ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Team owner Roger Penske revealed Friday morning to a small group of reporters that he had a kidney transplant with his son, Greg, as the donor.
The operation at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, occurred about a few days after Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden won the championship Sept. 17, 2017 at Sonoma Raceway.
Team Penske president Tim Cindric recently had hip replacement surgery at the Mayo Clinic. After Cindric discussed his recovery from the procedure in the media session at Team Penske at-track offices, Penske volunteered that he also had an operation at the Mayo Clinic.
“When I did that transplant, we were up at the end of the day. They said ‘Would you get up and walk over to the window?’” Penske said. “Next day, I’m over in my son’s room. They get you going. It’s amazing. It’s a good spot, good spot.”
The Associated Press reported the timeframe and confirmed with the team that it was a kidney transplant for Penske, who turned 82 last month.
In a Feb. 2013 story for AutoWeek by Brant James, it was disclosed that Penske had lost a kidney after being diagnosed with bladder cancer in 2005.