DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- For the storied Penske Racing organization Brad Keselowski's victory in Saturday night's Coke Zero 400 Powered by Coca-Cola served as an important exclamation point -- the 100th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series win for legendary team owner Roger Penske.
As team officials and the night's victor came into the Daytona International Speedway media center just after midnight, they donned specially designed black hats that sported a simple red number: 100.
Even for a team like Penske's, which holds records across all forms of auto racing, Keselowski's win at Daytona felt so significant.
"I would just say that the 100th in NASCAR is something special," Penske said following the race. "To do it here on the Fourth of July weekend, it's amazing. But it's a byproduct of all the good people we have, and to me we've got to continue to remember that. I just think that (Keselowski crew chief) Paul (Wolfe) and the team, we lose more than we win in this business, and you've got to know how to deal with the downs and take advantage of the ups. And I guess 100 wins puts us in a good position, but you look at (Joe) Gibbs and you look at (Richard) Childress and certainly (Rick) Hendrick, these guys have won a lot of races.
"I think we've competed in multiple series, and I think we're almost at 450 wins now, and we're I think three or four away from 500 poles. Our goal is 500 and 500. This was the first step to get to 100 in NASCAR."
Eight drivers have contributed to Penske's Sprint Cup win tally, from legends such as the late Mark Donohue (one) to NASCAR Hall of Famers Bobby Allison (four) and Rusty Wallace (37).
Penske's current drivers Joey Logano (13) and 2012 Cup champion Keselowski (19) have already combined for four wins this season alone.
"The wins are never easy to come by, and I think this one means a lot to me for sure because looking at our past here, it hasn't been all that rosy," said Keselowski, whose win Saturday night was the team's third on the Daytona high banks -- Ryan Newman won the 50th anniversary version of the Daytona 500 in 2008 and Logano won the 2015 Daytona 500.
"I was telling Roger Penske when I was in Victory Lane and the fireworks were going off, usually I'm loading up the car and about to be to the airport, so it's nice to be here and have a great finish."
In addition to the historical significance of Keselowski's Daytona victory, his new three-win tally for the season ties him with Kyle Busch for the most wins in 2016 and places him second in the Sprint Cup points standings and at the top of the Chase Grid.
"It's a huge deal, 100 wins for Roger here at the Sprint Cup level," Keselowski said. "I know his next goal will be 200. I'll probably hear it tomorrow. Someone gave me a stat, over the last two or three years since Joey has been on board, between the two of us we've won 20 or 30 percent of all the races Penske has ever won in Cup, so we're certainly in a great spot.
"But the captain, he likes to look forward, and I think that's a good thing."
Team Penske's 100 wins
| Driver | Numbers of wins |
|---|---|
| Rusty Wallace | 37 |
| Brad Keselowski | 19 |
| Joey Logano | 13 |
| Ryan Newman | 13 |
| Kurt Busch | 10 |
| Bobby Allison | 4 |
| Jeremy Mayfield | 3 |
| Mark Donohue | 1 |