Last Spring we visited Penske’s state of the art racing facility at Mooresville, NC and caught up with Indy Car Championship contender Ryan Briscoe.
Ryan appeared in our Indy Car season preview in episode 2. He also featured in our behind the scenes visit to Penske Racing in episode 3 as well as our Indy 500 preview in episode 8. His curtain call to Series 1 came in our dedicated Driver Profile in episode 24.
But here are some extracts from the interview that didn’t make it onto the show;

Tell me how you got started in racing…
Erm, I just started as a kid. Dad and my family have always been into motor racing, my father was into rally car driving and just as a hobby we started doing go karting when I was 11 and erm, things just sort of progressed pretty quickly from there you know. I just started getting good results and doing it more and more and er before I knew it we went to Europe and did the World Championships when I was 13 and did well. From there I got picked up as a factory driver and sort of had all my racing paid for from then on. And er, that’s sort of how my racing went from a hobby towards more of a, a career.

Who supported your early career?
Erm well it was just my dad err you know for the first sort of two years of my go kart racing, and after that err you know I was racing in Europe. I moved to Italy when I was 15 as a factory erm go kart driver and so I was fully supported by the team and er, I was racing go karts til I was 19, until I was picked up by Toyota and they moved me up into car racing from formula Renault, formula 3, 3000, and er, to Formula One as a test driver before coming to America and to Indy Car. So I guess I was pretty lucky in the early stages of my career where erm, you know I didn’t really need a whole lot of support.

Why are you so passionate about racing?
Erm I don’t know it’s just my life you know, it’s just what I, what I live and breathe really, just to go racing and try to win races.

So tell me what the Penske name means to motor sport?
I think the first thing that comes to mind when you talk about Penske racing is the Indianapolis 500 erm, you know roger Penske is just an absolute legend and er, an amazing person to work for, it really is an honour to be a part of the Penske racing organisation. But erm, I think his history and success in Indy car racing is for me, the, the biggest thing that pops to mind. And er, you know as a driver it means huge opportunity and chances to win lots of races, championships and hopefully er, an Indy 500.

Tell me what Roger Penske is like, and about the first time you met him face to face…
I think er, you know Roger, the first time I met him, and still today any time, you know I’m face to faith, faced with roger you know it it’s always the same. And I’m absolutely in awe of the man, he’s er, he’s just an amazing person erm, I’ve so much respect for him, and as does everyone on the team, and er, that just doesn’t die. There’s just something unique about roger where he brings out the best in everybody that works for him.

What is the secret to the team’s success?
I believe a big key to Penske racing success comes from the people that work within and the loyalty that there is and the number of years that people stay and er, work within the company, I think that’s a big, big you know key to success you know it’s erm, the passion and er, Roger himself, he just emits that across the board to everybody that works for him.

What is your favourite thing about this facility?
Er I really like the fact that er, the NASCAR program, the Indy car program and Sports Car program are all under the one roof here, and I think it really helps you know communication and resources within the team and sharing information you know there’s stuff that’s helpful from NASCAR that can work on the Indy car program and vice versa. And er, you know I think when all the guys walk in here everyday to work in such a beautiful facility erm you know it just makes them feel what a great position they’re in and makes them want to do better.

Can you tell me about the gift shop?
Yeah, Penske racing has the gift shop er, within the facility here which is beautiful because fans can come in off the street any time during the day, come in er, have a look at all the merchandise and er, you know buy products from their favourite drivers and also walk along the board walk which over views all the NASCAR race shop, which is absolutely beautiful. There are so many cars, and pictures and billboards across the wall. And er I think it’s just a great way for people you know not involved in the race team just to see what this facility is about, and see the guys working on the cars.

All the other drivers I noticed have their own office - do you ever make use of your nice shiny office?
Erm no I don’t, I don’t have an office here, I mean er, I do most of my work at home, er I live you know five minutes down the road, so er, usually when I come in I sit in my engineers office and we go over all the notes and so on. But I have seen on the NASCAR side, Kurt and Stremmy and those guys have their own offices, with fax machines but I’ve never seen them in there though so, er, ha ha I’m not sure!

What was your first big win in motor racing, what did it mean to you?
Erm, let me think a second. My first big win was er the Australian Championships in junior karting. And er, you know I think that was my first true feeling of success.

What is the best thing about your sport?
I believe the best thing about our sport is er, the feeling you get when you win races. It’s so difficult to win races, when you win; it’s absolutely an ecstatic feeling.

What is your greatest ambition?
Er, my ambition right now is to win the Indianapolis 500

Who is your number one driver of all time and why?
Of all time that’s er, that’s a difficult question but er, you know I really looked up to Michael Schumacher throughout his Formula One career.

And why?
Er I think his success on the track and also his engineering capabilities within the team to make a car suit his driving style.

Who do you see as the current number one driver and why?
Er I really respect Alonso a lot. I think he’s the quickest and most aggressive driver on the track in Formula One at the moment.
Which is your number one circuit and why?
Erm my number one circuit in America is Watkins Glen and in Europe it’s Spa. Er they both have similar characteristics with high speed corners, er, where you really have to put the car and yourself on the line.
How do you handle the pressures of fame from the fans and the media?
Er, I love it you know. It’s, you know it’s one of the big parts of motor racing and you know pressure I think makes you perform harder, but the support from the fans is always very gratifying so er, it’s always a good feeling.