Late star Gil De Ferran inducted into Team Penske Hall of Fame

Team Penske has announced late motorsports star Gil de Ferran as one of its latest inductees into its Hall of Fame. Ferran joined the ninth class of the team's Hall of Fame during its holiday party on December 19.

Gil de Ferran was a Brazilian professional racing driver who won his first two CART championships with Penske Racing in 2000 and 2001. The late driver also moved to the IndyCar Series where he won the Indianapolis 500 in 2003, marking a three-peat for Penske Racing.

During the Hall of Fame induction in Mooresville, North Carolina, Gil de Ferran's wife, Angela, accepted the award on his behalf.

“Gil would have been extremely honored with his induction into the Team Penske Hall of Fame alongside so many other racing legends,” Angela de Ferran said.

“His years at Team Penske were not only his most successful years in his racing career, but also some of his happiest. He had the utmost respect for everyone he worked with," she added. [via jayski.com]

Gil de Ferran with two-time F1 champion Fernando Alonzo - Source: Imagn

Gil de Ferran has been inducted into the Hall of Fame along with Tom Lombardi. The latter served several roles with the team, including transport driver/mechanic, parts specialist, and team coordinator. He was involved in racing series such as IROC, IndyCar Series, and NASCAR.

Lombardi retired in 2017 but still maintains a presence during race weekends, according to the team.

The two join previous inductees including Roger Penske (2016), Mark Donohue (2016), Rick Mears (2017), Karl Kainhofer (2017), Rusty Wallace (2018), Walter Czarnecki (2018), Don Miller (2019), Dan Luginbuhl (2019), Helio Castroneves (2020), Tim Cindric (2021), Jerry Breon (2021), Larry Bluth (2022), Clive Howell (2022), Nick Goozee (2023) and Jay Signore (2023).

The Team Penske Hall of Fame was introduced in 2016 when the team celebrated its 50th anniversary in motorsports.

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Team Penske dominates motorsports in 2024

Team Penske has a lot to be proud of as the year is coming to an end. The team won several championships in various racing series including NASCAR, IMSA WeatherTech, and World Endurance Championship (WEC).

No. 22 Ford Mustang driver Joey Logano led the way for Team Penske's third consecutive title in the NASCAR Cup Series. The three-year run took off with Logano himself in 2022 followed by teammate Ryan Blaney.

Joey Logano won the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series championship - Source: Imagn

As for the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, Team Penske earned its sixth title this year. Dane Cameron and Felipe Nasr were victorious in the No. 7 Porsche 963 in the Grand Touring Prototype (GTP), the top class of the series.

The outfit also won the championship in the top Hypercar class of WEC, a global endurance racing series similar to America's IMSA SportsCar Championship. The team secured its first title against powerhouse Ferrari AF Corse and long-time champ Toyota Gazoo Racing.

Josef Newgarden won the 2024 Indy 500 - Source: Imagn

The IndyCar Series team may have come short of a championship but it won the Indy 500 with Josef Newgarden behind the wheel of No. 2 Chevrolet. Newgarden regained the lead from Pato O'Ward on the final lap to win "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing."