ELKHART LAKE, Wis. As usual, Helio Castroneves took charge.

Castroneves and Simon Pagenaud came in early for their news conference after a good practice at Road America for the Team Penske drivers. Castroneves, still in his firesuit, picked up the microphone and started moderating the discussion as if he was a veteran announcer.

Youre such a natural, Pagenaud said to laughter. The guy is great.

Chemistry on and off the track has helped fuel Team Penskes IndyCar success. All four Penske drivers are sixth or better in the points race, within 63 or less of leader Scott Dixon.

Between us, yes, we want to kick everybody inside the team, Castroneves said. But we want to give the win, we want to give the championship to Roger (Penske). But we know in the end of the day, working together, racing hard ... but fair, everybodys going to benefit from that.

The three-time Indianapolis 500 winner is a headliner on another impressive IndyCar roster for Penske. Pagenaud is the reigning champion. Will Power is a former series champ.

Josef Newgarden is the new guy after joining Penske in the offseason from tiny Ed Carpenter Racing. Newgarden, who finished fourth in the series last year, is the first American driver on Penskes open-wheel roster since Sam Hornish Jr. in 2007.

The quartet dominated practice and qualifying at Road America last weekend, with Castroneves taking the pole while his teammates filled out the rest of the front row. A large team allows drivers to share information, giving Penske an advantage over teams with fewer cars.

We have on-board cameras, have data, have notes from the session. If you wanted to hide something, you just cant, Power said.

Added Newgarden: Really, its like impossible. No joke. Its 100% impossible to hide anything.

Not that they seem to mind. The addition of Newgarden has appeared to be seamless since he replaced Juan Pablo Montoya. They poked fun at each other all weekend in Wisconsin.

The drivers look like mischievous middle-school boys on a series of lighthearted videos produced by Team Penske. The Penske Games include activities like building a Lego race car ; saying the alphabet backward ; and twirling a hula hoop.

But Dixon spoiled the Penske party after the Chip Ganassi Racing veteran won the Wisconsin race. The series resumes July 9 at Iowa.

Its kind of disappointing that Team Penske didnt get the win here today considering how strong all of the cars were. Thats the way it goes sometimes, Castroneves said. Well come back ready to go for Iowa.

Auto Racing Weekend glance

Schedule: Thursday, practice, 3 p.m. (NBCSN), practice, 5 p.m. (NBCSN); Friday, qualifying, 4:10 p.m. (NBCSN); Saturday, race, 7:30 p.m., NBC.

Track: Daytona International Speedway (oval, 2.5 miles).

Race distance: 400 miles, 160 laps.

Last year: Brad Keselowski won the summer stop at Daytona.

Last week: Kevin Harvick won at Sonoma, his first victory of 2017.

Fast facts: The series returns to Daytona for the first time since the 500 in February, when Kurt Busch emerged as the surprise winner. ... Harvicks win at Sonoma pushed him to third in the standings. Harvick now has a victory, three stage wins and eight playoff points. ... Chase Elliott will be in in the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports through 2022 after a four-year contract extension. Elliott heads to Daytona in sixth place overall.

Next race: Quaker State 400, July 8, Kentucky Speedway, Sparta, Kentucky.

COCA-COLA FIRECRACKER 250

Schedule: Thursday, practice, 2 p.m., (NBCSN), practice, 4 p.m., (NBCSN); Friday, qualifying, 2:10 p.m. (NBCSN), race, 7:30 p.m., NBCSN.

Track: Daytona International Speedway (oval, 2.5 miles).

Race distance: 250 miles, 100 laps.

Last year: Aric Almirola took first despite starting 23rd.

Last race: William Byron won in Iowa, his first victory in the series.

Fast facts: Byrons victory at Iowa Speedway wasnt a complete shock considering he had won seven truck events in 2016 including at Iowa. ... Christopher Bell led 252 laps combined between the Xfinity and Truck series last weekend without winning either race. ... Byron joined Ryan Reed and Justin Allgaier as series regulars with wins that all but assure a playoff spot.

Next race: Alsco 300, July 7, Kentucky Motor Speedway, Sparta, Kentucky.

Link:
Auto racing: Chemistry powers Penske - South Bend Tribune