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MRTI in Toronto – Sunday – USF2000 Race #2 – notes and results – Thompson and VeeKay are both winners

Posted by  on Sunday, July 16th 2017     

By Steve Wittich

For the third straight race in row the 1.786 mile, 11-Turn Exhibition Place street circuit was kind to fellow Canadian Parker Thompson. After dominating the race on Saturday, the Red Deer, Alberta native needed a little luck to climb to the top step of the podium on Sunday. The Exclusive Autosport veteran was the beneficiary of home court advantage when the top three collided while he was running fourth.

Thompson’s sixth career MRTI win solidified his third place championship standing, and opened the door just a little bit for him to make a run at the Mazda Motorsports Advancement Scholarship for winning the championship.

Thompson won the race, but Rinus VeeKay was also a big winner. The 16 year-old showed incredible patience, and it payed off when current points leader Oliver Askew was collected in an incident and VeeKay inherited second place, and moved to within 19 points of Askew in the title chase.

Kaylen Frederick, who didn’t become comfortable on the tricky street circuit until yesterday’s race was the biggest mover of the day. The 15 year-old Team Pelfrey driver started the race in 13th and gained 10 spots to snag the final spot on the podium.

Darren Keane, a 17 year-old is in only his second season in cars, and his fourth place finish is the best of his young career. The Florida native had a stand-out karting career and is coached by current Michael Shank Racing driver Oswaldo Negri, Jr.

There was drama before the start of the race. Cape Motorsports driver Rick Donison did not start the race, and the DEForce Racing machine of Kory Enders could not get going. The Texas based crew was able to get the distinctive silver and blue No. 11 push started, and the 19 year-old was able to recover to finish the race in seventh.

Askew got a good start on the field, but by the time he and fellow front row start David Malukas got to the end of the long Lake Shore Boulevard straight, they were side-by-side. Askew “missed” the corner, but kept it off the wall and both he and Malukas were passed by Alex Baron, who started the race on the inside of the second row.

At the end of the fist lap the top 10 were: Baron, Askew, Malukas, Thompson, VeeKay, Robert Megennis, Calvin Ming, Jose Sierra, Devin Wojcik, and Frederick.

At the beginning of the second lap, Baron’s lead over Askew was 0.7 seconds. Further back in the field newcomer Sierra and Pabst Racing’s Ming made contact. Ming was forced to pit road for repairs, and lost two laps to the leaders, finishing in 11th. Sierra was forced to serve a drive-thru for avoidable contact, but was able to stay on the lead lap, ending the day in eighth.

Malukas obviously had a fast car, and was able to get by Askew in Turn 3 on Lap 4, and immediately started to eat into the lead that Baron had built.

For two straight laps, Malukas tried to go around the outside of Baron for the lead. Both times Baron chose the inside defensive line, and Malukas could not get far enough ahead of Baron to complete the pass.

On the next circuit, The No. 79 of Malukas followed the Cooper Tire tracks of Baron’s No. 4 down the long Lake Shore Boulevard back straight, and just as they reached the braking zone, popped to the inside of the No. 4 ArmsUp Motorsports machine of Baron. Malukas was able to get the car slowed down enough to make the corner, but pushed out into Baron across the concrete patch making contact with Baron’s car and spinning him to the inside.

The No. 4 spun into the side of Malukas immediately ending the day of the first and second place drivers, and Askew, who was right behind them had nowhere to go, coming to a stop with damage to the nose of his car.

Not surprisingly, after the race both drivers pointed the finger of blame at each other.

Askew was able to get the Mazda sponsored Soul Red No. 3 re-started and extricated, and back to his Cape Motorsports crew. They attempted to fix the car, but Askew was forced to retire, finishing the race in 12th.

This handed the lead over to Saturday race winner Thompson, who was followed by VeeKay, Robert Megennis, Kaylen Frederick, Devin Wojcik, Darren Keane, Dev Gore, Jayson Clunie, Kory Enders, and Jose Sierra.

Thompson did not get a great jump on the restart, and VeeKay told us that he was definitely going for the win, but the young Dutch driver faced too much pressure from behind. Megennis got a great start and tried to go around the outside of VeeKay, but was not able to complete the pass, and lost momentum falling back to sixth.

This allowed Wojcik to move up to the final spot on the podium. The ArmsUp Motorsports rookie was able to hold onto the last spot on the podium for two laps before he was passed by Frederick.

Wojcik lost a couple of more spots to Keane and Megennis the last few laps, but when TSO chatted with the 17 year-old after the race he was still happy with his best finish of the year. The native of Up-State New York State credited having Indy Lights veteran Alex Baron as his teammate the last two weekends as helping him learn where he needs to improve.

Over the course of the final six laps VeeKay was clearly the quickest driver on track. On Lap 14 Thompson had 1.9 second lead over VeeKay, and when they took the checkered flag nine laps later Thompson crossed the line only 0.6 seconds ahead VeeKay.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Toronto Presented by Allied Building Products Race #2 results

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER DIFFERENCE
1 90 Parker Thompson 22 laps
2 21 Rinus VeeKay 0.6379
3 81 Kaylen Frederick 6.4381
4 36 Darren Keane 12.7684
5 80 Robert Megennis 13.6881
6 7 Devin Wojcik 13.9084
7 11 Kory Enders 14.3149
8 10 Jose Sierra 17.5367
9 93 Jayson Clunie 26.0396
10 92 Dev Gore 26.5358
11 22 Calvin Ming – 2 LAPS
12 3 Oliver Askew -12 LAPS
13 4 Alex Baron -14 LAPS
14 79 David Malukas -14 LAPS
15 23 Lucas Kohl -22 LAPS
16 12 Moises de la Vara DNS
17 2 Ricky Donison DNS
category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, USF2000 News/Results
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MRTI in Toronto – Saturday – USF2000 Race #1

Posted by  on Sunday, July 16th 2017     

By Steve Wittich

Despite winning on home soil at this event one year ago, Canadian Parker Thompson experienced a whole new range of emotions when he crossed under the checkered flag to claim victory in Toronto while driving for Exclusive Autosport, a Canadian team.

“No disrespect to the Cape Motorsports crew, but I have to say winning with Exclusive Autosport has been one of the most emotional victories that I’ve ever had,” Thompson told TSO. “The whole team was screaming on the radio after I took the checkered flag. I was screaming on the radio. You look at our team, my engineer Kristof is Canadian, my mechanic Alex is Canadian, my team owner Michale Duncalfe is Canadian, we’re all Canadian. Most of them are from Toronto, but we’re all from across Canada. We’ve almost got every province represented on our team, so  take a win in our home country, the words don’t describe it. It was so emotional, there have been very few times that I’ve teared up after a race win. Usually I can hold my composure, but today, there was no holding it back.”

Oh Canada! Canadian driver Parker Thompson, driving for Canadian team Exclusive Autosport won during the first USF2000 race in Toronto in 2017 (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

The win was the first in USF2000 for the Saskatoon, Saskatchewan team that is lead by Michale and Kimberly Duncalfe, and the fifth of Thompson’s Mazda Road To Indy presented by Cooper Tire career.

Starting on pole, for the second time this season, Thompson was ready to go the minute he go into his OpnHwy sponsored No. 90.

“Not even after the first lap. I’d say I was in rhythm leaving pit lane,” said the Red Deer, Alberta native after being asked if it took him a lap to get comfortable. “I think I got my tires warmed up a little bit more than Oliver and the other competitors did. I seemed to be a little more aggressive on that warm-up lap, and then from there, I was just a man on a mission. I think I did a really good job on that first start of the race to get that advantage because ultimately that’s what won me the race towards the end. If I didn’t have that gap, I probably wouldn’t have come out on top. So, it was awesome to just go out there and really get into rhythm, by the first lap, I was tapping walls and comfy with my situation, and you’re not going to be able to do that if you’re not confident in your car. And, the guys from Exclusive Autosport gave be better than a good car, they gave me an awesome car to go out and do what I needed to do.”

After a single pace lap, front row USF2000 starters Thompson and Askew brought to field to green flag. The pole sitter Thompson was able to get a good jump on Askew, and won the drag race down to Turn 1.

The entire field was able to get through entire first lap cleanly, and when they crossed the line to complete the opening lap, the top ten were: Thompson, Askew, VeeKay, Kaylen Frederick, David Malukas, Jose Sierra, Calvin Ming, Robert Megennis, Alex Baron, and Moisés de la Vara.

On the Lap 2, VeeKay was forced to go on the defensive against Frederick, which opened the door for Malukas to pressure the 15 year-old Team Pelfrey rookie.

Frederick, facing pressure from Malukas made a mistake in Turn 8, tagging the tire barrier and heading to pit road. Frederick who currently holds third in the championship, was forced to retire due to contact.

By Lap 5, Thompson was able to build a 1.5 second over Askew, who was busy defending against VeeKay and Malukas – further back Baron was working over Megennis and was able to make an outside pass in Turn 3 and Turn 4 on Lap 7

On the next lap Malukas, who was the quickest car on track was able to get around VeeKay in T3 for the final spot of the podium, but almost immediately made a mistake in Turn 7. The No. 79 BN Racing machine got into the Speedi Dri left behind from a previous clean-up and hit the concrete wall. The 16 year-old from Chicago, Ill. was forced to bring his damaged machine to pit road and immediately retired due to the contact.

Further back it was debutante Sierra who was on the move.  The 18-year old Mexican driver was battling Ming, his chief rival in the NACAM FIA Formula 4 Mexico Championship for … position, which immediately put Ming into the clutches of Baron. The twosome made slight contact in Turn 3, with disastrous results for both drivers. Ming’s pursuit for his third straight podium came to an end when the No. 22 Pabst Racing machine came to pit road, and was retired. Baron fell down to 10th in the running order, and was only able to recover to record a sixth place finish.

At the halfway point of the 45-minute race, Thompson was able to grow his gap over Askew to a comfortable 1.8 seconds.  VeeKay was another 2.8 back seconds a field of the Mazda backed Soul Red No. 3 of Askew, but the 16 year-old Dutch driver was coming quickly. On Lap 15, VeeKay turned the quickest lap of the race, a scorching lap of 1 minute, 11.868 seconds, over a second quicker than the race record set in 2016 by Jordan Lloyd.

Further back in the field, rookies Wojcik and de la Vara were having an entreating battle for what would end up being the seventh spot, after Robert Megennis retired from fifth with damage from contact. It took three laps of stalking de la Vara, but the ArmsUp Motorsports rookie was eventually able to get by the No. 12 DEForce Racing machine in Turn 3.

With seven laps left to go in the 25 lap race, both Thompson, and Askew turned their quickest circuits. Askew was the quicker of the two, shrinking a Thompson’s 1.8 second lead at the half-way point of the race to 0.873 seconds when they took the checkered flag.  Thompson told TSO that it was his good start that allowed him to win the race.

“Staring second for that race next to Parker, I got a good start and slotted in behind him,” said Askew, who collected his ninth podium in 10 races. “I think we had one or two tenths (of a second) on him from the middle to the end of the race, but it’s so hard to pass. The track has such low grip, so when you get behind someone, you lose everything, so you just have to hold onto it and with a few laps to go, I just started thinking championship, and hung in their for good points.”

Oliver Askew finished second in the first of two Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Toronto Presented by Allied Building Products in Toronto, and grew his points lead to 34 points over Rinus VeeKay (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

Askew came into the Toronto race-weekend with a 32 point championship lead over VeeKay, and ended the first of two races with a 34 point lead. After an exciting qualifying session earlier in day, the Jupiter, Fla. resident will start on pole for the second USF2000 race of the weekend, gaining one bonus point and growing his advantage over VeeKay to 35.

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

MRTI in Toronto – 2017 – USF2000 qualifying #2 – provisional pole changes hands 10 times in final minutes

Posted by  on Saturday, July 15th 2017     

By Steve Wittich

An exciting final five minutes of USF2000 qualifying featured five different drivers trading the provisional pole a total of ten times. At the end of the 20 minute session, it was current points leader Oliver Askew that will won the bonus point, and will start on the inside of the front row for Sunday’s Race #2. This will be the sixth time this season that Askew will start on pole in 2017.  It will be the ninth time that a Cape Motorsports driver will start on pole in Toronto, Ontario.

The lap of 1 minute, 12.219 seconds turned in by the Cape Motorsports rookie was almost two-tenths of a second quicker than David Malukas, and over three-tenths of a second under the track record set by Anthony Martin last year.

Malukas, who started on pole in Road America, will start outside of Askew. ArmsUp Motorsports pilot, and 2014 Toronto Indy Lights winner, Alex Baron will start inside the second row. Race #1 pole-sitter Parker Thompson will start fourth. Championship contender Rinus VeeKay will start inside the third row beside Team Pelfrey veteran Robert Megennis.

The USF2000 drivers entered in the twin Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Toronto Presented by Allied Building Products races, took a more familiar spot as dew sweepers on the schedule to begin Saturday. If the residents of the multitude of condominiums surrounding Exhibition Park were still asleep at 8am, the chorus of 17 Mazda 2.0L MZR engines served as an alarm clock.

Even though they were first out on track first,  cloudy skies and cool temperatures provided the perfect combination to make speed.

The red flag came out eight minutes into the session to pick up front-wing debris from the No. 2 Cape Motorsports rookie Rick Donison who tagged the wall. The Indian drivers was able to come back to pit road and put on a new front wing.

At that point Thompson’s lap of 1 minute, 14.078 seconds was at the top of the timesheet and was followed in the top 10 by Baron, Askew, Malukas, Megennis, VeeKay, newcomer Jose Sierra, Calvin Ming, Moisés de la Vara, and Devin Wojcik.

The track quickly went back to green, and after a a couple of laps to warm up their Cooper Tires the drivers began to trade the provisional pole.

Race #1 pole-sitter Thompson was the first driver to turn in a flier, but it didn’t take long for the provisional pole to change places with Askew, VeeKay, Thompson, Baron and Malukas all holding the top spot, before Askew turned the quickest lap of the weekend on his final lap.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Toronto Presented by Allied Building Products Qualifying results #2

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER QUICK LAP TIME DIFFERENCE
1 3 Oliver Askew 1:12.219 –.—-
2 79 David Malukas 1:12.412 0.1931
3 4 Alex Baron 1:12.452 0.2326
4 90 Parker Thompson 1:12.452 0.2329
5 21 Rinus VeeKay 1:12.618 0.3983
6 80 Robert Megennis 1:12.821 0.6015
7 22 Calvin Ming 1:12.996 0.7764
8 7 Devin Wojcik 1:13.178 0.9589
9 10 Jose Sierra 1:13.378 1.1584
10 23 Lucas Kohl 1:13.484 1.2644
11 36 Darren Keane 1:13.526 1.3073
12 81 Kaylen Frederick 1:13.615 1.3954
13 11 Kory Enders 1:13.654 1.4346
14 12 Moises de la Vara 1:14.118 1.8988
15 92 Dev Gore 1:14.703 2.4837
16 93 Jayson Clunie 1:16.117 3.8974
17 2 Ricky Donison 1:20.367 8.1474

The first USF2000 race of the weekend roles off noon.

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MRTI in Toronto – A trio of Canadian cherish the opportunity to race in the Great White North

Posted by  on Saturday, July 15th 2017     

By Steve Wittich

What do Paul Tracy, Greg Moore, Andrew Bordin, David Rutledge, Michael Valiante, Antoine Bessette, and Parker Thompson all have in common?

The Canadian race car pilots have all won an Indy car ladder series race on home soil on the streets of Toronto, Ontario.

In 2017 there are three drivers, including Thompson, who is looking for a second win, and one team that would love to fly the Canadian Flag while standing on the top step of the podium.

So far – it’s Thompson, who won the second USF2000 race on the 1.786 mile, 11-Turn Exhibition Place street circuit last year – who is the best candidate to win at ‘home.’

Parker Thompson wheels his No. 90 Openhwy Exclusive Autosport Mazda/Tatuus to a home soil pole in Toronto (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

When we caught up with Thompson after he won his second pole of the USF2000 season and fifth career MRTI pole, he was almost at a loss for words.

“There’s no words to describe what it feels like,” Thompson told TSO after winning his second pole of the season. “That was such a special moment. There was pressure coming back. I won last year (with Cape Motorsports), so to come back here again this year, it was so cool. Even when I touched down in Toronto, the memories were there.

“I’ve been the happiest I’ve been all season, just because we are back in Toronto, but to come and repeat the success I’ve had is just amazing. Especially with the new team Exclusive Autosport. You know, the bounce back from Iowa, I’m pretty sure is going to be a pretty good Cinderella story. What this team has done on such a short turn around in a weeks time from our race in Iowa is incredible.”

Thompson, who hails from Red Deer, Alberta, has twenty guests attending the Honda Indy Toronto this weekend.

“It’s unbelievable. This is the only race where my whole family has come out. This is the first race that mom and grandma have shown up to. I’ve got my two best friends coming out (from Alberta). I’ve got all my sponsors on the car at this race. In total we have over twenty people here, so it’s pretty unbelievable to come and get pole for them. They all showed up for the qualifying this afternoon so it was definitely a really special moment.”

A pair of Canadians, driver Parker Thompson and team owner Michael Duncalfe, celebrate a home soil poll in Toronto (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

Thompson’s Exclusive Autosport team who also fly the Canadian flag, calls Saskatoon, Saskatchewan home, and over the last four years have had incredible success racing in Ontario.

The Michael and Kimberly Duncalfe led squad has over 20 F1600 and F2000 wins at Calabogie Motorsports Park, Canadian Tire Motorsports Park (Mosport), Shannonville Motorsports Park, and on the streets surrounding Exhibition place (Tristan DeGrand in 2014).

“It’s an honor. I’m absolutely thrilled,” exclaimed Michael Duncalfe when asked what winning the pole in Canada meant to the team. “Parker did a fantastic job. The crew busted their butts, and to go P1 in both sessions is pretty amazing. “It’s fantastic to have all the hometown support, and great to put the car up front for them.”

———-

Dalton Kellet, who was born at the North York General Hospital in Toronto, Ontario, and grew up in Stoufville, a northern suburb Canada’s largest city, did not attend the Honda Indy Toronto until he first raced here in 2013. That isn’t because he didn’t want to, it’s because the 23 year-old always had a karting event to take part in.

Toronto born Dalton Kellett gets ready to head out on track for Indy Lights Practice #1 in Toronto (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

(I’m) Really looking forward to Toronto”, explained Kellett. “It’s awesome, Toronto is one of the best races on the calendar. I really love the track. Having driven the streets in a road car, going down Lake Shore (Boulevard), and having the chance to driver three to four times the speed in an Indy Lights car is really awesome. You have the hometown crowd, lot’s of friends and family, and just the Canadian race fans. It’s just an honor.”

Because we are geeks, TSO had to check exactly how fast Kellett is going on Lake Shore Boulevard. His K-Line Insulators sponsored No. 28 Mazda/Dallara hit a top speed of just over 163mph, or 262kph in the speed trap just before Turn 3. The posted speed limit on Lake Shore Boulevard is 60kph, so Kellett’s top speed is exactly 4.36 times over the speed limit.

Canadian Dalton Kellett and his No. 28 K-Line Insulators USA Inc. Mazda/Dallara on the streets surrounding Exhibition Place in Toronto, Ontario (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

Kellett told TSO that between sponsors, their guests, family and friends, he has over 100 guests attending over the course of three days.

Kellett, who finished third in this year’s Freedom 100, and Mazda Iowa 100 has also kept busy keeping local media up-to-date on the event and his activities.

https://twitter.com/FollowAndretti/status/885684763708674048

 

https://twitter.com/FollowAndretti/status/885817100903821312

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Zachary Claman De Melo, who hails from Montreal, Quebec, told TSO that between his sponsors and family, he has almost 20 guests to entertain this weekend.

Carlin’s Zachary Claman DeMelo, a native of Montreal, QC, wheels his ZCD Montreal/Zoological Wildlife Foundation Mazda/Dallara on home soil (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

De Melo said: “I have a lot of my sponsors coming, my family is coming, so hopefully I can do well and show them a good time.”

Claman De Melo, who recently won his first Indy Lights at on the 14-Turn, 4.014-mile Road America road course , will be making his third and fourth starts on the streets of Exhibition Place, and told TSO that it’s the passion of the Canadian fans that he appreciates the most.

Canadian Zachary Claman DeMelo is focused on doing well at the only Canadian event on the Indy Lights calendar in 2017 (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

“It’s a big race, there is a big crowd, so it’s exciting to race on the streets of Toronto,” said the 19 year-old. “I like street courses particularly, so it’s a lot of fun. There was a lot of support at the autograph session, so I couldn’t be happier to race in Canada. It’s one of my favorite races on the calendar. It’s a Friday, and it’s already really busy today. Too see this much support for the Canadian race is a great thing.”

The first USF2000 race of the weekend takes place at noon on Saturday, and is immediately followed by the first Indy Lights race at 1pm.

category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, Indy Lights News/Results, Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tire - TSO, USF2000 News/Results
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MRTI in Toronto – Friday – Qualifying #1 – Oh Canada! Thompson and Exclusive Autosport snag home pole

Posted by  on Friday, July 14th 2017     

By Steve Wittich

Oh Canada! Canadian driver Parker Thompson, and Canadian team Exclusive Autosport will start on pole for the first of two Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Toronto Presented by Allied Building Products.

Thompson’s quickest lap of 1 minute 12.816 seconds was just quick enough to pip current points leader Oliver Askew by 0.0689 seconds, to take his second pole of the season and fifth of his MRTI career.

Starting behind Thompson is Askew’s closest competition for the Mazda Motorsports Advancement Scholarship, Rinus VeeKay. A pair of rookies, David Malukas and Kaylen Frederick round out the top five.

Jose Sierra, who is making his USF2000 debut with DEForce Racing this weekend with start outside of the third row for his maiden race.

For the first 10 minutes of the 20 minute session, Parker Thompson and Oliver Askew quickest laps, and halfway through the session, and it was Thompson who had the quickest lap time at 1 minute, 13.053 seconds.

With eight minutes left in the session, Road America race #1 pole sitter David Malukas went to the provisional pole. That didn’t last long before first Askew, and then Thompson went quicker yet.

With just over four minutes left in the session, DEForce Racing rookie Moisés de la Vara made contact with the concrete barriers in Turn 6. When it became obvious that the Holmatro Safety Team would not be able to get the No. 12 of the young Mexican driver cleaned up, the red flag turned into the checkered flag, handing the pole position to Parker Thompson.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Toronto Presented by Allied Building Products Qualifying #1 Results

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER QUICK LAP GAP
1 90 Parker Thompson 1:12.816 –.—-
2 3 Oliver Askew 1:12.885 0.0689
3 21 Rinus VeeKay 1:12.937 0.1202
4 79 David Malukas 1:13.041 0.2245
5 81 Kaylen Frederick 1:13.187 0.3707
6 10 Jose Sierra 1:13.538 0.7217
7 80 Robert Megennis 1:13.558 0.7412
8 4 Alex Baron 1:13.575 0.7584
9 22 Calvin Ming 1:13.878 1.0615
10 7 Devin Wojcik 1:14.125 1.3085
11 11 Kory Enders 1:14.162 1.3451
12 23 Lucas Kohl 1:14.593 1.7769
13 12 Moises de la Vara 1:14.678 1.8614
14 36 Darren Keane 1:14.739 1.9223
15 93 Jayson Clunie 1:15.824 3.0077
16 92 Dev Gore 1:15.880 3.0633
17 2 Ricky Donison 1:52.758 39.9418

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MRTI in Toronto – Friday – USF2000 Practice #1 – Thompson leads at home

Posted by  on Friday, July 14th 2017     

By Steve Wittich

In what shouldn’t come as a huge surprise, the driver’s that have raced on the 1.786 mile, 11-Turn Exhibition Place street circuit, were among the quickest in the first, and only USF2000 qualifying session this afternoon.

Canadian Parker Thompson led the way with a quick lap that was timed at 1 minute, 13.820 seconds. The Red Deer, Alberta driver is making his second start in Toronto, finishing third in the first race last year, and first in the second race.

The other three drivers that have made starts in Toronto, all ended in the top-half of time sheet.

Lucas Kohl, who is also making his second start in Toronto, ended up with the third quickest lap. Robert Megennis, who had two top fives at this event last year, led the first half of the session, before ending up sixth.

A winner in Toronto in Indy Lights in 2014, ArmsUp Motorsports’ Alex Baron ended up with ninth quickest lap time.

Championship leaders Oliver Askew (second quickest), and Rinus VeeKay (fourth quickest) were also in the mix at the pointy end of the time sheet. Askew currently leads VeeKay by 32 points in the chase for the Mazda Motorsports Advancement Scholarship.

Mexican driver Jose Sierra is making his series debut with DEForce Racing on the streets of Toronto, and the debutant ended up with the seventh quickest lap.

“I’m very excited and thankful with David (Martinez), Ernesto (Martinez) and the whole DEForce Racing Team for this opportunity,” said Sierra, who will be piloting the No. 10 Mazda powered Tatuus. “I’m glad it could be done and we’ll make the most of it. The only thing left is to work hard this wend and get good results. I will do my best and I hope I can work and help my teammates>”

The 18 year-old started karting when he was only three years old, and won the FIA Mexico National Karting Championship Telmex Challenge as a 15 year-old. The Mexico City, Mexico made the jump to cars in 2015, competing in the French F4 Championship.

Garcia moved back home to race in Mexico for the next two seasons, and has twice finished as vice-champion of the FIA F4 Nacam Championship (Mexican F4). The Esscuderia Telmex backed driver has four wins, two poles, 19 podiums, and nine fastest laps across the two seasons of the FIA backed entry level championship.

You can follow Sierra’s career at the following social media channels: Twitter, Instagram and Facebook

The entire session half-hour session was run under green flag conditions, and the field was able to complete 318 laps. Thompson and Kohl turned 23 laps, the most in the 17 car field.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Toronto Presented by Allied Building Products Practice #1 Results

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER FAST LAP GAP LAPS TURNED
1 90 Parker Thompson 1:13.820 –.—- 23
2 3 Oliver Askew 1:13.937 0.1166 22
3 23 Lucas Kohl 1:14.310 0.4898 23
4 21 Rinus VeeKay 1:14.464 0.6441 22
5 79 David Malukas 1:14.501 0.6806 20
6 80 Robert Megennis 1:14.621 0.8013 17
7 10 Jose Sierra 1:14.624 0.8043 17
8 22 Calvin Ming 1:14.629 0.8085 20
9 4 Alex Baron 1:14.772 0.9521 20
10 36 Darren Keane 1:14.790 0.9695 22
11 81 Kaylen Frederick 1:15.055 1.2346 20
12 7 Devin Wojcik 1:15.386 1.5659 18
13 12 Moises de la Vara 1:15.936 2.1155 17
14 2 Ricky Donison 1:16.277 2.4570 18
15 92 Dev Gore 1:16.740 2.9201 20
16 93 Jayson Clunie 1:17.411 3.5904 8
17 11 Kory Enders 1:17.740 3.9198 11

The Mazda Road To Indy presented by Cooper Tire has a fairly light schedule for the remainder of the day. USF2000 has their first qualifying session at 12:55pm, and Indy Lights has their first practice session at 1:30pm.

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• live timing – Indy Lights, Pro Mazda, USF2000, and IndyCar Race Control
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category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, USF2000 News/Results
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MRTI at Iowa Speedway – USF2000 and Indy Lights race results

Posted by  on Sunday, July 9th 2017     

Full race reports to follow:

Mazda Iowa 60 USF2000 race results:

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER TEAM GAP
1 3 Oliver Askew Cape Motorsports 60 LAPS
2 21 Rinus VeeKay Pabst Racing 3.8245
3 22 Calvin Ming Pabst Racing 6.1338
4 4 Alex Baron ArmsUp Motorsports 6.4571
5 80 Robert Megennis Team Pelfrey 12.1066
6 81 Kaylen Frederick Team Pelfrey 12.2035
7 23 Lucas Kohl Pabst Racing 12.6254
8 82 Ayla Agren Team Pelfrey 21.8830
9 7 Devin Wojcik ArmsUp Motorsports 22.5290
10 12 Moises de la Vara DEForce Racing -1 LAPS
11 11 Kory Enders DEForce Racing -2 LAPS
12 90 Parker Thompson Exclusive Autosport -3 LAPS
13 92 Dev Gore Exclusive Autosport -4 LAPS

Mazda Iowa 100 Indy Lights Race Results

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER TEAM GAP
1 26 Matheus Leist Carlin 100 LAPS
2 5 Santi Urrutia Belardi Auto Racing 2.9294
3 28 Dalton Kellett Andretti Autosport 6.7115
4 98 Colton Herta Andretti Steinbrenner Racing 13.3736
5 18 Kyle Kaiser Juncos Racing 14.7353
6 13 Zachary Claman De Melo Carlin 15.9305
7 27 Nico Jamin Andretti Autosport 18.7394
8 48 Ryan Norman Andretti Autosport 21.9026
9 9 Aaron Telitz Belardi Auto Racing -1 LAPS
10 2 Juan Piedrahita Team Pelfrey -1 LAPS
11 22 Neil Alberico Carlin -1 LAPS
12 31 Nicolas Dapero Juncos Racing -1 LAPS
13 51 Shelby Blackstock Belardi Auto Racing -1 LAPS
14 11 Garth Rickards Carlin -73 LAPS
category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, Indy Lights News/Results, Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tire - TSO, USF2000 News/Results

MRTI at Iowa Speedway – Sunday – USF2000 and Indy Lights qualifying notes and results

Posted by  on Sunday, July 9th 2017     

For the fourth-time this year, but the first time on oval, second generation driver Colton Herta will start on the pole in an Indy Lights race, collecting the qualifying track record that Max Chilton set in 2015.

“The track didn’t change as much as we expected, explained the Andretti-Steinbrenner Racing pilot. “Obviously the track got a little hotter as more cars ran, and that evened it out a little bit. It was a really good lap, and the car was perfect, and I think it’s the track record.”

The 17 year-old was the third driver to make a qualifying effort, and his two-lap qualifying effort of 163.670mph withstood eleven attempts.

“It’s the worst. It’s terrible. I didn’t get to feel it at Indy, (Herta qualified second for the Freedom 100 qualifying at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway) because I went second to last or last,” said Herta with a sheepish grin on his face. “It’s terrible, I hope I never have to draw in the first three again, because I felt so sick watching. ‘Am I going to get it, am I going to get it.’ It’s a little bit different. I’ve never had to experience it before, but it’s cool.”

Colton Herta will start on pole for the fourth time in his young Indy Lights career (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

Zachary Claman De Melo, who led the final practice, and testing two weeks ago at Iowa Speedway, managed a two-lap average of 163.290mph was the closest competitor to Herta, matching his career best second place start on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course in May.

Championship leader Kyle Kaiser was the first driver to take to the 0.894-mile oval for his two-lap qualifying effort, and the Juncos Racing veteran turned in the two-lap average of 162.968mph. After two disappointing practice sessions in which the 21 year-old could do no better than sixth and 12th, starting the Mazda Iowa 100 Presented by Cooper Tires is a big win.

Andretti Autosport rookie Ryan Norman, who is making his second career oval start, matched his season best qualifying effort of fourth that was achieved at the other oval race of the year, the Freedom 100.

Starting on the third row, are Andretti Autosport teammates, Dalton Kellett, and Nico Jamin. Kellett told TSO that he made just a slight mistake at the exit of Turn 1, and that it potentially cost him a front row starting spot.

The Indy Lights drivers we chatted with about what to expect during the race were fairly unanimous in their opinion that taking care of their Cooper Tire slicks was going to be the key to crossing the finish line in first.

Pole sitter Herta said: “It’s going to be all about saving the tires, and tire degradation, and passing at the end when tires go off.”

Mazda Iowa 100 starting line-up

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER AVERAGE SPEED (mph) 1st LAP SPEED (mph) 2nd LAP SPEED (mph)
1 98 Colton Herta 163.670 163.835 163.505
2 13 Zachary Claman De Melo 163.290 163.423 163.157
3 18 Kyle Kaiser 162.968 163.072 162.865
4 48 Ryan Norman 162.769 162.919 162.619
5 28 Dalton Kellett 162.743 162.122 163.368
6 27 Nico Jamin 162.422 162.346 162.497
7 22 Neil Alberico 162.199 162.138 162.259
8 11 Garth Rickards 162.082 161.880 162.284
9 31 Nicolas Dapero 162.014 161.967 162.062
10 26 Matheus Leist 161.930 162.110 161.751
11 5 Santi Urrutia 161.926 161.963 161.888
12 9 Aaron Telitz 161.895 161.869 161.920
13 51 Shelby Blackstock 160.749 160.466 161.033
14 2 Juan Piedrahita 160.746 160.464 161.030

The green flag for the 100 lap race falls at 2pm.

For the fifth time this season Oliver Askew will start a USF2000 race from the inside of the front row. It shouldn’t be surprising to see a Cape Motorsports driver up front on an oval, the St. Petersburg, Fla. based team has won five of the nine USF2000 oval races since 2010. However, Askew and the team struggled during Friday’s three hour test (the fourth best time), and yesterday’s 45-minute practice session (the sixth best time).

“A lot of set up changes,” explained Askew when asked about the changes the team made overnight. “The guys at Cape Motorsports, and my engineer Dominic Cape did a great job in making the right decisions for me to get pole. That was a good lap, way better than the car felt yesterday. I’m looking forward to the race.”

Rising Star Racing sponsored driver Oliver Askew will start on pole for the Mazda Iowa 60 (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

Askew was the fifth driver to take to the track, knocking Robert Megennis from the provisional pole, and had to withstand challenges from nine drivers, including the Pabst Racing duo of Rinus VeeKay and Calvin Ming, who had been dominant in practice and qualifying.

Ming, who was the last car on track will start beside Askew, and VeeKay will start immediately behind the driver he is chasing for the championship. Alex Baron, and Robert Megennis round out the top five.

Mazda Iowa 60 starting line-up

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER AVERAGE SPEED (mph) LAP 1 SPEED LAP 2 SPEED
1 3 Oliver Askew 131.683 131.362 132.006
2 22 Calvin Ming 131.342 131.017 131.668
3 21 Rinus VeeKay 131.089 130.688 131.492
4 4 Alex Baron 130.060 129.057 131.079
5 80 Robert Megennis 130.039 129.834 130.244
6 82 Ayla Agren 129.634 129.535 129.734
7 23 Lucas Kohl 129.533 129.213 129.854
8 81 Kaylen Frederick 129.232 128.179 130.302
9 90 Parker Thompson 128.372 127.679 129.072
10 12 Moises de la Vara 128.138 127.735 128.543
11 7 Devin Wojcik 127.678 126.772 128.598
12 11 Kory Enders 127.189 127.075 127.303
13 92 Dev Gore 123.467 123.192 123.744

The green flag for the 60 lap race falls at 1:05pm.

category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, Indy Lights News/Results, Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tire - TSO, USF2000 News/Results
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MRTI at Iowa Speedway – Saturday – USF2000 and Indy Lights practice results and notes.

Posted by  on Saturday, July 8th 2017     

After leading the majority of the 45-minute session, Kaylen Frederick had the top spot on the time sheets taken away from him by yesterday’s test session leader Calvin Ming in the final ten minutes. However a last minute lap at 133.138mph, allowed the 15-year old Team Pelfrey rookie to recapture the top spot.

Ming, and his Pabst Racing teammates Rinus VeeKay, and Lucas Kohl went two-three-four in the final practice before qualifying, and were joined in the top five by ArmsUp Motorsports’ Alex Baron.

Oliver Askew, who currently leads VeeKay by 24 points had the sixth quickest time in his Soul Red Cape Motorsports No. 3.

The 13 entries turned a total of 646 trouble free laps.

I (Steve) went out and watched some of the practice in Turn 1 and Turn 2, and the racing has the potential to be really exciting. The Mazda powered Tatuus cars could follow very closely, and it appeared as if a second line was rubbering in.

Mazda Iowa 60 presented by Cooper Tires race practice results

RANK CAR NO. NAME TEAM FAST LAP (MPH) TOTAL LAPS
1 81 Kaylen Frederick Team Pelfrey 133.138 60
2 22 Calvin Ming Pabst Racing 133.086 54
3 21 Rinus VeeKay Pabst Racing 132.921 73
4 23 Lucas Kohl Pabst Racing 132.200 69
5 4 Alex Baron ArmsUp Motorsports 131.929 31
6 3 Oliver Askew Cape Motorsports 131.754 42
7 7 Devin Wojcik ArmsUp Motorsports 131.286 55
8 82 Ayla Agren Team Pelfrey 130.717 56
9 80 Robert Megennis Team Pelfrey 130.480 61
10 90 Parker Thompson Exclusive Autosport 129.674 48
11 12 Moises de la Vara DEForce Racing 129.571 34
12 11 Kory Enders DEForce Racing 128.971 36
13 92 Dev Gore Exclusive Autosport 121.950 27

The 45 minute USF2000 qualifying session begins at 9:15am on Sunday morning and the green flag flies to start the 60 lap race at 1:05pm.

The final Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tire practice session before tomorrow morning’s qualifying was led by Carlin sophomore Zachary Claman DeMelo. The Road America race #2 winner also led testing at the 0.894 mile oval last week.

The Canadian was followed by on the timesheet by Colton Herta, and fellow Great White North citizen Dalton Kellett.

Rookies, and championship contenders Matheus Leist and Aaron Telitz rounded out the top five.

The majority of the half-hour session was led by Leist, but in the final ten minutes, purple times started to pop up on the timing screen as drivers put on fresh rubber and made qualifying simulations.

The sticker Cooper Tire party ended with just over five minutes left in the session when a pair of Andretti Autosport decided to practice their synchronized spinning routine.

Nico Jamin took the lead, pirouetting at the exit of Turn 2, the No. 27 Synova sponsored Andretti Autosport machine just tapped the outside safer barrier before drifting down the track and coming to rest on the inside of the back straight.

Kellett, who was following his rookie teammate Jamin, had the back end of his Mazda powered Dallara break loose while trying to avoid him, and also just tapped the SAFER Barrier on the back straight.

The track did go back to green for two minutes, but nobody was able to improve on their times.

TSO had a chance to catch up with Trevor Carlin yesterday, and he admitted that he didn’t think the “boys in blue” would be as strong as they have been so far this year. That wasn’t a slam against his drivers, just an honest observation. Carlin wasn’t sure what to expect from sophomore Neil Alberico, and thought that Leist and Claman De Melo would need one year of seasoning, before running up front next year. Carlin, who has been involved in European and American junior motorsports categories for a quarter of century told us that with the natural pace that young Canadian and Brazilian drivers posses, he expected to win a lot of races – next year.

Mazda Iowa 100 Presented by Cooper Tires Indy Lights race practice #2 results

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER TEAM FAST LAP (MPH) TOTAL LAPS
1 13 Zachary Claman De Melo Carlin 162.577 30
2 98 Colton Herta Andretti Steinbrenner Racing 162.470 41
3 28 Dalton Kellett Andretti Autosport 162.014 27
4 26 Matheus Leist Carlin 161.517 25
5 9 Aaron Telitz Belardi Auto Racing 161.020 36
6 48 Ryan Norman Andretti Autosport 160.746 29
7 11 Garth Rickards Carlin 160.429 35
8 5 Santi Urrutia Belardi Auto Racing 160.374 33
9 22 Neil Alberico Carlin 160.085 14
10 27 Nico Jamin Andretti Autosport 159.759 22
11 31 Nicolas Dapero Juncos Racing 159.736 43
12 18 Kyle Kaiser Juncos Racing 159.648 42
13 2 Juan Piedrahita Team Pelfrey 159.169 34
14 51 Shelby Blackstock Belardi Auto Racing 158.369 30

The 45 minute Indy Lights qualifying session begins at 10:15am on Sunday morning and the green flag flies to start the 100 lap race at 2pm.

Don’t miss any of the action:

category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, USF2000 News/Results
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MRTI at Iowa Speedway – Friday notes – Indy Lights driver not cleared to drive and USF2000 testing

Posted by  on Friday, July 7th 2017     

By Steve Wittich

A quick Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tire note before we get to Cooper Tires USF2000 Powered by Mazda testing.

According to a Belardi Auto Racing official, Chad Boat, who is scheduled to make his Indy Lights debut with the Brownsburg, Ind. based team this weekend, has not been, as of today, cleared to drive. The second generation driver took a nasty tumble during a USAC National Midget Race at Lincoln Speedway in Lincoln, Ill. on Sunday, July 2, 2017.

Boat will be reevaluated by the INDYCAR Medical staff in the morning.

 

A bakers dozen USF2000 drivers took part in a three-hour Friday afternoon test session in preparation for Sunday’s Mazda Iowa 60 presented by Cooper Tires race.

The entry list has seen one addition and one subtraction since it was first released on Wednesday. Cape Motorsports rookie Rick Donison has decided to sit out the oval round, and Ayla Agren returns to Team Pelfrey after missing the Road America rounds of the championship.

The eight oval rookies were given the first half-hour of the session to acclimatize themselves to the 0.894 mile Iowa Speedway oval.

Double Road America race winner Rinus Van Kalmthout (Rinus VeeKay) led the oval newcomers with a fastest lap of 130.856mph.

Results of the 30 minute rookie USF2000 session

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER TEAM FAST LAP LAPS TURNED
1 21 Rinus VeeKay Pabst Racing 130.856 42
2 81 Kaylen Frederick Team Pelfrey 129.390 34
3 22 Calvin Ming Pabst Racing 128.706 50
4 7 Devin Wojcik ArmsUp Motorsports 128.366 32
5 3 Oliver Askew Cape Motorsports 127.652 19
6 11 Kory Enders DEForce Racing 126.050 28
7 92 Dev Gore Exclusive Autosport 124.834 44
8 12 Moises de la Vara DEForce Racing 121.809 22

Half-an-hour after the remainder of the field took to the “Bullring,” Lucas Kohl made contact with the Turn 4 SAFER Barrier. Kohl was uninjured, but his car was not quite so lucky. The No. 23 Pabst Racing Mazda/Tatuus suffered damage to the rear wing, and the left rear corner of the car.

Rinus VeeKay, Alex Baron, and Calvin Ming all held the top spot on the time-sheet in the final half-hour of the session, but it was Ming who ended up with the quickest lap of the day. The driver from Guyana had a fastest lap of 132.399mph.

Results of the full USF2000 test session

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER TEAM QUICK LAP LAPS TURNED
1 22 Calvin Ming Pabst Racing 132.399 222
2 4 Alex Baron ArmsUp Motorsports 132.395 136
3 21 Rinus VeeKay Pabst Racing 132.383 186
4 3 Oliver Askew Cape Motorsports 131.950 145
5 7 Devin Wojcik ArmsUp Motorsports 131.695 179
6 82 Ayla Agren Team Pelfrey 131.198 150
7 23 Lucas Kohl Pabst Racing 130.950 51
8 80 Robert Megennis Team Pelfrey 130.799 127
9 81 Kaylen Frederick Team Pelfrey 130.078 168
10 90 Parker Thompson Exclusive Autosport 129.416 145
11 12 Moises de la Vara DEForce Racing 127.924 153
12 92 Dev Gore Exclusive Autosport 126.487 163
13 11 Kory Enders DEForce Racing 126.050 151

The drivers are back on track for their lone official practice session at 4:30pm on Saturday afternoon.

You can read our extensive USF2000 preview here —> USF2000 at Iowa Speedway – 2017 race preview – Championship chase takes a left turn on the way to Iowa 

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