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Kevin Harvick speculates controversial Penske departures at Indy 500 will negatively impact NASCAR team

Brian Jones Profile Picby: Brian Jones05/29/25brianjones_93
Joey Logano Penske
May 25, 2025; Concord, North Carolina, USA; NASCAR Cup Series driver Joey Logano (22) during the Coca Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Kevin Harvick wonders if the Team Penske departures at the Indy 500 will impact the NASCAR team for the rest of the season. On Kevin Harvick’s Happy Hour, Harvick discussed the future of the NASCAR Penske teams after a rough showing at Charlotte.

“Let’s put it in perspective, they were awful at Charlotte,” Kevin Harvick said. “That was a surprise. “We all thought that they were on this consistent path to having that speed. They showed up at Charlotte and weren’t in the mix all night. Never even a part of the conversation.

“You (Mamba Smith) mentioned everything that happened at Indy with the Indy cars and the departure of those people makes you wonder what the trickle-down effect of that is going to be. Maybe it’s just a coincidence that they ran bad at Charlotte, and it all happened on the weekend when all this happened, or whatever the scenario is. But it was as bad as I’ve ever seen all year as a group.”

Team Penske announced the departures of three executives

Last week, Team Penske announced the departures of IndyCar team president Tim Cindric, IndyCar managing director Ron Ruzewski and IndyCar general manager Kyle Moyer. Cindric has been with Penske since the end of the 1999 IndyCar Series season and is the father of Penske NASCAR Cup Series driver Austin Cindric.

“Nothing is more important than the integrity of our sport and our race teams,” Penske owner and founder Roger Penske said in a statement. “We have had organizational failures during the last two years, and we had to make necessary changes. I apologize to our fans, our partners and our organization for letting them down.”

Austin Cindric, Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano make up the NASCAR Cup Series roster for Team Penske. At the Charlotte race, Cindric finished 31st, Blaney finished 38th and Logano finished 17th. Despite the tough performances this past weekend, Cindric and Logano are heading the playoffs since they have won races this year. Blaney has yet to win a race this season but would make the playoffs if began today since he has enough points.