By Steve Wittich

More money, more money, more money – some excellent news from the Andersen Promotions camp today. The scholarships for the 2020 Cooper Tires USF2000 Champion and Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires Champion have been increased.

The Indy Pro 2000 scholarship, which had an original value of $609,245 for the champion to move up to Indy Lights, has been increased by approximately 40%.

That will cover a full season on the top rung of the Road To Indy, with the team of the driver’s choice. It includes all series race events and tests, along with entry fees and the maximum allowable number of sets of Cooper tires.

Also, as a bonus, the 2020 Indy Pro 2000 champion will receive a test with an NTT INDYCAR® SERIES team after the completion of the 2021 Indy Lights campaign.

Winning the championship on the lowest rung of the Road To Indy will net the driver a scholarship with a value of approximately 50% over the original 2020 value of $328,225.

The champion at the end of the 2020 USF2000 season will be able to move to the Indy Pro 2000 team of their choice, and all of the costs for race events and tests, along with entry fees and Cooper tires, will be covered.

In the past, drivers have had to find sponsorship to ‘top-up’ their advancement scholarships to make sure they could cover the short-fall between the scholarship and a team’s budget.

“2020 has been a very unsettled season for all of motorsports and for the Road to Indy in particular in our 10th anniversary year,” said Dan Andersen, Owner and CEO of Andersen Promotions. “As we look ahead to 2021 with high hopes for a reinvigorated Indy Lights championship, these changes to our already strong prize package for Indy Pro 2000 and USF2000 will strengthen the entire Road to Indy ladder and ensure that our champions have the greatest opportunity to make it to the top.

“The best drivers from the U.S. and around the world come to train with us, and they deserve the best we can give them for their careers. Our program continues to do its job of providing a complete training, both on and off the track, for the future stars of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. Adding a test for our 2020 champions to sample the next step of the ladder further underscores our commitment.”

As TSO Ladder previously reported, Roger Penske, INDYCAR, and Dan Andersen are devoted to revitalizing Indy Lights.

2019 Indy Pro 2000 champion, Kyle Kirkwood, is committed to the 2021 Indy Lights champion and will be joined by two other championship-winning scholarship drivers – the 2020 Indy Pro 2000 champion and 2020 Formula Regionals America champion.

Kyle Kirkwood on track with Andretti Autosport for the lone Indy Lights practice session at St. Petersburg. (Photo Courtesy Of Andersen Promotions)

Most of the USF2000 and Indy Pro 2000 teams and drivers have begun testing and will be back on track officially on June 29 for a series test at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The season-opening doubleheader for both series is scheduled for July 9-10 at the iconic Road America circuit.

2020 Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires Schedule

DATE TRACK ROUNDS
July 9-10 Road America 1 – 2
July 29-30 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course 3 – 4 – 5
August 7-9 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course 6 – 7
August 21 Lucas Oil Raceway 8
August 28 -29 World Wide Technology Raceway At Gateway 9
September 3-4 Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course 10 – 11 – 12
September 11-13 Portland International Raceway 13 – 14
September 18 -20 WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca 15 – 16
October 23 – 25 Streets Of St. Petersburg 17 – 18

2020 Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Schedule

DATE TRACK ROUNDS
July 9-10 Road America 1 – 2
July 29-30 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course 3 – 4 – 5
August 7-9 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course 6 – 7 – 8
August 21 Lucas Oil Raceway 9
September 3-4 Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course 10 – 11 – 12
September 11-13 Portland International Raceway 13 – 14
September 18 -20 WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca 15 – 16
October 23 – 25 Streets Of St. Petersburg 17 – 18