There’s one long standing motorsport brand that has sidestepped the sector’s traditional cycle of boom and bust. Tim Cindric is the man behind that brand…

News Feature

Ask any of the new-age automotive marketers about the benefits of car racing and you are likely to be met with blank looks and dismissive chat.

But not from Roger Penske… And definitely not from Tim Cindric; the president of the giant Team Penske motorsport juggernaut that has just celebrated its 17th victory in the Indianapolis 500 and is the reigning teams’ champion in Supercars.

Team Penske operates on a $US135m annual budget and currently races – and wins – in IndyCar, NASCAR and sports cars in the USA, as well as Supercars in Australia.

But why does Roger Penske (a man with a business empire than turns over more than $US35b per year and personal wealth beyond $US2.5b) bother with racing?

“Most people win on Sunday and sell on Monday, but Roger’s approach is to win on Sunday and sell all weekend. He doesn’t wait until Monday,” says Cindric.

Wallace and I got the chance to give RP a tour of our @Airstream_Inc. @Rolex24Hours. I think he had his eye on the screen door as his motorhome didn't come with one. pic.twitter.com/xMtDbaeBpf — Tim Cindric (@TimCindric) January 26, 2018

“I see it happen every single day. The environment that motorsport provides. You’re not necessarily sitting in a board room doing a deal, but you can get to know people in a very genuine way.

“We don’t look at racing as our core business. Racing is really the way in which we promote our businesses,” he explains.

Cindric is in Australia for one of his regular check-ups on the most far-flung outpost of Penske’s racing empire, sitting down also with motoring.com.au at the Queensland Raceway round of the Virgin Australia Supercar Championship during a break in the on-track action.

The Falcons of Dick Johnson Racing Team Penske are the cars to beat in this year’s Supercars championship and young gun Scott McLaughlin is the odds-on favourite to become the 2018 driver’s champion.

Winning off the track

Winning is almost a requirement for Team Penske, which Cindric runs as a direct report to Penske.

The team has been successful in motorsport since the 1960s and, apart from flying the Penske flag, it also runs factory-backed teams for Ford in Australia and the USA, Chevrolet in IndyCar and Honda-Acura in sports cars.

Penske Corporation is just as diverse, with more than 300 car dealerships in the USA, and the Penske Truck Rental trucking business, as well as Detroit Diesel propulsion systems.

In Australia, Penske is very big in trucks and powerplants – including the units used in the Navy’s patrol boats – although he has yet to move into car dealerships.

The numbers are always huge, from 50,000 employees globally and, as one example, the world’s largest Toyota dealership. Penske owns Longho Toyota in northern Los Angeles, which sells more than 25,000 cars a year.

Team Penske is exceptional in one way, because it does not turn a profit.

“Our goal would be to break even. But that’s rare, honestly,” says Cindric.

“But Penske Corporation doesn’t set aside a marketing budget for the Penske brand in general. The way it’s viewed is that on-track success is what promotes the Penske brand worldwide.

“And you see that formula in Australia. We don’t really need a racing team a half-a-world away.”

What do you think happened here? Still can't believe it! #TrumpCharlotte pic.twitter.com/kAUTN5untQ — Tim Cindric (@TimCindric) June 21, 2018

The Penske Way

Cindric, now 50 and with a mechanical engineering degree and a background in motorsport engines before moving into management with Penske, is sharp and focussed. He is happy to discuss motorsport programs and how they work for Penske Corporation.

Home base is Mooresville, North Carolina, a site chosen because it is in the NASCAR heartland which concentrates most of the motorsport activity in the USA.

Apart from managing the 500 staff, Cindric is a strategist on most competition weekends and has to juggle plenty of tasks including the racing expectations of Ford, Acura and Chevrolet.

“We have Chevrolet in IndyCar and Acura in sports cars. Sometimes we race them at the same event. And I’ll literally change shirts between track sessions,” says Cindric.

In Australia, where Ryan Story is the team boss, Cindric can be relatively relaxed — in a single set of racing clothes. Cindric is nonetheless always on display as a figurehead for ‘The Penske Way’.

It’s the underlying standard for everything Penske does, from his dealerships to the immaculate presentation of the race cars and pit garages to the competition crews who are always neatly dressed and clean shaven.

A racing business case

Penske looked closely at Supercars, and his businesses in Australia and the various Supercars team, before forging an alliance with Dick Johnson Racing.

The behind-the-scenes work was done by Story, who provided a business case that worked better than any other potential partner including what is now Tickford Racing.

“It was my job to understand the best strategic approach, as a racing entity and also as a brand in Australia. I felt it would be better to help build a house,” says Cindric.

“We could bring the culture and freedom to do things our way. It meant we would start off further behind, but we enjoy a challenge. Your challenge is to be sure that you’re successful.”

DJR Team Penske was created with former champion Marcos Ambrose as lead driver, although he jumped ship early when he realised he was no longer a winner.

There is jealous talk about the biggest budget in the business, but the success has come for many reason, from the driving talent of McLaughlin and the technical expertise of engineering boss Ludo Lacroix, to the business acumen of Story.

“Money doesn’t buy success. You have to have resources to be successful, but it doesn’t guarantee success,” says Cindric.

There was a three-year plan and DJR Team Penske is right on track, with the added bonus of a new factory Ford connection that will put the Mustang into Supercars racing in 2019.

But it all tracks back to Roger Penske and The Penske Way.

“It obviously starts with Roger. He is the one we know and we’re here because of him,” says Cindric.

“It’s very obvious to me why it is so successful. It’s the people and the mindset of those people. You have to have like-minded people to be successful.

“A lot of people are really good at what they do but would not necessary be good here. Our way might not be only way to be successful, but it has been proven to be successful.”

Penske is now 82 and shows no sign of slowing down, but Cindric believes the motorsport focus will continue with his children.

“I see it as one of my responsibilities to ensure Team Penske is in a good place. I’ve seen enough to be pretty trusting that the commitment will be there for the future.

“The bigger question is where motorsport sits at that time. But Penske will be part of it,” Cindric stated.