Catchfence

Penske Racing president Tim Cindric knew he had a keeper after he and team owner Roger Penske met Justin Allgaier for lunch in 2008, when Allgaier was a developmental driver for them in the ARCA RE/MAX Series.

Cindric, who has overseen Helio Castroneves, Sam Hornish Jr. and Ryan Briscoe, was about to pick up the tab when Allgaier asked if he could pay.

“We knew he was raised properly right then,” Cindric recalled with a smile. “He passed the personality and integrity test with flying colors.”

Allgaier, 23, has been worth the vote of confidence. In his first full season for Penske in the NASCAR Nationwide Series, he is fifth in points, with three top-five and nine top-10 finishes. Ahead of him: Sprint Cup aces Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards, and Nationwide veterans Brad Keselowski and Jason Leffler.

Allgaier, who won the ARCA championship last year and cut his teeth at tracks such as Toledo Speedway and Berlin Raceway in the Midwest, will be at the wheel of the No. 12 Verizon Wireless Dodge in Saturday’s CARFAX 250 Nationwide event at Michigan International Speedway.

- Detroit Free Press