page_title: Team Penske (NASCAR)
section_title: Car No. 2 history
hierarchical_section_title: Team Penske (NASCAR) / Cup Series / Car No. 2 history
caption_attribution_description: English: NASCAR driver Brad Keselowski in Martinsville 2013.
context_page_description: The NASCAR operation of the racing team Team Penske is a unit based in Mooresville, North Carolina, USA. The team fields Ford Mustangs in the NASCAR Cup Series and the Xfinity Series and has won a total of three drivers' championships and over 170 races combined over both series.
  The team has also used the following names:
  Penske Racing South: formerly used to differentiate the NASCAR operation from its open wheel and sports car racing operation that was based in Reading, Pennsylvania; the name ceased to be used when the entire operation moved to North Carolina.
  Penske-Kranefuss Racing: used from 1998 until 2001 when Michael Kranefuss, who had previously fielded a car with Carl Haas as a partner, merged his team with Penske's and brought Jeremy Mayfield, his driver, into the Penske fold in car #12. The partnership ended after 2001, but Penske continues to run car #12 to this day.
  Penske-Jasper Racing: used in 2004 and 2005. Roger Penske had been supplying Jasper Motorsports with engines for several years and bought a share of the team so he could run its #77 for Brendan Gaughan as part of the Penske team.
context_section_description: Origins with Blue Max Racing (1983-1990)
  The No. 2 car's history can be traced back to the late 1970s with M. C. Anderson and Benny Parsons. Cale Yarborough drove the 27 Valvoline car in 1981 and 1982 respectively. In 1983, the team switched hands to Raymond Beadle and Blue Max Racing with Tim Richmond driving. The team picked up Rusty Wallace in 1986 and won a Championship in 1989. In 1990, the team barely made it through the season with the help of Roger Penske funding the team to keep going. By late 1990, the team was purchased as a base for Roger's new team. During the offseason, the team changed numbers from 27 to 2 (Wallace's old racing number) and kept the Miller Sponsorship.
  Rusty Wallace (1991-2005)
  The No. 2 team has not seen many changes since its debut under the Penske banner at the 1991 Daytona 500, where it finished 27th after a crash late in the race. Wallace drove the car from 1991 to 2005, with some form of Miller Beer as the primary sponsor of the team. Wallace moved to Penske from Blue Max Racing, which suspended operations after 1990. The team in its first year won two races and finished 10th in points. In 1992, Wallace won one race and finished 13th in points. Things then turned around for him and Penske, winning 25 races over the next four years, despite never winning the championship.
  The team switched from Pontiac to Ford in 1994. The season finale at Atlanta Motor Speedway and the entire 1996 season saw a small change when the popular Miller Genuine Draft paint scheme was replaced with a red, blue and yellow splashed scheme that advertised the Miller brand. After winning five races that season, Wallace donned the blue and white colors of Miller Lite in 1997. After winning one race a piece over the next three years, he put together four wins and won nine Bud poles in 2000, the highest total of his career. In 2002, he failed to win races, marking the first year since 1985 that he was winless throughout a season. After that year, the team switched manufacturers from Ford to Dodge. In 2004, Wallace announced the 2005 season would be his last in the Cup Series, citing his son's racing career and wanting to concentrate on his Busch Series team, Rusty Wallace Racing, for the departure. During that season, Wallace returned to victory lane for the first time since 2001 at Martinsville, one of his historically strong racetracks. Although he would not win a race during his final season, Wallace qualified for the Chase for the Nextel Cup and finished eighth in series points.
  Kurt Busch (2006-2010)
  In order to replace the retiring Wallace, Penske tabbed 2004 Nextel Cup Champion Kurt Busch. However, this caused a problem with Busch's then-current team, Roush Racing, as he was still under contract for the 2006 season. The situation was resolved thanks in part to the resolution of another disputed contract with Roush. Roush Racing signed Jamie McMurray to drive their No. 6 car for the 2006 season but his previous team owner, Chip Ganassi, would not let him drive for Roush. Eventually, an agreement was struck where McMurray was released from his team to replace Busch in the No. 97 car (which was then renumbered to 26), therefore freeing up Busch to drive the No. 2 car. He quickly brought the team back to victory lane by winning in his fifth start with the team at Bristol, his only win of 2006. The No. 2 team finished 16th in the season points. Busch won six additional races with the No. 2 car, his last being the 2010 Coca-Cola 600. He qualified for the Chase three times, with a best finish of fourth in the final standings in 2009.
  Brad Keselowski (2011–present)
  In 2011, the No. 2 team swapped numbers with the No. 12 team of Brad Keselowski, which secured Keselowski's run with the No. 2 team's points. Jay Guy was replaced by Nationwide Series crew chief Paul Wolfe as the team's crew chief. The No. 2 team with Keselowski and Wolfe initially struggled for the first half of the season, although they won a fuel-mileage race at Kansas. The team's performance started to improve dramatically after Keselowski injured his 
caption: Brad Keselowski won the 2012 Sprint Cup Series Championship.
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