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Friday – MRTI Update #2 – IMS Road Course – USF2000 and Pro Mazda first qualifying results

Posted by  on Friday, May 11th 2018     

By Tony DiZinno

Friday’s sessions from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway are underway. This is a busy day for the Mazda Road to Indy presented by Cooper Tires, as there are eight on-track sessions – five qualifying sessions, and three races.

For a reminder, here is the schedule:

Friday, May 11th

TIME EVENT
7:30 AM Public Gates Open
8:05 AM – 8:25 AM USF2000 Qualifying #1
8:40 AM – 9 AM Pro Mazda Qualifying #1
9:15 AM – 10 AM IndyCar Practice #1
10 AM – 10:30 AM USF2000 Autograph Session (Fan Village)
10:20 AM – 10:50 AM Indy Lights Qualifying #1
11 AM – 11:45 AM IndyCar Autograph Session (Fan Village)
11:10 AM – 11:30 AM USF2000 Qualifying #2
11:50 AM – 12:10 PM Pro Mazda Qualifying #2
NOON – 12:25 PM Indy Lights Autograph Session (Fan Village)
12:30 PM – 1:15 PM IndyCar Practice #2
1 PM – 1:25 PM Pro Mazda Autograph Session (Fan Village)
1:30 PM – 2:30 PM Indy Lights Race #1
2:45 PM – 3:20 PM USF2000 Race #1
3:35 PM – 4:15 PM Pro Mazda Race #1
4:30 PM – 5:45 PM IndyCar Qualifying
7:30 PM Public Gates Close

—

Kirkwood grabs pole for USF2000 first race

Cape Motorsports has a six-race winning streak in Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship powered by Mazda competition at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.

And they’ll enter today’s first race of the weekend in the best possible position to make it lucky number seven, courtesy of driver No. 8.

Kyle Kirkwood is on the pole for today’s first race of the Royal Purple Synthetic Oil Grand Prix of Indianapolis Supporting the Lupus Foundation of America, courtesy of a best lap of 1:24.7694 in his Tatuus USF-17 Mazda around the 2.439-mile, 14-turn IMS road course. He was just shy of the qualifying record, set last year, 1:24.6831 by last year’s series champion Oliver Askew.

Showing the longevity, life and pace of the Cooper Tires, Kirkwood set his best lap on his ninth lap of the session, as all of the top three drivers did.

Kirkwood will share the front row with Alex Baron in the No. 19 Swan-RJB Motorsports car, which means the two winners from the St. Petersburg weekend and two of the top four drivers in points will be at the front of the field later today. Baron was just 0.014 of a second off the pole.

Rasmus Lindh was best of the four Pabst Racing entries, with the young Swede clocking in third in his No. 23 car, and only 0.02 of a second off.

DEForce Racing’s Jose Sierra and Kaylen Frederick, in another Pabst car, completed the top five runners.

All of the top 15 runners in qualifying, from eight teams, were within 0.9442 of a second, showcasing the competitiveness and depth of the field.

The first race of the weekend is at 2:45 p.m. ET.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship – First Qualifying Results

P No Name FTime Diff Laps
1 8 Kyle Kirkwood 1:24.769 –.—- 11
2 19 Alex Baron 1:24.783 0.0140 11
3 23 Rasmus Lindh 1:24.790 0.0204 11
4 12 Jose Sierra 1:24.861 0.0914 11
5 24 Kaylen Frederick 1:24.929 0.1598 11
6 21 Calvin Ming 1:24.983 0.2140 12
7 28 Jamie Caroline 1:25.308 0.5391 11
8 11 Kory Enders 1:25.370 0.6005 12
9 22 Lucas Kohl 1:25.387 0.6176 11
10 80 Julian Van der Watt 1:25.395 0.6261 11
11 36 Darren Keane 1:25.510 0.7408 9
12 91 Igor Fraga 1:25.547 0.7775 11
13 10 Zach Holden 1:25.659 0.8892 11
14 81 Kyle Dupell 1:25.684 0.9146 11
15 20 James Roe 1:25.714 0.9442 12
16 27 Colin Kaminsky 1:25.811 1.0412 11
17 5 Mathias Soler-Obel 1:25.826 1.0566 11
18 30 Keith Donegan 1:25.908 1.1387 12
19 51 Michael d’Orlando 1:26.018 1.2485 9
20 90 Manuel Cabrera 1:26.035 1.2655 12
21 37 David Osborne 1:26.112 1.3421 12
22 14 Max Peichel 1:26.400 1.6307 13
23 29 Russell McDonough 1:26.554 1.7844 12
24 82 Bruna Tomaselli 1:26.563 1.7938 10
25 38 Oscar DeLuzuriaga 1:26.600 1.8302 12
26 31 Sabre Cook 1:26.827 2.0575 13

—

Askew makes it a Cape pole sweep on Friday morning

Oliver Askew of Cape Motorsports has scored the pole for the first two Pro Mazda presented by Cooper Tires races at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. As expected, the new Tatuus PM-18 Mazda smashed the previous track record at the 2.439-mile, 14-turn track.

With testing times in the 1:19.8 bracket here last October, and the previous track record a 1:22.8800 by Patricio “Pato” O’Ward in 2016, today’s first qualifying was always going to see a new mark established. The question was who would do it.

Askew had an initial edge on Juncos Racing’s Rinus VeeKay by just 0.0165 of a second, thanks to a best lap of 1:19.5937. But as the session wound down, Askew went even quicker, to a best time of 1:19.3319. That time is 3.5481 seconds faster than O’Ward’s previous mark.

VeeKay looked set to qualify directly alongside his 2017 USF2000 title rival, before David Malukas pipped him right at the end of the session. Driving the No. 79 BN Racing entry, his best time was 1:19.4643. Malukas stayed out one lap past the checkered flag, though, which triggers a penalty of a loss of his fastest lap.

The remainder of the top eight qualifiers, which also included Harrison Scott (RP Motorsport Racing), Robert Megennis and Carlos Cunha (Juncos), Andres Gutierrez and Sting Ray Robb (Team Pelfrey) also dipped into the 1:19 bracket. However, both Pelfrey cars required a tow-in at the end of the session from the AMR INDYCAR Safety Team. The top 10 drivers were within 0.9309 of a second.

One driver who didn’t crack the 1:19 bracket was points leader Parker Thompson of Exclusive Autosport. The Canadian completed only two laps in the session with what sounded like a very off song engine on his second lap. He is listed 11th on the grid with a best time of 1:20.5385.

Askew and VeeKay, two Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship protagonists of a year ago haven’t yet been able to duel for Pro Mazda wins like they did in USF2000, but they have an excellent opportunity to do so today.

Askew has a winning streak to extend today, as he won both USF2000 races here last year. A win here would be his first in Pro Mazda, and would come on a weekend that is very important to him and his family – the Royal Purple Synthetic Oil Grand Prix of Indianapolis Supporting the Lupus Foundation of America event.

VeeKay, meanwhile, swept the St. Petersburg weekend to kick off the season. The Dutch driver has a rather remarkable streak of finishing no worse than where he started in 18 straight races. The Barber Motorsports Park weekend marked his first in his Mazda Road to Indy career where he did not score at least one podium finish in one of the two races. He’ll look to keep his first streak going and restart his podium run later this afternoon.

The first of two Pro Mazda races goes green at 3:35 p.m. ET and local time.

Pro Mazda presented by Cooper Tires – First Qualifying Results

P No Name FTime Diff Laps
1 3 Oliver Askew 1:19.332 –.—- 12
2 79 David Malukas 1:19.464 0.1324 11
3 2 Rinus VeeKay 1:19.559 0.2269 10
4 10 Harrison Scott 1:19.590 0.2583 12
5 9 Robert Megennis 1:19.591 0.2590 11
6 1 Carlos Cunha 1:19.712 0.3800 11
7 81 Andres Gutierrez 1:19.839 0.5068 12
8 82 Sting Ray Robb 1:19.990 0.6580 11
9 27 Lodovico Laurini 1:20.254 0.9218 12
10 8 Nikita Lastochkin 1:20.263 0.9309 12
11 90 Parker Thompson 1:20.538 1.2066 2
12 78 Kris Wright 1:20.562 1.2303 11
13 91 Antonio Serravalle 1:21.578 2.2461 12
14 83 Charles Finelli 1:23.072 3.7405 13

—

A stuck, then unstuck spud

One quick Pro Mazda note we have to peel away from our notebook and share with our readers (please forgive the potato puns).

Team Pelfrey’s Sting Ray Robb is from Idaho, and at every event is supported by The Famous Idaho Potato Tour. The giant potato is on a flatbed of a truck.

It turns out, getting the potato truck through the Indianapolis Motor Speedway tunnel and into the facility is not an easy task.

Fellow Idaho native Davey Hamilton Jr., who will make his Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires oval debut with Team Pelfrey in the Freedom 100 later this month, posted this rather hilarious outtake of the truck trying to make it through the tunnel.

From Davey Hamilton Jr.’s Instagram Story, here is The Famous Idaho Potato Tour truck attempting to get through the IMS tunnel.

We are happy and pleased to report on Friday morning the truck is in the facility, and set up at the midway.

The Famous Idaho Potato Tour truck is in the Speedway. (TSO Photo by Tony DiZinno)

—

After raising $6,000 during the Royal Purple Synthetic Oil Grand Prix of Indianapolis Supporting the Lupus Foundation of America last year, the Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires paddock hopes to raise double that amount over the next few days. You can do your part by donating here —>please make a donation in the #RaceToEndLupus

Don’t miss any of the action:

category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, Pro Mazda News/Results, Pro Mazda presented by Cooper Tire - TSO, USF2000 News/Results
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Thursday – MRTI Update #1 – USF2000, Pro Mazda and Indy Lights – first practice sessions, and some additional notes

Posted by  on Thursday, May 10th 2018     

By Tony DiZinno

Good evening, and welcome to TSO Ladder presented by Cooper Tires’ coverage of the Mazda Road to Indy presented by Cooper Tires at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.

All three series, Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires, Pro Mazda presented by Cooper Tires and the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship powered by Mazda, are in action together for the first time since the St. Petersburg weekend back in March. Indy Lights and Pro Mazda both completed a pair of races at Barber Motorsports Park last month, but it’s been a long stretch since the drivers and teams of the USF2000 series have been in action.

All three series race under the same race name this weekend, the Royal Purple Synthetic Oil Grand Prix of Indianapolis Supporting the Lupus Foundation of America. You can find more information on that at the bottom of this and all other TSO Ladder posts this weekend; it is a good cause.

In case you missed Steve’s comprehensive race weekend previews, they are linked here:

—

Here’s some quick paddock notes before the first official practice session. There have been some car count adjustments, with only seven Indy Lights cars, 14 Pro Mazda cars (more on both of these items below) and 26 USF2000 cars entered.

—

Victor’s solo act… again

It would be fair to say Victor Franzoni was not expecting to be the only Indy Lights driver at Juncos Racing this weekend, in the wake of Alfonso Celis Jr. announcing his step up to the Verizon IndyCar Series starting at Road America. Celis made his Indy Lights debut at Barber Motorsports Park.

That being said, the Mazda Motorsports scholarship driver is still focused on this weekend in Indianapolis. Franzoni kickstarted his Pro Mazda Championship presented by Cooper Tires championship charge at this race weekend last year, which came after a successful test at the Chris Griffis Memorial Mazda Road to Indy test the previous fall.

Franzoni is hoping for a similar result this go-around in his first Indy Lights weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. The ambient and track temperatures will be significantly higher in May than they were in October, and Franzoni told TSO Ladder that he hope that doesn’t significantly affect the balance of what was a really good car at the October test.

Juncos Racing won the second race of last year’s Indianapolis road course weekend with eventual champion Kyle Kaiser, who like Franzoni, used this weekend as the jump-off point to his title run.

—

DEForce is strong at two venues

DEForce Racing stretches its team and resources across two places this weekend, with four USF2000 cars here at IMS and a single car for James Raven at the Formula 4 United States Championship Powered by Honda weekend at Road Atlanta.

The DEForce team expects Raven, who competed in Pro Mazda at the season opener at St. Petersburg, to focus on F4 for the rest of the year.

It remains to be seen whether DEForce’s Pro Mazda car will return this year, as after Raven was in the car at St. Petersburg, Kory Enders made his series debut at Barber Motorsports Park last month. Enders competes full-time in USF2000.

—

Pelfrey down a car for the weekend

Unfortunately, Team Pelfrey will not have Rafael “Rafa” Martins in his No. 80 car for the rest of the weekend, although he was entered. A testing incident earlier this week at Putnam Park has sidelined the young Brazilian driver for the Indianapolis road course event.

Team Pelfrey and Martins will work together to restart their program after this weekend. Martins has a best finish of sixth place through four races.

—

USF2000: Tight field in testing

It may only be testing, but the level of depth and tight times in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda was incredible to witness on Thursday.

Here’s an illustration from two drivers in the field, one series rookie and one series sophomore, of that point.

Swedish driver Rasmus Lindh of Pabst Racing tested here for Team BENIK in October at the Griffis test. He was seventh in the morning and third in the afternoon, just 0.0892 of a second off the fastest time of 1:25.902 set by Kyle Kirkwood.

“We were good in the morning and better in the afternoon,” Lindh told TSO Ladder, noting how small changes can make a big difference.

DEForce Racing’s Colin Kaminsky of Homer Glen, Ill., who ran here under the John Cummiskey Racing team operations last year, thought he was closer to the front than he otherwise was in the second session.

“So Peter (Dempsey) comes on the radio and says, ‘You’re half a second off,’” Kaminsky told TSO Ladder. “I’m thinking, ‘That’s great! Where are we at?’ And Peter says, ‘We’re 13th.’ That shows how deep this field is!”

—

Frederick’s new driver coach

Another Pabst USF2000 driver, Kaylen Frederick, has a new driver coach this weekend. Meyer Shank Racing with Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Verizon IndyCar Series driver Jack Harvey is assisting Frederick here at the IMS road course. Harvey’s No. 60 AutoNation/SiriusXM Honda isn’t in the INDYCAR Grand Prix road course race but will be active next week in preparation for the 102nd Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil.

—

Thursday marked the first day of running, with each series having two test sessions before first official practice late in the afternoon.

USF2000 was up first, and as Cape Motorsports goes for its seventh straight victory here at the IMS road course, its single driver Kyle Kirkwood was top of the charts all day.

The driver of the No. 8 Tatuus USF-17 Mazda was fastest in the first test at 1:26.010, and in the afternoon went slightly quicker at 1:25.902.

In the heat of the afternoon’s first and only official 30-minute practice, Kirkwood stayed on top at 1:25.969, and was the only driver in that bracket this session.

Pabst Racing has all four of its cars in hot pursuit. Lucas Kohl, Rasmus Lindh, Calvin Ming and Kaylen Frederick were second, third, fourth and sixth, all within 0.4765 of a second of Kirkwood.

The lone interloper in the Cape and Pabst top-six was Darren Keane of Newman Wachs Racing, who was fifth. Keane tested well here at the Chris Griffis Memorial Mazda Road to Indy Test in October. This weekend marks the one-year anniversary of Keane’s debut in the USF2000 series, which was done with Team BENIK. He shifted to Newman Wachs Racing starting last June at Road America.

St. Petersburg race two winner Alex Baron was seventh for Swan-RJB Motorsports, ahead of Jamie Caroline (BN Racing), Julian van der Watt (Team Pelfrey) and Igor Fraga (Exclusive Autosport).

James Roe, the Irish driver, was 12th in his first official session with Swan-RJB, 0.647 of a second off the fastest time. The other series debutante – Max Peichel of ArmsUp Motorsports – was 22nd.

Times are below. Qualifying for race one is tomorrow morning at 8:05 a.m. ET and local time.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship – First Practice Results

P No Name FTime Diff Laps
1 8 Kyle Kirkwood 1:25.969 –.—- 17
2 22 Lucas Kohl 1:26.203 0.2343 17
3 23 Rasmus Lindh 1:26.290 0.3213 18
4 21 Calvin Ming 1:26.373 0.4040 17
5 36 Darren Keane 1:26.400 0.4306 17
6 24 Kaylen Frederick 1:26.445 0.4765 17
7 28 Jamie Caroline 1:26.481 0.5118 14
8 19 Alex Baron 1:26.506 0.5368 15
9 80 Julian Van der Watt 1:26.526 0.5568 17
10 91 Igor Fraga 1:26.546 0.5774 17
11 12 Jose Sierra 1:26.592 0.6226 16
12 20 James Roe 1:26.643 0.6740 18
13 11 Kory Enders 1:26.654 0.6852 17
14 51 Michael d’Orlando 1:26.738 0.7689 15
15 10 Zach Holden 1:26.800 0.8310 10
16 81 Kyle Dupell 1:26.839 0.8703 15
17 82 Bruna Tomaselli 1:26.923 0.9541 16
18 30 Keith Donegan 1:26.944 0.9750 17
19 27 Colin Kaminsky 1:27.130 1.1610 11
20 37 David Osborne 1:27.294 1.3248 18
21 90 Manuel Cabrera 1:27.333 1.3640 19
22 14 Max Peichel 1:27.497 1.5284 16
23 5 Mathias Soler-Obel 1:27.517 1.5478 14
24 31 Sabre Cook 1:27.786 1.8174 16
25 29 Russell McDonough 1:27.990 2.0212 17
26 38 Oscar DeLuzuriaga 1:28.305 2.3365 19

—

A changing track and changing running order told the story of the day in Pro Mazda presented by Cooper Tires on-track activity.

While Carlos Cunha and David Malukas led the morning and afternoon test sessions, it was Oliver Askew of Cape Motorsports that ended fastest in the 30-minute official practice session held late Thursday afternoon.

Askew’s best time of 1:20.899 in the No. 3 Tatuus PM-18 Mazda was several tenths off the best times from the morning and afternoon. Cunha took his No. 1 Juncos Racing car to 1:20.286 in the morning, with Malukas in his No. 79 BN Racing car at 1:20.303 in the afternoon.

Behind Askew, points leader Parker Thompson was second in his No. 90 Exclusive Autosport car, at 1:20.924. Malukas was third, with Sting Ray Robb (Team Pelfrey) and Robert Megennis (Juncos Racing) making it five different teams in the top five.

Two issues occurred within the final five minutes of the 30-minute practice session.

A red flag flew for Thompson’s teammate, Antonio Serravalle, going off course at Turn 1.

Megennis’ car meanwhile was brought back to the paddock on a flatbed after a suspension issue going through Turn 13. Having hit the curbs the wrong way, Megennis’ sustained damage to the left rear wishbone and needed to get picked up and towed in.

Pro Mazda qualifies for its first race of the weekend starting at 8:40 a.m. ET and local time on Friday.

Pro Mazda presented by Cooper Tires – First Practice Results

P No Name FTime Diff Laps
1 3 Oliver Askew 1:20.899 –.—- 14
2 90 Parker Thompson 1:20.924 0.0252 17
3 79 David Malukas 1:21.063 0.1640 7
4 82 Sting Ray Robb 1:21.079 0.1799 16
5 9 Robert Megennis 1:21.104 0.2050 15
6 1 Carlos Cunha 1:21.111 0.2122 15
7 2 Rinus VeeKay 1:21.157 0.2579 17
8 10 Harrison Scott 1:21.178 0.2797 15
9 81 Andres Gutierrez 1:21.209 0.3106 13
10 27 Lodovico Laurini 1:21.684 0.7853 15
11 78 Kris Wright 1:21.803 0.9045 15
12 8 Nikita Lastochkin 1:21.862 0.9633 14
13 91 Antonio Serravalle 1:22.434 1.5349 10
14 83 Charles Finelli 1:23.660 2.7610 18

—

In the inter-team battle shaping up at Andretti Autosport, Colton Herta led the first official 45-minute practice late Thursday afternoon over teammate Patricio “Pato” O’Ward.

Herta, in the No. 98 Andretti-Steinbrenner Racing Dallara IL-15 Mazda, posted a best time of 1:16.603, which was just ahead of O’Ward’s time in the No. 27 car at 1:16.641.

Belardi Auto Racing teammates Aaron Telitz and Santi Urrutia were third and fourth.

Dalton Kellett, Ryan Norman and Victor Franzoni were next.

Qualifying for race one is at 10:20 a.m. ET on Friday.

Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires – First Practice Results

P No Name FTime Diff Laps
1 98 Colton Herta 1:16.603 –.—- 18
2 27 Pato O’Ward 1:16.641 0.0383 12
3 9 Aaron Telitz 1:16.789 0.1857 20
4 5 Santi Urrutia 1:16.910 0.3075 22
5 28 Dalton Kellett 1:16.988 0.3855 21
6 48 Ryan Norman 1:17.000 0.3969 22
7 23 Victor Franzoni 1:17.028 0.4248 22

—

After raising $6,000 during the Royal Purple Synthetic Oil Grand Prix of Indianapolis Supporting the Lupus Foundation of America last year, the Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires paddock hopes to raise double that amount over the next few days. You can do your part by donating here —>please make a donation in the #RaceToEndLupus

Don’t miss any of the action:

category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, Indy Lights News/Results, Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tire - TSO, Pro Mazda News/Results, Pro Mazda presented by Cooper Tire - TSO, USF2000 News/Results
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Previewing the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda doubleheader on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course

Posted by  on Thursday, May 10th 2018     

By Steve Wittich

The drivers and teams of the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda are back in action after a two-month break from competition.

Cape Motorsports rookie Kyle Kirkwood, who won his first USF2000 start in St. Petersburg, Fla., has a seven-point championship lead, and a lot of pressure to extend a six-race winning streak for his team.

“To be the championship leader after my debut weekend, to me, is quite an amazing feeling,” says Kirkwood. “We’re very strong at the moment, so it’s definitely a relief knowing that Cape Motorsports and I are carrying over our momentum from last year.

“IMS is a special track to me,” he continues. “We obviously had great success there last year in the F4 US Championship and so did Oliver Askew and Cape. No doubt it is one of my favorite tracks we will race this year.”

Following Kirkwood is a pair of fellow rookies. Jose Sierra (DEForce Racing) and Igor Fraga (Exclusive Autosport) are both within ten points of the championship lead.

Seeing rookies Oliver Askew and Rinus VeeKay shine with a new USF-17 last year was not a surprise, but traditionally the USF2000 championship has been dominated by veteran drivers.

It’s still early though, and veterans Alex Baron (Swan-RJB Motorsports), Calvin Ming (Pabst Racing), Darren Keane (Newman Wachs Racing), Lucas Kohl (Pabst Racing), Kaylen Frederick (Pabst Racing) and Bruna Tomaselli (Team Pelfrey) all lurking within 20 points of second place, the rookies will need to watch their backs.

Baron, who won the second race in ‘St. Pete’ had the fastest lap in both races, and if he can temper his aggressive nature just a little bit, could quickly emerge as one of the favorites to win the Mazda Motorsports Scholarship.

Another driver who’s performance that TSO will be watching this weekend include BN Racing’s rookie Jamie Caroline. The British teenager who won 10 races on the way to claiming the 2017 F4 British Championship crown, was quick in the opening event but was forced to retire due to contact in race #1.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda point standings headed into the three-race “Month of May.”

RANK DRIVER POINTS
1 Kyle Kirkwood – R 48
2 Jose Sierra – R 41
3 Igor Fraga – R 38
4 Alex Baron 35
5 Calvin Ming 32
6 Darren Keane 31
7 Lucas Kohl 30
8 Julian Van der Watt – R 27
9 Kaylen Frederick 22
10 Bruna Tomaselli 21
11 Jamie Caroline – R 20
12 Kyle Dupell – R 18
13 Colin Kaminsky 16
14 Keith Donegan – R 15
15 Zach Holden – R 15
16 Mathias Soler-Obel – R 14
17 Kory Enders 13
18 Rasmus Lindh – R 12
19 Sabre Cook – R 10
20 Michael D’Orlando – R 6
21 David Osborne – R 6
22 Jayson Clunie 5
23 Oscar DeLuzuriaga – R 3
24 Russell McDonough – R 2
25 Manuel Cabrera – R 2

Newcomers

There are two new names entered in this weekend’s doubleheader. James Roe, Jr. has been tabbed to join Swan-RJB Motorsports, and ArmsUp Motorsports is adding Max Peichel to team with Keith Donegan.

James Roe, Jr. is a second-generation driver from Naas, Co. Kildare in Ireland that was recommended to the team by Indy Lights pilot Aaron Telitz. The 19-year-old has multiple wins in the Formula Ford competition and recently scored a podium in an F2000 Series Championship event at Road Atlanta.

“This is an amazing opportunity for me, one that wouldn’t have come about if not for Aaron Telitz and Fred Edwards,” Roe admitted. “Aaron called a week ago and asked was I free to drive at Indy and explained what was going on. I immediately jumped at the opportunity and cannot thank him, Fred Edwards, Mirl Swan and the guys at Swan-RJB, enough for this. I also have to thank Gregg Borland from ArmsUp Motorsports for letting me do this, as it clashes with our F2000 race at Watkins Glen, we are aiming to do both. It’s going to be a huge challenge this weekend, but I am looking forward to it.”

With the final USF2000 race early on Saturday morning and the first F2000 race late on Saturday afternoon, Roe, Jr. will attempt to make both races.

Roe, Jr’s father Michael, was a successful Formula Ford and Formula 3 racer in the United Kingdom before moving to the United States (US) to race. His experience in the included Can-Am, IMSA GTP and also four Indy car races with Hemelgarn Racing in 1985.

Max Peichel spent last season competing in the F4 United States Championship Powered By Honda with Jay Howard’s team. The teenager from Edina, Minn. also tested at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway with Newman Wachs Racing during the Chris Griffis Memorial Test last October.

Seeing Purple

For the second straight year, Royal Purple will team up with the Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires to raise money and awareness about lupus.

The difficult to diagnose chronic autoimmune disease has no cure, and the silent illness impacts the daily lives of 1.5 Million Americans, including some people close to the Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires paddock.

“My mom has lupus, and it really does impact your life,” said Pro Mazda driver Oliver Askew. “Not many people understand the disease so to use racing to raise awareness by having the Lupus Foundation of America as part of the INDYCAR GP weekend is so important. I’ll be doing my part to help spread the word. Last year was the first year that Royal Purple joined with the Foundation for this weekend to promote what they do and we saw a huge involvement, so if we can build on that and keep spreading the word about this disease, it will really help us fight it.”

Belardi Auto Racing, spearheaded by team owner Brian Belardi and team manager John Brunner, has been a staunch supporter of the Lupus Foundation of America for some years.

“It’s awesome to be able to bring the awareness of lupus to racing,” explained Brunner. “That’s how I got involved. The daughter of a friend in racing, Dave Hunt, was diagnosed and I had no idea what it was. From that moment on, I tried to educate myself. Brian (Belardi) has a connection as well, and we ran a decal for the Lupus Foundation of America on our cars years ago. To see the relationship between Royal Purple and the Lupus Foundation of America last year was great and we look forward to continuing that and growing.

“We raised over $6,000 last year, and I think we can double that this year. Our hope is that this brings awareness and needed funds – it’s a mystery disease, but it’s amazing how many friends I have who have a personal connection, with family members or friends who have been diagnosed with this disease. We’re proud to do what we can to help.”

Watch for all of the entries across the three series to have this special on the nose of their race cars this weekend.

You can show your support by using the #RaceToEndLupus hashtag this weekend, or better yet you can donate at this special page on the Lupus Foundation of America website.

 

Previous winners

Outside of a pair of wins in inclement weather 2014 by Adrian Starrantino (JAY Motorsports) and Will Owen (Pabst Racing) in 2014, the top step of the podium at the 2.439-mile, 14-turn Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course has belonged to drivers from the Cape Motorsports stable.

The St. Petersburg, Fla. based team has won six straight USF2000 races to begin the “Month of May” for the lowest rung of the Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires.

USF2000 race winners on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course

YEAR DRIVER TEAM
2017 Race #2 Oliver Askew Cape Motorsports
2017 Race #1 Oliver Askew Cape Motorsports
2016 Race #2 Parker Thompson Cape Motorsports with /WTR
2016 Race #1 Anthony Martin Cape Motorsports with /WTR
2015 Race #2 Nico Jamin Cape Motorsports with /WTR
2015 Race #1 Nico Jamin Cape Motorsports with /WTR
2014 – Race #2 Adrian Starrantino JAY Motorsports
2014 – Race #1 Will Owen Pabst Racing

Pole sitters.

Cape Motorsports drivers have also dominated the inside front row starting spot on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, starting seven of the eight races from pole.

Despite an average of one lead change in each of the eight USF2000 races, the pole sitter has won the last seven races in a row. And, the pole sitter in the very first USF2000 race at the iconic “Brickyard,” Florian Lattore, finished fourth.

Other nuggets of info

  • The Royal Purple Synthetic Oil Grand Prix of Indianapolis Supporting the Lupus Foundation of America doubleheader will be the 9th and 10th visits that the USF2000 series has made to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course. Six different drivers have won in the first eight races.
  • All of the USF2000 races on the IMS road courses, expect the second race in 2015, has had a least one caution.
  • The cautions have come on Lap 1 (three times), Lap 3 (three times) and Lap 2 (two times).
  • The eight races have seen a total of eight lead changes, with the four lead changes during the first race in 2014 setting the high water mark.
  • All eight races have finished under green flag conditions.
  • Will Owen crossed the finish line 15.9994 seconds ahead of second place Jacob Eidson in the wet race #1 in 2014. That stands as the largest USF2000 margin of victory on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.
  • 2014 also produced the closest margin of victory when Adrian Starantino finished only 0.3394 seconds ahead of Florian Latorre.
  • The only caution free event, race #2 in 2015, has the quickest average race speed at 98.979mph.
  • The longest USF2000 race on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course race was 51.22 miles (21 laps), and the shortest race was 36.585 miles (15 laps).

Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda schedule

Friday, May 11

TIME EVENT
8:05 AM – 8:25 AM USF2000 Qualifying #1
10 AM – 10:30 AM USF2000 Autograph Session (Fan Village)
11:10 AM – 11:30 AM USF2000 Qualifying #2
2:45 PM – 3:20 PM USF2000 Race #1

Sautrday, May 12

TIME EVENT
9:15 AM – 9:55 AM USF2000 Race #2

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Sunday – MRTI Update #12 – USF2000 Race #2 – Baron back in victory lane after a few years away

Posted by  on Sunday, March 11th 2018     

Good things come to those who wait and for Alex Baron, returning to victory lane in the Mazda Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires was well worth it in Sunday’s second Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda race of the weekend in St. Petersburg.

Baron started from pole and led all 25 laps in his No. 19 Swan-RJB Motorsports Tatuus USF-17 Mazda for his third career USF2000 win, and first since 2013 when he ran two race weekends at the tail end of the year with Afterburner Autosport. He also won his most recent Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires start, but that was back in 2014 at Toronto with Belardi Auto Racing.

The field of 25 cars might have been anxious to race, having waited all day for their first on-track activity as the last on-track session of the St. Petersburg weekend. But fortunately, all 25 cars made it through the first lap without incident.

Baron led away from Fraga, Kohl, and Caroline, with race one winner Kirkwood the big loser as he fell from third on the grid down to fifth.

On Lap 4, Caroline passed Kohl for third place at Turn 4 on the inside, and into the final podium position.

Caroline closed to within three-tenths of Fraga for second on Lap 7 and started plotting his move to overtake him. On Lap 9, Caroline and Fraga completed an over-under exchange of spot, with Caroline out-braking himself into Turn 1 to allow Fraga back through. This allowed Baron’s lead to grow to 3.4037 seconds.

Kohl, meanwhile, had to defend against a hard-charging Kirkwood for fourth.

By Lap 13 the order was Baron, with a 4.9997 second lead over Fraga, with Caroline third, Kohl fourth and Kirkwood fifth. Rasmus Lindh, Kaylen Frederick, Julian Van der Watt, Jose Sierra and Calvin Ming completed the top 10.

Kirkwood lost the back-end of his car exiting Turn 10 on Lap 15 and clanked the wall, when running fifth, and fell into the clutches of Frederick, Lindh, Van der Watt and Sierra.

There was a bit of consternation between Van der Watt and Sierra for the position a couple laps later, and Frederick fell behind them from sixth down to ninth.

Lindh’s rear wing collapsed on Lap 19 while running sixth, and it shot the Pabst Racing driver around backwards into the concrete barrier where the car sustained rear end and right rear corner damage.

On the restart with five laps remaining, Caroline ran wide from third place at Turn 1 and lost two positions. This allowed Kohl to jump into third and Kirkwood to move into fourth. Caroline regained one of those spots to make it back to fourth.

Two more incidents occurred before the end of the race, both at Turn 8. DEForce Racing’s Colin Kaminsky had what appeared to be a heavy accident with rear wing damage on his No. 27 car at the runoff point for the corner, while Manuel Cabrera’s No. 90 Exclusive Autosport car lost the back end on corner exit.

Baron held on for his first win in USF2000 since 2013, when he won two races in the final two weekends of the year at Laguna Seca Raceway and at the Reliant Park street course in Houston.

The win is the first in USF2000 for the fledgling Swan-RJB Motorsports team, led by the pairing of Mirl Swan and Ryan Barth. The team has Baron’s similarly named but not similarly spelled colleague Alex Barron – the 1997 Atlantic champion and past IndyCar race winner – as its driver coach.

The French Baron, however, was the only one of the two on-site this weekend. He told TSO Ladder post-race that he only met Barron more than a week ago and Barron was unable to attend this weekend with a prior commitment.

Unofficially, Kirkwood still leads the points over Sierra (48-41), with a bevy of drivers (Baron, Fraga, Kohl, Ming, and Keane) all in the 30-points or more range.

P No Name Team Laps Diff
1 19 Alex Baron Swan-RJB Motorsports 25
2 91 Igor Fraga Exclusive Autosport 25 2.0072
3 22 Lucas Kohl Pabst Racing 25 5.4112
4 28 Jamie Caroline BN Racing 25 5.8753
5 8 Kyle Kirkwood Cape Motorsports 25 6.4352
6 12 Jose Sierra DEForce Racing 25 6.7089
7 10 Zach Holden DEForce Racing 25 10.3995
8 21 Calvin Ming Pabst Racing 25 12.3825
9 24 Kaylen Frederick Pabst Racing 25 13.2106
10 11 Kory Enders DEForce Racing 25 13.8957
11 80 Julian Van der Watt Team Pelfrey 25 14.5395
12 36 Darren Keane Newman Wachs Racing 25 15.2984
13 30 Keith Donegan ArmsUp Motorsports 25 17.8019
14 82 Bruna Tomaselli Team Pelfrey 25 18.6553
15 81 Kyle Dupell Team Pelfrey 25 19.3876
16 5 Mathias Soler-Obel Sol.O Racing 25 20.3106
17 31 Sabre Cook Team Benik 25 20.7347
18 37 David Osborne Newman Wachs Racing 25 22.0867
19 38 Oscar DeLuzuriaga Newman Wachs Racing 25 22.9271
20 93 Jayson Clunie Exclusive Autosport 25 23.7519
21 90 Manuel Cabrera Exclusive Autosport 23 23.5011
22 27 Colin Kaminsky DEForce Racing 22 7.7823
23 51 Michael d’Orlando Team Benik 22 18.3366
24 23 Rasmus Lindh Pabst Racing 18 15.3895
25 29 Russell McDonough BN Racing 7 1 LAPS
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Saturday – MRTI Update #8 – USF2000 Race #1 – Kirkwood dominates chaotic opener

Posted by  on Saturday, March 10th 2018     

Kyle Kirkwood took the lead off the start of the 2018 Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda season opener, and never looked back en route to a perfect debut victory in the championship.

The Jupiter, Fla. driver, in his No. 8 Cape Motorsports Tatuus USF-17 Mazda, started second but immediately shot to the lead in the first of two races on the Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Presented by Allied Building Products weekend.

The 20-lap race featured one caution and a frantic amount of action throughout the field.

Off the green flag, Kirkwood got a good run on polesitter Jose Sierra (DEForce Racing) to power past him on the outside into Turn 1.

Behind them, there was a pair of incidents that involved two of the three Exclusive Autosport entries. Igor Fraga spun in the middle of the road, but was fortunate to not get collected by another car. Teammate Manuel Cabrera spun in avoidance on the outside of the corner, and into the oncoming path of Newman Wachs Racing’s Oscar DeLuzuriaga. Fraga restarted with no damage, DeLuzuriaga also restarted with a broken front wing, but Cabrera was done on the spot.

After the first full-course yellow, the race restarted at the end of Lap 3, to begin Lap 4.

Kirkwood led from Sierra while Jamie Caroline was quickly on the move. Caroline leapt ahead of Darren Keane and Calvin Ming for third. They’d started seventh, eighth and 14th respectively.

With Kirkwood’s lead north of 3.5 seconds by Lap 8, Caroline passed Sierra to get up to second. But the BN Racing driver’s race quickly came unglued a few laps later when he pitted, with the right rear tire having white walled the barriers. He joined Cabrera out of the race.

Several other drivers had incidents in the following laps, including David Osborne, Zach Holden and Russell McDonough.

On-track, Fraga led those putting together incredible recovery drives. In his first ever street course race, Fraga (qualified fourth) made it back to ninth place from 21st on Lap 11, with Mathias Soler-Obel driving up from last on the grid to 11th, Kyle Dupell advancing from 18th to eighth and Kaylen Frederick recovering from 23rd to 13th.

Kirkwood was able to pull away up front, never headed and winning by 5.495 seconds, with Sierra second and Keane third. It’s the first USF2000 podium for Sierra and Keane, who each drove partial seasons in 2017.

Ming stayed fourth with Julian Van der Watt in fifth. Colin Kaminsky, in his repaired DEForce Racing entry, along with Bruna Tomaselli, Fraga, Dupell and Rasmus Lindh completing the top 10. Kaminsky and Tomaselli scored career best finishes as well ahead of the three debutantes.

TSO Ladder will have more to follow in a bit.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Presented by Allied Building Products Race #1 Unofficial Results

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER TEAM DIFFERENCE
1 8 Kyle Kirkwood Cape Motorsports 20 laps
2 12 Jose Sierra DEForce Racing -5.4945
3 36 Darren Keane Newman Wachs Racing -12.2561
4 21 Calvin Ming Pabst Racing -15.2582
5 80 Julian Van der Watt Team Pelfrey -15.5706
6 27 Colin Kaminsky DEForce Racing -20.8132
7 82 Bruna Tomaselli Team Pelfrey -23.1378
8 91 Igor Fraga Exclusive Autosport -24.4335
9 81 Kyle Dupell Team Pelfrey -26.6204
10 23 Rasmus Lindh Pabst Racing -30.9835
11 24 Kaylen Frederick Pabst Racing -35.511
12 5 Mathias Soler-Obel Sol.O Racing -36.2571
13 22 Lucas Kohl Pabst Racing -36.732
14 30 Keith Donegan ArmsUp Motorsports -38.0968
15 31 Sabre Cook Team Benik -44.6499
16 51 Michael d’Orlando Team Benik -49.4592
17 93 Jayson Clunie Exclusive Autosport -58.8536
18 37 David Osborne Newman Wachs Racing -59.1782
19 11 Kory Enders DEForce Racing -1 lap
20 38 Oscar DeLuzuriaga Newman Wachs Racing -2 laps
21 10 Zach Holden DEForce Racing -2 laps
22 19 Alex Baron Swan-RJB Motorsports – 4 laps
23 29 Russell McDonough BN Racing -7 laps
24 28 Jamie Caroline BN Racing -10 laps
25 90 Manuel Cabrera Exclusive Autosport -20 laps

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Saturday – MRTI Update #6 – USF2000 and Pro Mazda – Baron, VeeKay score Race 2 poles

Posted by  on Saturday, March 10th 2018     

Alex Baron’s stop-and-start career in the Mazda Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires has restarted again, with another return to the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda in the revitalized Swan-RJB Motorsports team.

Despite being the 25th and last car added to the initial entry list, Baron and Swan-RJB start first in the second race of the weekend, the Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Presented by Allied Building Products.

Alex Baron and his Swan-RJB Motorsports No. 19 scored pole for the second Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda race (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

Baron, the 23-year-old from Narbonne, France, took his No. 19 Tatuus USF-17 Mazda to the second new track record in USF2000 qualifying in as many days. He laid down a 1:12.2574 around the 1.8-mile street circuit, which eclipsed Jose Sierra’s prior mark of 1:12.5493 set on Friday.

Baron ran a pair of USF2000 weekends with the Afterburner Autosport team in 2013, when he won two poles (both at Laguna Seca Raceway) and two races (one apiece at Laguna Seca and Houston). His last pole and win came in his final Indy Lights start, at Toronto in 2014 with Belardi Auto Racing. Baron made yet another return last year when he drove several weekends with ArmsUp Motorsports, and had a best finish of fourth place at Iowa Speedway.

And yes, to make this story even more intriguing, Swan-RJB Motorsports has former Atlantic champion and IndyCar race winner Alex Barron as the team’s driver coach. This means there are two people with the same name in the same team, but with different nationalities and last name spellings.

Igor Fraga will start alongside on the front row, a highly impressive outing in his first ever street course race weekend. The Japanese-born Brazilian took the No. 91 Exclusive Autosport entry to a best time of 1:12.494.

With Kyle Kirkwood third, Lucas Kohl fourth, Jamie Caroline fifth and Julian Van der Watt sixth, this makes six different teams in the top six on the grid. Cape Motorsports, Pabst Racing, BN Racing and Team Pelfrey join the party up front. After Van der Watt, Bruna Tomaselli posted an impressive run to qualify seventh in the second of three Pelfrey entries, in a career best start.

DEForce Racing, which will start on pole for today’s first race, was unable to replicate its Friday pace this morning. Its four-car lineup is close though, with Jose Sierra eighth, Zach Holden ninth, Kory Enders 11th and Colin Kaminsky 12th. Unfortunately for Kaminsky, he had an incident at Turn 8 to bring out the red flag in the final three minutes and provide a premature end to the session.

Beyond Kohl in fourth, none of the other three Pabst Racing drivers could better 10th this session.

The first of two Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Presented by Allied Building Products races rolls off at 10:15 am today, while tomorrow’s second race isn’t until 5:25 p.m.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Presented by Allied Building Products Qualifying Session #2 timesheet

P No Name Team FTime Diff Laps
1 19 Alex Baron Swan-RJB Motorsports 1:12.257 –.—- 12
2 91 Igor Fraga Exclusive Autosport 1:12.494 0.2362 13
3 8 Kyle Kirkwood Cape Motorsports 1:12.704 0.4468 11
4 22 Lucas Kohl Pabst Racing 1:12.813 0.5556 12
5 28 Jamie Caroline BN Racing 1:12.819 0.5612 11
6 80 Julian Van der Watt Team Pelfrey 1:12.852 0.5946 13
7 82 Bruna Tomaselli Team Pelfrey 1:12.938 0.6805 13
8 12 Jose Sierra DEForce Racing 1:12.952 0.6950 12
9 10 Zach Holden DEForce Racing 1:12.961 0.7033 12
10 24 Kaylen Frederick Pabst Racing 1:12.981 0.7238 12
11 11 Kory Enders DEForce Racing 1:13.099 0.8419 12
12 27 Colin Kaminsky DEForce Racing 1:13.216 0.9584 11
13 21 Calvin Ming Pabst Racing 1:13.348 1.0903 12
14 23 Rasmus Lindh Pabst Racing 1:13.375 1.1177 12
15 36 Darren Keane Newman Wachs Racing 1:13.421 1.1633 12
16 81 Kyle Dupell Team Pelfrey 1:13.502 1.2449 13
17 90 Manuel Cabrera Exclusive Autosport 1:13.543 1.2851 13
18 30 Keith Donegan ArmsUp Motorsports 1:13.676 1.4182 12
19 29 Russell McDonough BN Racing 1:13.774 1.5168 13
20 5 Mathias Soler-Obel Sol.O Racing 1:14.248 1.9910 11
21 37 David Osborne Newman Wachs Racing 1:14.256 1.9983 13
22 51 Michael d’Orlando Team Benik 1:14.362 2.1042 9
23 31 Sabre Cook Team Benik 1:15.060 2.8027 13
24 93 Jayson Clunie Exclusive Autosport 1:15.107 2.8496 13
25 38 Oscar DeLuzuriaga Newman Wachs Racing 1:15.694 3.4366 12

 

 

The second Pro Mazda Championship Presented by Cooper Tires qualifying session of the weekend packed a lot of punch into a compressed timeframe, after two red flags interrupted the 20-minute session.

When the checkered flag flew, Dutch standout Rinus VeeKay captured his first Pro Mazda pole position in the No. 2 Juncos Racing entry, with successive new fastest laps to ensure he’ll start P1 on Sunday in his Tatuus PM-18 Mazda.

VeeKay’s best time of 1:08.1747 was slightly off Oliver Askew’s Friday time at 1:08.1032, but still was enough to fend off a number of drivers who were also vying for the pole.

David Malukas and Askew slot into second and third in the No. 79 BN Racing and No. 3 Cape Motorsports entries, both more than three-tenths of a second adrift.

It took until fourth place to find the first series sophomore behind this trio of USF2000 graduates, with Sting Ray Robb best of Team Pelfrey’s three cars in fourth in his No. 82 entry. Carlos Cunha, who led a majority of the qualifying session until the final, frantic three minutes, fell to fifth.

An early red flag flew barely more than a minute into the session, while a second flew following slight contact for Kris Wright in his No. 78 BN Racing entry.

The first of today’s Pro Mazda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Presented by Allied Building Products races rolls off at 12:10 p.m. today, while tomorrow’s second race is at 4:30 p.m.

Pro Mazda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Presented by Allied Building Products Practice Qualifying #2 timesheet

P No Name Team FTime Diff Laps
1 2 Rinus VeeKay Juncos Racing 1:08.175 –.—- 10
2 79 David Malukas BN Racing 1:08.487 0.3122 10
3 3 Oliver Askew Cape Motorsports 1:08.517 0.3427 8
4 82 Sting Ray Robb Team Pelfrey 1:08.518 0.3431 10
5 1 Carlos Cunha Juncos Racing 1:08.704 0.5290 11
6 90 Parker Thompson Exclusive Autosport 1:08.719 0.5448 8
7 10 Harrison Scott RP Motorsport Racing 1:08.747 0.5727 10
8 9 Robert Megennis Juncos Racing 1:08.876 0.7016 10
9 8 Nikita Lastochkin Cape Motorsports 1:09.082 0.9077 8
10 27 Lodovico Laurini RP Motorsport Racing 1:09.153 0.9785 10
11 81 Andres Gutierrez Team Pelfrey 1:09.202 1.0275 10
12 80 Rafael Martins Team Pelfrey 1:09.260 1.0851 10
13 12 James Raven DEForce Racing 1:09.438 1.2635 10
14 91 Antonio Serravalle Exclusive Autosport 1:10.480 2.3050 11
15 78 Kris Wright BN Racing 1:15.603 7.4282 5
16 83 Charles Finelli BN Racing/Fatboy Racing 3:34.919 2:26.7440 2

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Friday – MRTI Update #3 – USF2000 qualifying – Jose Sierra crushes track record on the way to his first career pole

Posted by  on Friday, March 9th 2018     

Jose Sierra and DEForce Racing used a last-second flyer to snag the first pole of the 2018 Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda. It’s the first pole for the Angleton, Texas-based team and 18-year-old Mexican driver.

Sierra’s quick lap of 1:12.549 is a new track record, besting a lap at 1:13.064 set by Matthew Brabham in 2012.

Jose Sierra (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

The provisional pole was swapped five times among three drivers over the last three minutes of the session, with Kaylen Frederick (Pabst Racing) and Kyle Kirkwood (Cape Motorsports) joining Sierra in the pole shootout.

The first official INDYCAR sanctioned qualifying session of the 2018 racing season began under bright blue skies on the shores of Tampa Bay.

The 25 drivers, representing 11 different teams quickly got to work on the 1.8-mile, 14-turn street course.

At the halfway point of the 20-minute session, the top five times were held by Jamie Caroline, Kaylen Frederick, Igor Fraga, Alex Baron and Rasmus Lindh.

Just after the clocked ticked past the half-way point of the session, the red flag came out for Russell McDonough, who stopped in the Turn 11 area of the track.

Kyle Kirkwood had just turned the quickest lap of the session, but due to the red flag, that was erased.

The green flag came back out with eight minutes remaining.

With three minutes left in the session, the top five were Alex Baron, Jamie Caroline, Kaylen Frederick, Kyle Kirkwood and Jose Sierra, but the timing screen was lit up purple with drivers going faster and faster.

The two drivers that caused the end of session red flag earlier this morning suffered utterly different fates.

The DEForce Racing crew was able to get the No. 11 of Kory Enders put back together, and the sophomore was able to qualify ninth.

The family-owned team of Sol.O Racing was not able to get No. 5 of Mathias Soler-Obel prepared in time for qualifying.

All four DEForce Racing drivers qualified within the top 12, with Zach Holden (fifth), Enders (ninth) and Colin Kaminsky (12th).

Exclusive Autosport rookie Igor Fraga ended up qualifying on the outside of the second row for his first USF2000 race.

The Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda drivers are back on track for their second qualifying session of the year bright and early on Saturday at 7:30 am.

The first of two Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Presented by Allied Building Products races rolls off at 10:15 am.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Presented by Allied Building Products Qualifying Session #1 timesheet

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER TEAM QUICK LAP GAP TOTAL LAPS
1 12 Jose Sierra DEForce Racing 1:12.549 –.—- 14
2 8 Kyle Kirkwood Cape Motorsports 1:12.613 0.0638 13
3 24 Kaylen Frederick Pabst Racing 1:12.687 0.1381 14
4 91 Igor Fraga Exclusive Autosport 1:12.842 0.2925 13
5 10 Zach Holden DEForce Racing 1:12.862 0.3132 14
6 19 Alex Baron Swan-RJB Motorsports 1:12.888 0.3392 13
7 28 Jamie Caroline BN Racing 1:12.892 0.3430 5
8 36 Darren Keane Newman Wachs Racing 1:12.965 0.4152 13
9 11 Kory Enders DEForce Racing 1:13.007 0.4573 14
10 22 Lucas Kohl Pabst Racing 1:13.049 0.4997 14
11 80 Julian Van der Watt Team Pelfrey 1:13.176 0.6269 14
12 27 Colin Kaminsky DEForce Racing 1:13.270 0.7205 14
13 82 Bruna Tomaselli Team Pelfrey 1:13.303 0.7533 14
14 21 Calvin Ming Pabst Racing 1:13.386 0.8363 14
15 23 Rasmus Lindh Pabst Racing 1:13.421 0.8722 13
16 90 Manuel Cabrera Exclusive Autosport 1:13.897 1.3477 14
17 30 Keith Donegan ArmsUp Motorsports 1:13.954 1.4042 14
18 81 Kyle Dupell Team Pelfrey 1:14.247 1.6975 14
19 51 Michael d’Orlando Team Benik 1:14.722 2.1727 13
20 37 David Osborne Newman Wachs Racing 1:14.772 2.2232 12
21 31 Sabre Cook Team Benik 1:15.467 2.9180 13
22 38 Oscar DeLuzuriaga Newman Wachs Racing 1:16.182 3.6329 12
23 93 Jayson Clunie Exclusive Autosport 1:16.585 4.0357 9
24 29 Russell McDonough BN Racing 1:17.706 5.1570 3

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Friday – MRTI Update #1 – USF2000 and Pro Mazda – first practice sessions

Posted by  on Friday, March 9th 2018     

 

The first two Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires session have been successfully completed.

The Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda had the privilege of sweeping the dew of the 1.8-mile, 14-turn St. Petersburg, Fla. street circuit.

After a difficult first opening session that saw multiple red flags, this morning’s session ran clean until the very end when the green and checkered flags came out at the same time for  Kory Enders had an incident in Turn 9 and Mathias Soler-Obel found trouble in Turn 4.

The session was led by Pabst Racing’s sophomore Kaylen Frederick. The 15-year-old had the quickest lap at 1:13.131, which is quicker than the quickest USF2000 qualifying lap, but slower than the quickest race laps. Both track records have stood since 2012.

The top 11 drivers were all within one-second of Frederick.

A number of cars had non-working transponders.  Alex Baron, Jamie Caroline, Russell McDonough, Keith Donegan, Sabre Cook, and Bruna Tomaselli did turn laps, but their times did not register.

The lowest rung on the American Open Wheel Ladder will be back on track for qualifying at 10:45am.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Presented by Allied Building Products Practice Session #1 timesheet

 

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER TEAM QUICKEST LAP GAP TOTAL LAPS
1 24 Kaylen Frederick Pabst Racing 1:13.131 –.—- 20
2 12 Jose Sierra DEForce Racing 1:13.338 0.2076 20
3 8 Kyle Kirkwood Cape Motorsports 1:13.398 0.2673 19
4 22 Lucas Kohl Pabst Racing 1:13.453 0.3228 20
5 80 Julian Van der Watt Team Pelfrey 1:13.461 0.3300 20
6 11 Kory Enders DEForce Racing 1:13.507 0.3766 18
7 91 Igor Fraga Exclusive Autosport 1:13.597 0.4661 20
8 23 Rasmus Lindh Pabst Racing 1:13.753 0.6228 20
9 36 Darren Keane Newman Wachs Racing 1:13.837 0.7059 20
10 21 Calvin Ming Pabst Racing 1:14.042 0.9114 20
11 27 Colin Kaminsky DEForce Racing 1:14.149 1.0182 17
12 10 Zach Holden DEForce Racing 1:14.240 1.1094 20
13 90 Manuel Cabrera Exclusive Autosport 1:14.635 1.5048 20
14 81 Kyle Dupell Team Pelfrey 1:14.852 1.7212 19
15 51 Michael d’Orlando Team Benik 1:15.022 1.8919 19
16 5 Mathias Soler-Obel Sol.O Racing 1:15.182 2.0513 14
17 37 David Osborne Newman Wachs Racing 1:16.352 3.2214 19
18 93 Jayson Clunie Exclusive Autosport 1:16.891 3.7600 19
19 38 Oscar DeLuzuriaga Newman Wachs Racing 1:20.134 7.0036 18

Next up on track were the brand new PM-18 machines of the second rung of the Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires. Fifteen of the 275hp Mazda powered Tatuus turned laps in the series only practice session before qualifying

The first 15 minutes of the session ran smoothly before the No. 90 Exclusive Autosport machine of Parker Thompson came to a halt with smoke and water pouring out of the back of the car.

The session went back to green until it also ended under a red/checkered flag.

We’re headed over to the Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires paddock to check to see if they will be able to get championship contender Thompson’s car ready for qualifying at 1:15pm.

Pro Mazda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Presented by Allied Building Products Practice Session #1 timesheet

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER TEAM QUICKEST LAP GAP TOTAL LAPS
1 1 Carlos Cunha Juncos Racing 1:08.974 –.—- 18
2 2 Rinus VeeKay Juncos Racing 1:09.062 0.0887 15
3 79 David Malukas BN Racing 1:09.209 0.2348 20
4 10 Harrison Scott RP Motorsport Racing 1:09.422 0.4479 18
5 8 Nikita Lastochkin Cape Motorsports 1:09.491 0.5176 19
6 3 Oliver Askew Cape Motorsports 1:09.499 0.5253 19
7 82 Sting Ray Robb Team Pelfrey 1:09.540 0.5663 18
8 80 Rafael Martins Team Pelfrey 1:09.628 0.6539 16
9 78 Kris Wright BN Racing 1:10.255 1.2815 20
10 9 Robert Megennis Juncos Racing 1:10.299 1.3252 15
11 27 Lodovico Laurini RP Motorsport Racing 1:10.556 1.5822 18
12 81 Andres Gutierrez Team Pelfrey 1:10.707 1.7327 14
13 90 Parker Thompson Exclusive Autosport 1:11.118 2.1440 11
14 12 James Raven DEForce Racing 1:11.261 2.2870 18
15 91 Antonio Serravalle Exclusive Autosport 1:12.642 3.6687 18

 

Don’t miss any of the action:

category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, Pro Mazda News/Results, Pro Mazda presented by Cooper Tire - TSO, USF2000 News/Results
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An extensive preview of the 2018 Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda season

Posted by  on Thursday, March 8th 2018     

The Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda series will take to the streets (and runways) of downtown St. Petersburg, Fla. for the 17th and 18th time this weekend. It’s the fifth straight and sixth overall year that the series contests their first race of the year on the shore of Tampa Bay.

Previous race winning drivers and teams at the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda events in St. Petersburg, Fla.

Year Driver Team Start
2017 Race #2 Oliver Askew Cape Motorsports 2
2017 Race #1 Robert Megennis Team Pelfrey 1
2016 Race #2 Yufeng Luo Pabst Racing 3
2016 Race #1 Jordan Lloyd Pabst Racing 1
2015 Race #2 Jake Eidsen Pabst Racing 1
2015 Race #1 Jake Eidsen Pabst Racing 1
2014 Race #2 RC Enerson Team E Racing 2
2014 Race #1 Victor Franzoni Afterburner Autosport 1
2013 Race #2 Scott Hargrove Cape Motorsports 1
2013 Race #1 Scott Hargrove Cape Motorsports 1
2012 Race #2 Spencer Pigot Cape Motorsports 2
2012 Race #1 Spencer Pigot Cape Motorsports 1
2011 Race #2 Petri Suvanto Cape Motorsports 1
2011 Race #1 Spencer Pigot Andretti Autosport 1
2010 Race #2 Sage Karam Andretti Autosport 1
2010 Race #1 Sage Karam Andretti Autosport 1

 

Race weekend basics:

  • The official name of the pair of races is: Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Presented by Allied Building Products
  • Saturday’s Race 1 is scheduled for 20 laps or 40 minutes
  • Sunday’s Race 2 – is scheduled for 25 laps or 40 minutes
  • Each entry is permitted to use three sets of new Cooper Tire slicks, and can also carry over one set that has to be used in the first practice session of the event
  • Each entry is permitted to use three sets of new Cooper Tire rains.
  • Driver points are distributed as follows: 30 – 25 – 22 – 19 – 17 – 15 -14 – 13 – 12 – 11 – 10 – 9 – 8 – 7 – 6 – 5 – 4 – 3 – 2 – 1 – an additional one point will be awarded to the pole sitter, and to the driver who leads the most laps

Last year, the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda witnessed a rebirth with the launch of the new Tatuus USF-17 Mazda and a scintillating title tilt between Cape Motorsports’ Oliver Askew and Pabst Racing’s Rinus VeeKay.

One of USF2000’s major selling points is it provides a first introduction to the potential Verizon IndyCar Series stars on IndyCar race weekends at the first rung of the Mazda Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires ladder. And drivers will be vying for the $325,000 Mazda Motorsports advancement scholarship, with a chance to step up to Pro Mazda the following year.

It’s been Cape’s wheelhouse in USF2000 as the team has had seven straight driver’s championships. But there are plenty of multi-car teams nipping at their heels, hungry to wrest the title from the Cape’s grasp.

With 24 solid entries, the USF2000 series is deep in both quality and quantity this season.

Kirkwood, Cape’s “Magic 8 Ball”

“Seven-up” isn’t just a soda – it’s also the term that describes Cape Motorsports’ level of domination in USF2000 these last seven years.

But the “Magic 8 Ball” nearly forecast something out of the ordinary for 2018: Cape not returning to go for an eighth straight championship in the first rung of the Mazda Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires ladder.

A new driver, Kyle Kirkwood, with a familiar team, Cape Motorsports, are looking to win the team’s eighth straight drivers championship (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography – Joe Skibinski)

The story has a happy ending though, with a new beginning. Cape will return with a single-car effort, adorned in the Cape’s ubiquitous “Magic 8 Ball” livery, and with its U.S. F4 champion Kyle Kirkwood aboard the No. 8 Tatuus USF-17 Mazda for a full USF2000 season.

Kirkwood, then, has the somewhat unenviable task of sustaining the legacy the Capes have built-in USF2000, as the team’s eighth straight champion. If he does, he’ll follow last year’s champion in Oliver Askew, who is quite possibly Kirkwood’s best friend as the two have enjoyed parallel careers and growth to this point.

Kirkwood and Askew – the pair of Jupiter, Fla. natives who are seemingly joined at the hip and 2016 Team USA Scholarship recipients – will once again be teammates in 2018, albeit in different championships. Askew moves up to Pro Mazda this season by way of winning last year’s title and the Mazda Motorsports advancement scholarship that comes with it.

This is a tried-and-true methodology where the last five Cape USF2000 champions have leapt to Pro Mazda with the same team (before Askew, it was Anthony Martin last year, then Nico Jamin, Florian Latorre, and Scott Hargrove) while a newcomer fills their stead at Cape’s USF2000 outfit. You’d have to go back to Matty Brabham in 2013 to find the last Cape USF2000 champion who didn’t move up to Pro Mazda with the same team, as he did so with Andretti Autosport.

For Kirkwood’s part, having the confidence in both Askew and the Cape team will fuel his motivation to add another title to his resume this season.

“It definitely does. Especially with my teammate Oliver Askew who’s now moved up to Pro Mazda,” Kirkwood told TSO Ladder. “We’ve always run together, we’ve always been head-to-head, and seeing him win the championship last year gives me the confidence that I can go out there and do the same thing. I’m really fortunate to be with this team. What they’ve shown by winning the driver’s championship for the last seven years has given me a really big confidence boost.”

A quartet of hungry Pabst drivers

Kirkwood will fly Cape’s flag solo, and in order to maintain the team’s somewhat incredible run of championships, he’ll have to beat a now four-headed monster from Pabst Racing.

The Oconomowoc, Wis.-based team’s methodical growth has occurred over the last several years where Augie Pabst’s team has leapt from two cars up to three, and this year, expands to four. Pabst usually starts well, having been a regular winner here with the previous generation Van Diemen chassis, but had a rare shutout from victory lane last year in the debut with the new Tatuus.

The inter-team dynamic will be fascinating to watch between the quartet of youngsters, three of whom are USF2000 veterans and the fourth who appears an up-and-coming rookie.

Pabst’s two holdovers are Calvin Ming and Lucas Kohl, with the Guyana and Brazilian drivers both primed to secure their first series victories after finding their way to the podium multiple times last season. The teenaged Kaylen Frederick shifts to Pabst from Team Pelfrey and will look to build on an impressive debut season. Newcomer Rasmus Lindh of Sweden immediately announced his arrival to the MRTI paddock at October’s Chris Griffis Memorial Mazda Road to Indy test in Indianapolis with Team BENIK and has followed up with further strong tests with Pabst over the winter.

Pabst deservedly achieved its first team’s championship last year, Ming and Kohl playing “best supporting actor” roles to Dutch star Rinus VeeKay, who was both the model of pace and consistency all season. In a year without Askew in the field, VeeKay could well have won last year’s title. Alas, with four highly capable drivers, Pabst is a good bet to finally take its first driver’s title this season. Quite who emerges as the lead driver of this quartet will be a storyline throughout the year.

Will Pabst Racing third-year driver Lucas Kohl emerge as the leader for the Wisconsin based squad? (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography – Joe Skibinski)

Kohl, who enters his third season in USF2000 and second with Pabst, continues to mature with Pabst and with driver coach Roberto Moreno.

“It’s good to have as many fast teammates as you can get. If we all go fast, we have each other’s data,” Kohl said.

“You try to regularly be on the podium every weekend, and get some race wins. I’ve done a lot of go-karting, me and Roberto. I did a winter tour, and some in SKUSA. I do a lot of cycling. It helps (race craft); you have to be on the limit every lap to get a great result. For me, being on the track almost every weekend in a go-kart was really important.”

Newman Wachs, DEForce poised to win in year two

If your first year is a year to lay the groundwork, the second year is an opportunity to take the next step and properly join the top flight of contenders.

For Newman Wachs Racing and DEForce Racing, the time may be now to break up the Cape and Pabst juggernaut at the top of the USF2000 field.

Newman Wachs returned to open-wheel racing after a lengthy hiatus going back to the old Atlantic days, while DEForce formed in the 2016-’17 offseason and had made immediate strides.

Newman Wachs has a three-car lineup, led by Boca Raton, Fla. native Darren Keane for what will be his first full season after running a majority but not all of 2017. Keane, who has quickly matured and developed under the watchful eye of veteran sports car ace Ozz Negri, looks at the very least a likely podium finisher if not a potential first-time race winner.

“Obviously, the goal is to win, but if we can’t, and I can’t expect that for myself, I can wish that, but I can’t all out of whack if that doesn’t happen. I think we’re definitely going to have a good year,” Keane told TSO Ladder. “We’ve had a really good offseason, and the Newman Wachs guys and myself have really developed the car well. I think we’re in good shape for the season, and I know we’re going to be running up front all season in the top five.”

Keane had an off-kilter first season where he debuted with Team BENIK at the Indianapolis road course and moved to Newman Wachs from Road America onwards. He did so without the benefit of a teammate most weekends, as Newman Wachs’ planned three-car effort for the year quickly evaporated due to budgetary constraints. Dakota Dickerson, Andre Castro and a handful of others made starts, but none lasted more than three weekends.

In rookies David Osborne and Oscar DeLuzuriaga, Keane has two steady sets of data to feed off at the weekends. TSO still expects Keane to be the pace-setter of the three of them, with Osborne featuring some potential given his nomination as a Team USA Scholarship finalist in 2017.

“It’ll be nice to have teammates this year,” Keane explained. “It’ll be a lot better because you can try stuff with the different cars to get to set-ups quicker. Also, they’ll be quicker than me in some places, so I’ll learn from, and they’ll learn from me. It helps the effort having extra knowledge because it gives us more data to work with.”

For DEForce, a four-car effort showcases the team’s rapid and increased commitment, especially given two of the team’s four deals were concluded in the final weeks leading up to St. Petersburg. For the David and Ernesto Martinez-owned team, “DEForce” could be more than just a team name this year – it could well be a testament to their level of performance.

Sugar Land, Texas native Kory Enders quietly impressed as his rookie year progressed. At 20, he’s right in that perfect age wheelhouse of succeeding in USF2000 and potentially moving into Pro Mazda, and he’s already tested in that championship prior to his sophomore USF2000 campaign. Don’t be surprised if Enders, who’s quickly gelled with DEForce engineer Peter Dempsey, delivers DEForce’s first win in the series.

Kory Enders will look to be as consistent as he was quick during his first season of USF2000 (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography – Joe Skibinski)

“It’s great. Peter has been a fantastic addition to the team,” Enders told TSO Ladder. “I’ve worked with him for a couple of years. When he was with Juncos (Racing), he helped us out a few times, and he fits in with the team.

“He does know how to push a driver, and he’s really got a lot of time out of me. He’s been able to help me find my potential and unlocking more and more potential as we go each day. He’s a great driver coach, he really is.”

Enders may not be the team’s only threat. Jose Sierra joins for a full-season effort after impressing in a one-off at Toronto, where he finished fourth. Sierra was the 2017 FIA F4 NACAM runner-up.

Newcomers Colin Kaminsky and Zach Holden complete the quartet, neither having planned to be here even a few weeks ago but now taking up stead in the third and fourth entries. Kaminsky ran a majority of races last season either under his family banner or later, with John Cummiskey Racing. Holden made his USF2000 debut with BN Racing at Watkins Glen and looked set to link up with them for a full 2018 season before that changed in the final week leading into St. Petersburg. The Greenfield, Ind. native is a karting standout, and another potential surprise driver this season.

Pelfrey, Exclusive seek winning return with new lineups

If Newman Wachs and DEForce are poised to win their first USF2000 races this season, Team Pelfrey and Exclusive Autosport will want to win more regularly this season after sporadic victory lane pop-ins in 2017.

Pelfrey’s 2017 season started strongly but quickly hit a couple of pitfalls. Robert Megennis never seemed to regain his form after a finely executed first win at St. Petersburg, while Kaylen Frederick impressed but never won. A double exclusion at the Indianapolis road course put pause to their title hopes, and the team was unable to recapture the early season magic.

Entirely the opposite occurred at Exclusive, with Michael Duncalfe’s Saskatoon, Saskatchewan based team improving as the year went on. Parker Thompson entered the year as a presumptive title favorite but didn’t fully hit his stride until Toronto, with a popular home weekend sweep.

For Team Pelfrey, a new trio enters into its three cars this year. South African Julian van der Watt, American Kyle Dupell and Brazilian Bruna Tomaselli take over the trademark Pelfrey Nos. 80, 81 and 82 yellow and black machines. Tomaselli is the only sophomore, and the young Brazilian will look to grow and develop this season. Pelfrey does have a recent history of producing fantastic freshmen – Frederick and Megennis were revelations in their first seasons – and under the tutelage of veteran engineer Rick Cameron and team manager Jonny Baker, expect the pair of freshmen here to progressively improve as well.

Exclusive has a pair of newcomers in Manuel Cabrera, and Igor Fraga joined by veteran sports car driver Jayson Clunie, who ran a partial USF2000 campaign. Cabrera won last year’s Formula PanAm series and a ticket to the USF2000 $200K Scholarship Shootout; Fraga, like Sierra at DEForce, is an FIA F4 NACAM race winner who moves into a similar car this year. These two aren’t household names yet but could well do so later this year.

Soul Red Scholarship standout Donegan heads to ArmsUp

The true family feel at ArmsUp Motorsports, the Sheboygan Falls, Wis.-based outfit led by Gregg and Brent Borland, is back with a one-car effort and Mazda’s Soul Red colors adorning the usually silver chassis with Irishman Keith Donegan picking this team. He’ll have the opportunity to shine working at this close-knit outfit and with veteran engineer John Walko.

Keith Donegan will be wearing Soul Red this year after winning the Mazda 200K Scholarship Shootout (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography – Joe Skibinski)

ArmsUp was respectable in a deep field last year with Devin Wojcik, while Donegan naturally has the potential to emulate Victor Franzoni (2016) and Aaron Telitz (2014) as recent ArmsUp USF2000 race winners. It is an even-numbered year, so that bodes well for all involved here…

“Sweet” Jamie Caroline arrives on U.S. shores

If you don’t know the name Jamie Caroline yet in the U.S., you might want to jot it down. Because some of his moves are as memorable and “can’t get it out of your head” on track as Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” is on the radio.

Rather than more words here, here’s what happens when you type Jamie Caroline into YouTube.

He’s also last year’s British F4 champion. He’s widely being hailed as a potential championship contender, even with this deal with BN Racing being struck as late as it has been.

BN made an early splash last year with David Malukas, and Caroline could well do the same this year.

Russell McDonough is the team’s second driver and while not as highly rated as Caroline, he’ll provide a second set of data and input for Caroline to build off of.

Benik, Sol.O’s hopes

The Cape (1 car), Pabst (4), Newman Wachs (3), DEForce (4), Pelfrey (3), Exclusive (3) and ArmsUp (1) teams make up 19 of the 24 cars, leaving five remaining cars from three teams that will try to make their mark on the field.

We mentioned BN above with its two cars, and that leaves karting standouts Team Benik and the new Sol.O Racing to round out the field.

Benik had a roller coaster debut season in USF2000, with a number of different drivers taking turns in the team’s two cars.

Sabre Cook and Michael d’Orlando are first up this weekend in the team’s two entries. Cook has tested for multiple teams, and the Colorado native will look to progress up the order in her first start. D’Orlando is another karting veteran making a step up to cars.

The Sol.O Racing team features F4 driver Mathias Soler-Obel, driving in his family-run, Atlanta-based team. As a debuting single-car team, they’ll have a steep mountain to climb, but will no doubt give the effort to succeed. Soler-Obel won the first season of the Lucas Oil School of Racing, so he does have a pedigree of winning.

category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, USF2000 News/Results

Pro Mazda and USF2000 testing recap from Homestead-Miami Speedway – Day #2 recap and timesheet

Posted by  on Sunday, February 25th 2018     

By Steve Wittich

For the second straight day, it was Juncos Racing sophomore Carlos Cunha who used an end of the day, last minute lap to jump to the top of the timesheet. The 18 year-old was able to better his Saturday afternoon lap by over two-tenths of a second, to “win” testing with the fastest lap of 1 minute, 19.202 seconds.

“I’m really happy, Juncos Racing is an amazing team,” said Cunha. “On-track, we are always improving, never going backwards and that’s very good. We have tested a lot but we still need to learn a lot about the car, though we are almost to a perfect setup. The team has given me everything I need to be comfortable inside the car, to know what the car needs, and to know what I need to be a better driver. We have time to improve and we are moving forward quickly.”

Juncos Racing sophomore Carlos Cunha ended the second day of testing at Homestead-Miami Speedway in the same spot he did the first day. At the top of the timesheet (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography – Joe Skibinski)

Cunha’s swiftest lap was 4.4 seconds ahead of the venerable Mazda Renesis powered Star built chassis.

After having the second quickest lap in two different sessions, it finally looked like Team Pelfrey sophomore Sting Ray Robb was going to end the final session one spot higher, but Cunha’s last second flyer meant that the Idahoan had to settle for second in the session and in the runner-up spot on the combined time-sheet.

“We’ve done several tests this winter, working on my driving and on the car setup – and the chemistry with the team has been a huge factor,” explained the 16 year-old. “Coming into the weekend we know what we can do and here at Spring Training we got P2. The new car is so fast, brakes well, corners well, and it’s way nicer to drive than the old car. It feels like a real race car. Last year was my rookie season and it was a rough year, mentally and physically, so it’s good to be back in the swing of things, back in my rhythm!”

Sting Ray Robb is clearly enjoying his new home at Team Pelfrey. The 16 year-old was the second quickest driver in half of the six sessions and also ended the test as the second quickest pilot. (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography – Joe Skibinski)

The remainder of the top five, David Malukas (BN Racing), Rafa Martins (Team Pelfrey) and Parker Thompson (Exclusive Autosport) were covered by only a scant one-tenth of a second, and were within a half-second of Cunha.

Thirteen of the 15 drivers ended the test within one second of each other, setting the table for what should be an outstanding title fight.

The two drivers, Oliver Askew and Rinus VeeKay, that battled until the final race of the year in the 2017 Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda championship were only able to manage the ninth and eighth times, respectively.

But, both were fighting bugs. VeeKay was battling mechanical gremlins, and Askew was battling a nasty case of the flu, so don’t be surprised to see the talented duo back at the top of the time-sheets when the series heads to Barber Motorsports Park next week for two day official series test alongside the Battery Tender Global Mazda MX-5 Cup Series on Saturday, March 3 and Sunday March 4.

The 15 PM18 cars that took part in the six-hours of testing turned a total of 1,610 laps (3,558.1 miles). Antonio Serravalle, who completed 169 circuits of the 2.21-Mile Homestead-Miami Speedway road course was the busiest of the pilots, driving a total of 373.5 miles.

Combined timesheet for the two days of Pro Mazda Presented By Cooper Tire testing at Homestead-Miami Speedway

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER TEAM FASTEST LAP GAP TOTAL LAPS
1 1 Carlos Cunha Juncos Racing 1:19.202 132
2 82 Sting Ray Robb Team Pelfrey 1:19.409 -0.207 123
3 79 David Malukas BN Racing 1:19.579 -0.377 78
4 80 Rafael Martins Team Pelfrey 1:19.604 -0.402 111
5 90 Parker Thompson Exclusive Autosport 1:19.685 -0.483 106
6 10 Harrison Scott RP Motorsport Racing 1:19.800 -0.598 39
7 9 Robert Megennis Juncos Racing 1:19.884 -0.642 125
8 2 Rinus VeeKay Juncos Racing 1:19.914 -0.712 129
9 3 Oliver Askew Cape Motorsports 1:19.987 -0.785 127
10 12 James Raven DE Force Racing 1:20.036 -0.834 127
11 78 Kris Wright BN Racing 1:20.150 -0.948 80
12 27 Lodovico Laurini RP Motorsport Racing 1:20.197 -0.995 61
13 81 Andres Gutierrez Team Pelfrey 1:20.249 -1.047 82
14 8 Nikita Lastochkin Cape Motorsports 1:20.876 -1.674 121
15 91 Antonio Seravalle Exclusive Autosport 1:21.038 -1.836 169

For the second straight year, it was a Team USA Scholarship winning Cape Motorsports driver that led the first official test of an upcoming Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda season.

Last year, Oliver Askew used the momentum gained during the test to win the 2017 USF2000 Championship, and this year, it will be fellow Jupiter, Fla. native Kyle Kirkwood, who was part of the same Team USA Scholarship class, that will hope to follow in Askew’s footsteps.

Kyle Kirkwood and the No. 8 Cape Motorsports machine on track at Homestead-Miami Speedway (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography – Joe Skibinski)

“Everything went really well,” explained Kirkwood to TSO Ladder. “We were obviously very quick yesterday and today. We had a plan for the last two sessions, so that’s why we weren’t quicker in both of them. We were just seeing what our race pace was. I’m really happy with the outcome of the weekend. The car feels amazing, and I think going into St. Pete we should be one of the quicker car.”

Kirkwood will be attempting to win the eighth straight driver’s championship for Cape Motorsports. The St. Petersburg, Fla. based team, who faced a tough challenge from Pabst Racing last year, conceding the team championship to the Augie Pabst led team.

Drivers from the Oconomowoc, Wisc. team ended the test with the second, third, fourth, and sixth quickest laps. Rasmus Lindh, a rookie from Sweden, who will be making his first race start in cars at St. Petersburg led the veteran-laden team, but Lucas Kohl, Kaylen Frederick, and Calvin Ming were all very close together.

“The car feels very good,” explained the 16 year-old. “We’ve been quickest in two sessions and have improved through the weekend. We’ve tested a few times in the car, my first times in a race car. It takes some getting used to, going from a kart to a car. The brakes require much more pressure than a kart and you have to hold that pressure, so that’s new for me. I am used to moving my body in the kart to help the chassis, and I can’t move my body at all in the USF-17. And I’m learning what the car’s limits are, as well as the limits of the tires. It’s been great working with the Pabst team – all four of us have very similar times, so we can compare data and get the best for all of us.”

It was rookie Rasmus Lindh who led his veteran Pabst Racing during the first official Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda test of 2018 (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

DEForce Racing sophomore Kory Enders was the only driver to break up the Cape Motorsports and Pabst Racing party at the top of the timesheet and ended the test with the fifth quickest time. The resident of Sugarland, Texas was one of the more consistent drivers of the test, ending with a top-five time in four of the six sessions.

After he got out of his car, Enders told TSO: “I think it went really great. We have a lot of speed and a lot of potential. At this point, we’re just fine-tuning the set-up at this point. We’re really looking forward to St. Pete(rsburg) because we know that we have the speed. We’re right there with Pabst, and ready to push even further to become P1. We wanted it here, but sometimes the best things are worth waiting for.”

During last year’s two-day opening test at Homestead-Miami Speedway, Oliver Askew was the only driver to turn a lap below 1 minute, 24 seconds, and this year, only two drivers, Kirkwood and Lindh were able to break that threshold. After Kirkwood went under Askew’s lap yesterday, it looked like a lot more drivers would break the 84-second barrier, but according to the drivers we talked to the track got slicker as the day wore on, limiting how hard they were able to push.

The top nine drivers all set their quickest laps on the first day of testing, with Julian Van der Watt (Team Pelfrey) being the first driver to set their quickest lap of the test on Sunday.

The 23 USF17 cars that took part in the six-hours of testing turned a total of 2735 laps (6,044.35 miles). Sabre Cook, who completed 169 circuits of the 2.21-Mile Homestead-Miami Speedway road course was the busiest of the pilots, driving a total of 373.5 miles

Combined timesheet for the two days of Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda testing at Homestead-Miami Speedway

 

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER TEAM FASTEST LAP GAP TOTAL LAPS
1 8 Kyle Kirkwood Cape Motorsports 1:23.772 118
2 23 Rasmus Lindh Pabst Racing 1:23.924 -0.152 103
3 22 Lucas Kohl Pabst Racing 1:24.068 -0.296 104
4 24 Kaylen Frederick Pabst Racing 1:24.095 -0.323 123
5 11 Kory Enders DEForce Racing 1:24.250 -0.478 122
6 21 Calvin Ming Pabst Racing 1:24.476 -0.704 112
7 81 Kyle Dupell Team Pelfrey 1:24.484 -0.712 123
8 12 Jose Sierra DEForce Racing 1:24.566 -0.794 121
9 36 Darren Keane Newman Wachs Racing 1:24.655 -0.883 121
10 80 Julian Van der Watt Team Pelfrey 1:24.782 -1.010 99
11 28 Zach Holden BN Racing 1:24.857 -1.085 113
12 31 Michael D’Orlando Team Benik 1:24.875 -1.103 139
13 91 Igor Fraga Exclusive Autosport 1:25.005 -1.233 71
14 82 Bruna Tomaselli Team Pelfrey 1:25.109 -1.337 101
15 30 Keith Donegan ArmsUp Motorsports 1:25.147 -1.375 102
16 5 Mathias Soler-Obel Sol.O Racing 1:25.161 -1.389 144
17 27 Colin Kaminsky DE Force Racing 1:25.280 -1.508 139
18 37 Max Peichel Newman Wachs Racing 1:25.392 -1.620 141
19 29 Russell McDonough BN Racing 1:25.627 -1.855 37
20 90 Manuel Cabrera Exclusive Autosport 1:25.803 -2.031 124
21 9 Sabre Cook ArmsUp Motorsports 1:25.967 -2.195 169
22 38 Oscar DeLuzuriaga Newman Wachs Racing 1:26.566 -2.794 150
23 93 Jason Clunie Exclusive Autosport 1:27.143 -3.371 159

 

USF2000 and Pro Mazda notebook:

  • The 2.1 mile, Homestead-Miami Speedway 14-turn road course has hosted a number of different road racing series including: ACCUS Florida Winter Series, Formula Atlantics Championship, F4 United States Championship Powered by Honda, FIA GT, Grand Am Rolex Sports Car Series, SCCA US Road Racing Championship,Trans-Am, and US F2000 Winterfest. The 14-turn circuit features nine left-hand turns and six right-hand turns.

The 2.21-mile, 14-turn Homestead-Miami Speedway road course (Photo courtesy of Homestead-Miami Speedway)

  • When attending a test at Homestead-Miami Speedway, one often spends some time looking at the sky. The Homestead Air Reserve Base is located just to the northeast of the track, and the flight path takes planes right over the facility. The base is home to the 482nd Fighter Wing and their Lockheed F-16C Fighting Falcons and the 125th Fighter Wing of the Florida Air National Guard and their McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagles. Also calling the based home are United States Coast Guard EADS HC-144 Ocean Sentries, and various aircraft from U.S. Customs And Border Protection.
  • Each entry for spring training is allocated two sets of sticker Cooper Tire slicks for each day of the test, so they do have to be judicious in their use. Most teams spent the majority of Saturday’s first session on tires left over from testing before putting on sticker tires to end that first session. Each entry is allowed to carry over one set of tires from a previous event, but that set of carryovers does have to be used in the first practice session of another event. Tire “strategies” for the remaining four sessions varied, with some drivers/teams choosing to do their new tire, runs at the beginning of the sixty-minute session and
  • Jan Heylen will be replacing Scot Elkins as the USF2000 race director. Elkins is now the race director for the ABB FIA Formula E Championship. Heylen, originally from Belgium spent the early part of his career in open wheel racing piloting Formula Ford, Formula 3, Formula 3000, Indy Lights and Indy cars, before making the move to sports cars, where the 37 year-old has earned a reputation as an outstanding driver coach. Remaining in their race director roles from last year are Johnny Unser (Pro Mazda) and Tony Cotman (Indy Lights). Also remaining in his role as steward and USF2000 driver coach will be Joel Miller.
  • We’ve had a number of people ask us about the JUMBO sponsorship on the side pods of Rinus VeeKay’s race car. After asking VeeKay’s parents, and doing some research, we’ve learned that JUMBO is a 585 supermarket chain that currently has 19% of the Dutch supermarket market share. The chain is owned by the Van Eerd Group, who also recently purchased the La Place https://www.laplace.com/en restaurant chain that has 60+ locations in 7 countries including stores in New York, N.Y. and San Francisco, Calif., so that logo is also now visible on the No. 2 Juncos Racing machine. The company is run by Frits van Eerd, a regular in the BOSS GP series, a first-time competitor at Le Mans in 2017, partnering with Jan Lammers and Ruebens Barrichello to finish 13th overall in the historic French event.

The livery of Rinus VeeKay for the 2018 Pro Mazda Presented By Cooper Tire season, featuring JUMBO and La Place. (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography – Joe Skibinski)

  • USF2000 sophomore Darren Keane who drives for Newman Wachs Racing goes to high school in Coconut Creek, Fla, in the same school district and only six miles from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School (MSDHS), the scene of a horrific school shooting less than two weeks ago. Keane told TSOLadder that one of his best friends attends MSDHS, and that the tragedy has really had an impact on all of the students in the area. The 18-year-old felt like he needed to show his support for his friends at the neighboring school, so the No. 36 is adorned with Parkland Strong 17 and #MSDStrong school logo stickers.

Photo By Steve Wittich

Photo by Steve Wittich

category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, Pro Mazda News/Results, Pro Mazda presented by Cooper Tire - TSO, USF2000 News/Results
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