Penske Announces driver of the 22 car...

And it's NOT David Ragan!

Allmendinger to Drive Shell-Pennzoil Dodge in 2012
December 21, 2011


MOORESVILLE, N.C. (December 21, 2011) - Penske Racing has named AJ Allmendinger as the driver of the team's No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Charger for the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.

Allmendinger, who has competed in the Cup Series since 2007, is coming off a strong season that saw him finish 15th in the series standings while battling for a position in the Chase for the Championship. The 30-year-old native of Los Gatos, Calif., earned one top-five, 10 top-10 and 22 top-15 results in 2011 while driving the No. 43 car for Richard Petty Motorsports.

"I am really excited about the opportunity to join Penske Racing and drive the No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Dodge in 2012," said Allmendinger. "I have always admired Roger Penske and the way his teams compete and win in every series where they race. It is a privilege for me to represent such iconic and respected brands as Shell and Pennzoil, AAA and Dodge. I am honored to join Penske Racing and I will do my very best to continue to build on the standard of excellence established across the organization."

Allmendinger will join a winning team that's poised to compete for a position in the 2012 Cup Series Chase. The No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Dodge team produced two wins, three poles and 16 top-10 finishes in 2011 as it earned a spot in the Chase and finished 11th in the series standings. Allmendinger will be paired with crew chief Todd Gordon, who led the Penske Racing No. 22 Nationwide Series team to six victories last season and was named last week as the new chief of the Shell-Pennzoil Dodge.

"AJ is a very talented and motivated driver and we believe he will be a terrific fit with our team," said Roger Penske. "He has shown great promise and consistent results on the track over the last few seasons and working with Todd and the Shell-Pennzoil Dodge team will allow him to take the next step and compete for race wins and a spot in the Chase in 2012."

"Shell and Pennzoil are extremely pleased by Penske Racing's selection of AJ Allmendinger to drive the No. 22 Shell-Pennzoil Dodge," said Lisa Davis, President of Shell Oil Products U.S. "AJ has consistently demonstrated great potential and continuous improvement as a driver, and with Penske's track record, our employees and customers can look forward to seeing him contending for wins and ultimately a championship in the NASCAR Cup Series. We know he will represent our brands well on and off the track and we look forward to a successful 2012 with AJ behind the wheel."

Allmendinger honed his skills in the open-wheel racing ranks. After winning the Barber Dodge Pro Series title in 2002 and the Toyota Atlantic Championship in 2003, he earned Rookie of the Year honors in the Champ Car World Series in 2004. He posted five wins and finished third in the 2005 Champ Car World Series before making the switch to NASCAR. He first competed in the Cup Series in 2007 and he's earned 26 top-10 finishes in less than five Cup Series seasons. Allmendinger has finished inside the top 20 in points in each of the last two seasons. (penskeracing.com)

http://penskeracing.com/news/index.cfm?series=n&cid=50924

https://efr1.forumotion.com/t856-david-regan-denied

beat ya!

conrail1990 wrote:https://efr1.forumotion.com/t856-david-regan-denied

beat ya!

Yeah, by about 15 seconds. Still not taking this thread down

BurningThunder wrote:

conrail1990 wrote:https://efr1.forumotion.com/t856-david-regan-denied

beat ya!

Yeah, by about 15 seconds. Still not taking this thread down

I know

Back on topic NO DAVID REGAN!!!!

If Kurt Busch gets a ride with RPM, all will be good.

Yay! Heard that Ragan could replace Dinger in the 43, though.

Rykia_RKXK wrote:Yay! Heard that Ragan could replace Dinger in the 43, though.

Don't ruin the moment

*enters M. Bison mode* YES!! YES!!!

ragan will likley end up at trg. no worries guys.

AntmanB wrote:ragan will likley end up at trg. no worries guys.

More likely Phoenix Racing. Ragan had a tenative agreement with them before he tried to get the 22 ride.

Quality equipment for A.J.!

Sparkz47 wrote:

Oh my freaking gosh. I'm singing this with my school chorus tonight.

Also, yay for Dinger.

Penske.



Hoping Allmendinger can make the most it.

This is the best news. This is the greatest news.

Racerfan275 wrote:

Rykia_RKXK wrote:Yay! Heard that Ragan could replace Dinger in the 43, though.

Don't ruin the moment

No, no, that would be even better, having some no-talent assclown getting a ride before Kurt Busch

almendinger THIS WILL NOT WORK OUT WELL

As much as I respect Ragan, there is no denying that Allmendinger deserved the ride more. With all that AJ has done in secondhand Roush equipment (and I won't hide the face that Ragan has underperformed quite badly in recent seasons), you have to hand it to him. I applaud Penske's decision and believe that they chose the right driver. As much as I respect David for being a good guy off the track (I was a former Jarrett fan and thus why I liked David, very nice guy if you get the chance to meet him), I really wish he would have put up more of a fight in the #6. The equipment was there and 08' was a good season but other than that, he was midfield at best. Nice guys don't finish first however and unlike Jarrett who had the results to match, David was only strong on superspeedways and a handful of other occasions.

What I don't understand is the fact that everyone relates him to some assclown. Yes, I can see the no talent argument; past 3 seasons have been dreadful in retrospect. But one thing you cannot call him is an assclown. He has been slow but despite the lack of performance he has conducted himself in a professional manner. That's why I've continued to like him. He sucks but the guy is not an ass unlike quite a few in the garage area today. Point is, you prove a point about his ability as a race car driver but you are a fool bashing his demenor. He was one of few who have taken the time when I've been in the pits in Richmond and communicated with the fans. Been to four races since 08' with pit passes for each and Ragan always took the time to sign a quick autograph and once even offered a picture seeing I had a camera around his neck. Also was active in the merch. hauler and at the garage fence after sessions. I also have to say that Dinger was cordial as well. But Gordon, Kenseth, Biffle, Harvick, Busch, (both) Johnson and Kahne in retrospect all act like pompous jerks. Straight out of the car to the hauler, and when they are walking in the infield they ignore pretty much everyone. I'd say that David, AJ, Ambrose, Labonte, Nemechek, Newman, Stewart and Burton are the few who pretty much give a fuck about their fans and that's why I really don't care for anyone else for that matter.

Let's hope that AJ can take advantage of this oppritunity and perhaps score a win this season. He has the talent and now the team under him; I expect great things to come but again, you cannot rush success. Expect to see more of him up front throughout the entire race.

Carl's also a pretty nice guy, even though I'm not really a fan. Scott Wimmer and Stephen Leicht are also pretty nice. Brendan Gaughan, too.

Although I don't agree with him running full time in Nationwide, Carl's still rather funny and likes hanging with his fans. I didn't get the chance to see him but from what I've seen and heard, he's another one of those guys who takes time to socalize with fans. Not much of a Edwards fan myself but you gotta like drivers who will do that and that's why I like David so much and have been willing to put up with his dreadful driving.

pepsibottle1 wrote:As much as I respect Ragan, there is no denying that Allmendinger deserved the ride more. With all that AJ has done in secondhand Roush equipment (and I won't hide the face that Ragan has underperformed quite badly in recent seasons), you have to hand it to him. I applaud Penske's decision and believe that they chose the right driver. As much as I respect David for being a good guy off the track (I was a former Jarrett fan and thus why I liked David, very nice guy if you get the chance to meet him), I really wish he would have put up more of a fight in the #6. The equipment was there and 08' was a good season but other than that, he was midfield at best. Nice guys don't finish first however and unlike Jarrett who had the results to match, David was only strong on superspeedways and a handful of other occasions.

What I don't understand is the fact that everyone relates him to some assclown. Yes, I can see the no talent argument; past 3 seasons have been dreadful in retrospect. But one thing you cannot call him is an assclown. He has been slow but despite the lack of performance he has conducted himself in a professional manner. That's why I've continued to like him. He sucks but the guy is not an ass unlike quite a few in the garage area today. Point is, you prove a point about his ability as a race car driver but you are a fool bashing his demenor. He was one of few who have taken the time when I've been in the pits in Richmond and communicated with the fans. Been to four races since 08' with pit passes for each and Ragan always took the time to sign a quick autograph and once even offered a picture seeing I had a camera around his neck. Also was active in the merch. hauler and at the garage fence after sessions. I also have to say that Dinger was cordial as well. But Gordon, Kenseth, Biffle, Harvick, Busch, (both) Johnson and Kahne in retrospect all act like pompous jerks. Straight out of the car to the hauler, and when they are walking in the infield they ignore pretty much everyone. I'd say that David, AJ, Ambrose, Labonte, Nemechek, Newman, Stewart and Burton are the few who pretty much give a fuck about their fans and that's why I really don't care for anyone else for that matter.

Let's hope that AJ can take advantage of this oppritunity and perhaps score a win this season. He has the talent and now the team under him; I expect great things to come but again, you cannot rush success. Expect to see more of him up front throughout the entire race.

When it comes to talent, Ragan is an assclown. As a person, yes, Ragan is a class act.

PYLrulz wrote:When it comes to talent, Ragan is an assclown. As a person, yes, Ragan is a class act.

Ragan's Talent > Almorola's Talent

I mean Ragan is in the fourth Roush car, that always spells disaster. Look how crap McMurray was when he was in the #26. Then Boom! He wins Daytona Charlotte Indy!

Mother of Invention wrote:

PYLrulz wrote:When it comes to talent, Ragan is an assclown. As a person, yes, Ragan is a class act.

Ragan's Talent > Almorola's Talent

I mean Ragan is in the fourth Roush car, that always spells disaster. Look how crap McMurray was when he was in the #26. Then Boom! He wins Daytona Charlotte Indy!

If you are in the 4th car of Roush OR Hendrick, and you supposedly have expeirence, you should at least be able to consistently pull off Top 20 points finishes. If Ragan has talent, he is severely not making ANY use of it.

PYLrulz wrote: If Ragan has talent, he is severely not making ANY use of it.

it's the car, Look at Wally Dallenbach. got 5 top 10s in two years as low man on the Roush totem pole, gets 8 as low man on the Hendrick Totem pole. Of those 5 top 10s three were at Road Courses. where as only one of those was at Road course when he was at Hendrick.

and Scott try to use an actual argument instead of "He's a talentless hack"

Mother of Invention wrote:

PYLrulz wrote: If Ragan has talent, he is severely not making ANY use of it.

it's the car, Look at Wally Dallenbach. got 5 top 10s in two years as low man on the Roush totem pole, gets 8 as low man on the Hendrick Totem pole. Of those 5 top 10s three were at Road Courses. where as only one of those was at Road course when he was at Hendrick.

and Scott try to use an actual argument instead of "He's a talentless hack"

Let's look at Jamie McMurray's finish averages

2007 22.2
2008 20.1
2009 21.4

And David Ragan's
2007 24.5
2008 15.6
2009 24.4

McMurray smashed Ragan's finish average in 2009, while in the worse Roush car. Seriously, Ragan is nothing but a waste of space on the Sprint Cup grid other than his 2008 season.

bartman97 wrote:

Mother of Invention wrote:

PYLrulz wrote: If Ragan has talent, he is severely not making ANY use of it.

it's the car, Look at Wally Dallenbach. got 5 top 10s in two years as low man on the Roush totem pole, gets 8 as low man on the Hendrick Totem pole. Of those 5 top 10s three were at Road Courses. where as only one of those was at Road course when he was at Hendrick.

and Scott try to use an actual argument instead of "He's a talentless hack"

Let's look at Jamie McMurray's finish averages

2007 22.2
2008 20.1
2009 21.4

And David Ragan's
2007 24.5
2008 15.6
2009 24.4

McMurray smashed Ragan's finish average in 2009, while in the worse Roush car. Seriously, Ragan is nothing but a waste of space on the Sprint Cup grid other than his 2008 season.

This. If Ragan wasn't an untalented hack, 2009 would look like a 12.4, not a 24.4

Also, McMurray's worst points finish was a 22nd in his last year at Roush when he pretty much was a lame duck driver. Ragan had a 13th, but his other 4 seasons, all were worse than McMurray's worst season at Roush.

Face it, Ragan is a hack. He doesn't deserve good rides.

David Ragan never did anything before to deserve a ride in Sprint Cup. He's very convincing and he pretty much weaseled his way into Roush's pants to secure a ride for a few years. Roush is finally now coming to realize how worthless he is as a driver.

Yes Ragan didnt do much to get the free ride and tbh I think tjats what killed him. But even so you have to just wonder what happened Fter 2008. He came on at times with Blickensderfer but it just didnt look like he wanted it bad enough. It's like he just wasnt trying. He could pull off a string of top tens but then would just fade back to midfield. I agree completely that Ragan was defimitnot up to par in that 6 seat and as much as I like the guy off the track, the fact of the matter is that he just didnt get the job done when it mattered. Unfortunately you can be as professional about the matter as possible but in the end, it's the results that matter. He had the oppritunity and could not break through. Its tough to see a class act like David struggle but as others have pointed out, there's not a lot of good to say about him after his stimt at Roush. I can see him at TRG but that is all he is going to get. If I were him, I would return to Nationwide and drive the hell out of 2012 if he wants any chance to redeem himself

F1V1 wrote:David Ragan never did anything before to deserve a ride in Sprint Cup. He's very convincing and he pretty much weaseled his way into Roush's pants to secure a ride for a few years. Roush is finally now coming to realize how worthless he is as a driver.

not really as much that as that as Todd Kluever sucked more then he did.

but his other 4 seasons, all were worse than McMurray's worst season at Roush.

Didn't I just say that was due to equipment. I am pretty sure in 2009 Roush gave better treatment to the #26 cause he was selling the team and needed to make it a more appealing, Plus McMurray got that fluky win at Dega.

Yeah you can ask pretty much anyone here and they will tell you that I'm a Ragan Rooter through and through. I like him for who he is off the track but it's hard to defend David for not doing more than he did. I he to say it but it's the truth. Perhaps the comments are bit harsh but after the last 3 seasons he's had at Roush he has done little to counter those arguments

but his other 4 seasons, all were worse than McMurray's worst season at Roush.

Didn't I just say that was due to equipment. I am pretty sure in 2009 Roush gave better treatment to the #26 cause he was selling the team and needed to make it a more appealing, Plus McMurray got that fluky win at Dega.

Fluky when he led for like the last 50 laps... yeah. I guess the 3 wins in 2010 as soon as he left Roush were flukes too. That #26 team was absolutely HORRIBLE. The #6 was much better.

Ben Atkins wrote:

but his other 4 seasons, all were worse than McMurray's worst season at Roush.

Didn't I just say that was due to equipment. I am pretty sure in 2009 Roush gave better treatment to the #26 cause he was selling the team and needed to make it a more appealing, Plus McMurray got that fluky win at Dega.

Fluky when he led for like the last 50 laps... yeah. I guess the 3 wins in 2010 as soon as he left Roush were flukes too. That #26 team was absolutely HORRIBLE. The #6 was much better.

McMurray was a #5 at Roush!!! If a #5 is doing better than a #4, that should say something.

Ben Atkins wrote:
Fluky when he led for like the last 50 laps... yeah.

do you not remember that race? No one wanted to pass anyone. Like hell it was a fluky win.

Ragan has had 4 years in decent equipment and failed. Hell Roush was at it's best season and what did Ragan do of note.

1. Derped his way out of a 500 win
2. Won Daytona due to 2-car tango teammate love games.

McMurray better then Ragan? Are you a Roush fan boy or something?

Mother of Invention wrote:

Ben Atkins wrote:
Fluky when he led for like the last 50 laps... yeah.

do you not remember that race? No one wanted to pass anyone. Like hell it was a fluky win.

Well, he took the opportunity to get to the lead and kept it. It's not his fault he capatalized on everyone else being afraid to pass.

Ben Atkins wrote:

Mother of Invention wrote:

Ben Atkins wrote:
Fluky when he led for like the last 50 laps... yeah.

do you not remember that race? No one wanted to pass anyone. Like hell it was a fluky win.

Well, he took the opportunity to get to the lead and kept it. It's not his fault he capitalized on everyone else being afraid to pass.

same thing can be said of Ragan at Daytona. and that was also a fluke win.

Alta wrote:Ragan has had 4 years in decent equipment and failed. Hell Roush was at it's best season and what did Ragan do of note.

1. Derped his way out of a 500 win
2. Won Daytona due to 2-car tango teammate love games.

McMurray better then Ragan? Are you a Roush fan boy or something?

So, you had no problem with Joey Logano winning then? 'Cause that's what would've happened had Kenseth pulled out from behind Ragan. Logano and Kahne would've blew right by them.

Getting back on topic. David only had one season where he showed promise, 2008, since than he's been in the Michael Waltrip, Robby Gordon fail zone (the drivers who haven't done crap in the last 3 years).

Yes, he won at Daytona and I don't care how he won, a win is a win. But, he's been full time in cup since 2007 and in 5 full seasons he has 1 win. That is horrible. At least Jamie when he was with Roush during about the same amount of time (2006-2009, 4 seasons, one less than Ragan) had 2. And his 3 wins last year, I think was more do in part to the revamped spirit of the #1. Remember that team had just come off a season where JPM made the Chase and going into that season had the engine deal with RCR.

I love that AJ got the 22. I think if you put AJ with a crew chief and get the right chemistry he's going to win. Maybe not right out the gate or more than one race, but I could see him winning maybe the Fall race at Dover next year.

day500champ1 wrote:

Alta wrote:Ragan has had 4 years in decent equipment and failed. Hell Roush was at it's best season and what did Ragan do of note.

1. Derped his way out of a 500 win
2. Won Daytona due to 2-car tango teammate love games.

McMurray better then Ragan? Are you a Roush fan boy or something?

So, you had no problem with Joey Logano winning then? 'Cause that's what would've happened had Kenseth pulled out from behind Ragan. Logano and Kahne would've blew right by them.

Either way it would've been terrible, Was hoping at least Kahne or Kenseth would tried something.

Alta wrote:

day500champ1 wrote:

Alta wrote:Ragan has had 4 years in decent equipment and failed. Hell Roush was at it's best season and what did Ragan do of note.

1. Derped his way out of a 500 win
2. Won Daytona due to 2-car tango teammate love games.

McMurray better then Ragan? Are you a Roush fan boy or something?

So, you had no problem with Joey Logano winning then? 'Cause that's what would've happened had Kenseth pulled out from behind Ragan. Logano and Kahne would've blew right by them.

Either way it would've been terrible, Was hoping at least Kahne or Kenseth would tried something.

That's just it Alta, they couldn't. They would have loss the draft and it would have been between which ever two car tango didn't break up. I wish the finish could've been more exciting too, but in this situation Kahne and Kenseth were guaranteed a good finish if they stayed were they were especially Kenseth. It's better to finish 2nd then try something and finish 5th or 6th.