Page 1 of 1 Team Penske has been the dominant force in American road racing in the last four decades. Roger Penske was more than an accomplished driver when he gave up racing in 1964 (after just winning two major races during the Nassau Speed Week) to concentrate on establishing his multi-million dollar business. It took just two years for Penske to return to racing, but this time as an entrant. He began fielding Sunoco sponsored cars in various events for the highly talented Mark Donohue and within a few years the two had clinched championship titles TransAm and Can Am and victories in the Daytona 24 Hours and the Indy 500. The next big challenge was Formula 1 and after giving Donohue his first taste of the class in a privately entered McLaren in 1972, Penske prepared for a full season entry in 1974.
There was much more to it than just entering a new series as for the first time Penske would field his own car. In order to build and develop the new Formula 1 racer, Penske set up shop in Poole, England. Former Brabham draughtsman Geoff Ferris was hired to design it. Dubbed the PC1, Penske's first single seater racing car was wholly conventional with the exception of the rising rate front suspension system. Meticulous preparation was one of the main reasons Penske had been so successful in the past and as a result the new manufacturer spent most of 1974 building and preparing the car to make sure it was absolutely ready. At the time Formula 1 was oversubscribed and Penske surely did not want to see his debut ruined by the car failing to making it to the grid.
The fabulously livered Penske PC1 finally made its first appearance at the Canadian Grand Prix, which was the penultimate race of the season. Despite the lengthy preparation, Donohue's weekend was ruined by a technical problem. He did manage to qualify, but right at the bottom of the grid and in the race could do no better than 12th. During the practice session of the next Grand Prix at Watkins Glen in the United States, the Penske made huge improvements, getting within two seconds of the top times. Sadly Donohue was forced to retire with rear suspension failure. The following winter was used to fine-tune the PC1 for a complete season of racing. The modifications only partly helped and Donohue struggled to get anywhere near the top running Ferraris and McLarens. The best placing was fifth in Sweden. Eventually Penske decided to replace the ailing PC1 with a March 751 to give Donohue a better chance of success.
The switch to the British customer car was immediately successful as Donohue clinched fifth at the car's debut. Two races later it all went terribly wrong for Penske and most of all Donohue as he crashed the 751 in Austria after a tyre burst at 270 km/h. Initially he seemed to have escaped uninjured, but he sadly died a few days later from a brain hemorrhage. Having just lost his principle driver, Penske nevertheless persevered and fielded the brand new Penske PC3 for British driver John Watson in the final race of the season. Although bearing the Penske name, the PC3 was a clever development of the March 751 and bore a close resemblance. Watson used the car in practice, but due to a technical failure was forced to switch to the old PC1, which was in the paddock as a demonstrator, for the race. He finished in a lowly ninth, but his performance earned him a Penske Formula 1 drive for the following season.
The bugs were ironed out of the PC3 and Penske looked completely ready for its second full Formula 1 season. Despite Penske's and Watson's best effort, the team could still run no higher than in the mid-field. Fifth was again the best the Penske could manage. During the Swedish Grand Prix Penske debuted the PC4, which was again fully developed in Poole by Geoff Ferris. It was an obvious improvement, but due to a first lap crash this was not reflected in the result. Success finally came in France where Watson placed the PC4 on the podium. Ironically Watson claimed his and Penske's first victory at Zeltweg, where Donohue had perished a year earlier. The bearded driver had already qualified on the first row and clinched the well deserved win with a gap of over ten seconds. Unfortunately the now beardless Watson only managed to score one more point and Penske ended the season in a joined fifth.
Just over two seasons of struggling, tragedy and rare success were enough for Penske and he returned to the United States. Back home he continued where he had left off by winning everything that he set his mind to. Over seventy years old now, he is still the driving force between Team Penske, which is active in NASCAR, IRL and the ALMS, needless to say with great success. The Penske Formula 1 cars were sold to his partner Gunther Schmidt and raced under the 'ATS Penske' banner in 1977 with a number of top ten finishes as best results. It is safe to say that Penske does not look back at his time in F1 with great pleasure and probably not for the lack of his usual success, but more so for losing his principle driver and close friend. The current Penske Racing facility still features murals depicting Donohue driving many Penske entered machines. Page 1 of 1
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Team Penske has been the dominant force in American road racing in the last four decades. Roger Penske was more than an accomplished driver when he gave up racing in 1964 (after just winning two major races during the Nassau Speed Week) to concentrate on establishing his multi-million dollar business. It took just two years for Penske to return to racing, but this time as an entrant. He began fielding Sunoco sponsored cars in various events for the highly talented Mark Donohue and within a few years the two had clinched championship titles TransAm and Can Am and victories in the Daytona 24 Hours and the Indy 500. The next big challenge was Formula 1 and after giving Donohue his first taste of the class in a privately entered McLaren in 1972, Penske prepared for a full season entry in 1974.
