes him uncomfortable.
Last May, Gil de Ferran made it three in a row for Penske, who remained in the pits this time, quietly shaking hands and accepting congratulations as runner-up Castroneves dragged de Ferran to the fence for yet another climbing celebration.
Eyes fourth in row
Now, Penske is going for an unprecedented four in a row, with Castroneves and two-time IRL champion Sam Hornish Jr., who replaced the now-retired de Ferran. The late Lou Moore, second to Penske with five Indy victories, is the only other team owner to have won three straight (1947-49).
"This is all business here," Penske said. "I told the team when we got here this month; we come here with a job to get done.
"When the team prepares for this race, we say if you're here and not focused, you're kind of cutting off your paycheck by not staying in the game for the whole month."
Nobody should be surprised if a Penske driver wins again on Sunday.
Castroneves, starting eighth in the 33-car field, and Hornish, starting 11th, are both among the favorites going into the 88th edition of the 500.
Their Toyota engines have not shown the power generated so far this month by the Honda competitors but, for the well-financed and highly organized Penske team, the drive for perfection runs deep, especially at Indy.
"There are different phases of that preparation," said team president Tim Cindric. "You're thinking about it really from the time you leave at the end of the previous [race] because you're really starting to work on what didn't we do right and what do we need to focus on next year."
Mears won four times
Rick Mears won four times for Penske before going to work for the team as a special consultant and driver coach. He said the secret to the team's success is Penske himself.
"It's like every other thing he does," Mears said. "He's always 4 miles down the road. Roger stays on top of everything. He's always up. He doesn't get complacent, plus he's always thinking."
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