VICS: Simon Pagenaud Looking for First Podium with Team Penske

Following a couples to victory lane last season and a finish in the top-five in points, Simon Pagenaud made the decision to leave Schmidt Peterson Motorsports and join Team Penske in a new fourth-car for the Captain’s organization. Pageaud’s reasoning was simple – he wanted to win championships.

So far this season, he is off to a solid start as he has posted a pair of top-fives in the first three races, with a season-best finish coming last weekend in the Grand Prix of Long Beach. He has shown strong speed all year, finding himself in the top-five in the speed charts at the end of each season with his teammates.

Pagenaud hopes that positive momentum carries into success, and possibly his first Team Penske podium this weekend at Barber Motorsports Park.

“The No. 22 Penske Truck Rental Chevrolet team has started the season off with a lot of consistency, but I was hoping that we would have a win under our belts by now,” he commented. “I know that may have been a bit ambitious, going to a new team and the growing pains that were sure to come with that, but we have everything we need to compete for wins here at Team Penske. We are closing in on it and it’s going to come sooner rather than later. And as I become more comfortable with my new surroundings, you will see my driving style change a bit as well. I need to get more aggressive at times in the race and that will come. But it’s all part of a process for me at the moment.

“It’s early in the season and we have plenty of racing left to go, starting this weekend at Barber Motorsports Park. Everyone loves going to Barber. It’s a beautiful facility that puts on great racing.”

He has had success at Barber before, scoring two top-fives and four top-10s in his four previous starts. The consistency gives the Frenchmen the third best average finish when comparing him to his competitors.

Perhaps the combination of his past success, Penske’s past history of success at Barber, and the solid start to the year will produce the pieces that are needed this weekend.