Team Release:

DEV GORE JOINS EXCLUSIVE AUTOSPORT USF2000 SQUAD

Canadian team expands to three-car line-up with addition of Florida rookie

SASKATOON, SK (February 27, 2017) – Exclusive Autosport has expanded their full line-up for the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda season, and is pleased to confirm that Atlanta, Georgia’s Dev Gore will drive for the team in 2017.  The 19-year-old will pilot the #92 Exclusive Autosport / AER Apartments entry, kicking off the season in just over a week at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. Gore is an accomplished kart racer who won two American Rotax DD2 championships in 2016, taking home the US Open and US Rotax Grand National titles. Gore joins USF2000 veterans Parker Thompson and Luke Gabin to form a strong team of drivers under the Exclusive Autosport tent, as all three will be gunning for the series championship. Gore is also fully focused on winning the Rookie of the Year crown.

“I am very excited about working with Dev,” commented Michael Duncalfe, President and CEO of Exclusive Management, Inc. “He has an impressive karting resume and immense racecraft. He is a welcomed addition to our team. He will no doubt be a contender for Rookie of the Year and challenging upfront.  We are thrilled to welcome Dev to our program and look forward to kicking off the season in St. Petersburg in a couple of weeks.”

Gore launched his karting career at Carolina Motorsports Park and Lamar County Speedway (Barnesville), and was a quick study, and won the club championships in his first year of competition. Dev has worked with a list of talented coaches and teams during his development in karting, and spent three summers at Le Circuit Mont Tremblant under the tutelage of world champion kart racer Ben Cooper and noted Canadian karter Zach Robichon. He’s also been part of the powerhouse Andersen Karting Team, winning races and championships for the Florida-based operation. Gore was also selected as one of two winners in the MRTI Maxspeed Driver Advancement program last year, which provided him with the opportunity to drive a USF2000 car in October at the Chris Griffis Memorial Test at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

“2017 is going to be an interesting year in USF2000,” Gore commented. “This was such a last minute deal, so I am happy to be able to get onboard with a team as stacked as Exclusive Autosport. I believe that I will have the best support between my two teammates and crew. Michael Duncalfe has pulled out all the stops in securing the best mechanics, engineers and crew chief. I also have two of the strongest teammates that I could ask for working together for the benefit of our program. I am extremely confident in both Parker and Luke to work together with Jay Green, the engineers and myself in order to come home with race wins and strong results for the three of us.  I am looking forward to a very strong year.

The team is currently setting up shop at Homestead-Miami Speedway, prepping for the official MRTI Spring Training outing for USF2000 drivers on Tuesday and Wednesday.  The opening round of the series is just two weeks away, as the season will kick off at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 10-12. The on-track action from St. Petersburg will be streamed live on the Mazda Road to Indy app or through the MRTI.TV website (www.roadtoindy.tv), as will the entire USF2000 season.

Exclusive Autosport anxiously awaits the start to the new season and is thrilled to tackle this new challenge with the support of fantastic partners, such as Aero™ Advanced Paint Technology (www.rethinkpaint.com), which is used on all their race cars.

After a standout career in karting, Dev Gore will make the move to the Cooper Tires USF2000 Powered by Mazda series with Exclusive Autosport (Photo courtesy of Exclusive Autosport)

TSO Ladder Notes from Steve:

  • Gore is the third Exclusive Autosport entry and 15th driver confirmed for the 2017 Cooper Tires USF2000 Powered by Mazda season, joining: Moises de la Vara (DEForce Racing), Kory Enders (DEForce Racing), Rinus VK (Benik), Devin Wojcik (ArmsUp Motorsports), Chandler Horton (RJB Motorsports), Robert Megennis (Team Pelfrey),  Parker Thompson (Exclusive Autosport),  Andre Castro (Newman Sachs Racing), Calvin Ming (Pabst Racing),  Ayla Agren (Team Pelfrey), Lucas Kohl (Pabst Racing), Rick Donison (Cape Motorsports), and Luke Gabin (Exclusive Autosport)
  • Gore will join Oliver Askew, and Rinus Van Kalmthout as 2017 USF2000 drivers who got their first taste of the Mazda Road To Indy presented by Cooper Tire as winners of the MAXSpeed/Andersen Promotions Mazda Road to Indy Driver Advancement Program. 
  • With a total of 64 USF2000 starts between his Exclusive Autosport drivers Parker Thompson and Luke Gabin, Gore should be in maximum learning mode from the drop of the green flag in St. Petersburg. 
  • You can follow Gore on the following social media platforms: Twitter – Instagram – Facebook