By Steve Wittich
For the third straight Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires season, Miller Vinatieri Motorsports will field two cars. Over the past two years, the team owned by former Indy car driver Jack Miller and legendary NFL kicker and four-time Super Bown champion Adam Vinatieri entered a pair of cars in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship.
In 2021, the team will be stepping up to the Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires series with driver Jack William Miller while running one car in the USF2000 championship for Kent Vaccaro.
Despite being only 17-years-old, Miller will be entering his fifth season of action. The Westfield, Ind. resident spent two years in the F4 United States Championship Powered By Honda and two seasons in USF2000.
The No. 40 Miller Vinatieri Motorsports USF-17 of Jack William Miller on track in St. Petersburg, Fla. (Photo Courtesy Of Andersen Promotions)
Miller was one of the most improved USF2000 drivers in 2020, twice finishing on the podium, leading his first Road To Indy laps, and ending the season in eighth place in the standings. After only one top ten finish in his 2019 rookie USF2000 season, Miller finished in the top ten in ten races in 2020 and scored the sixth-most points over the season’s final ten races.
“2020 was a huge improvement from 2019, and we really came on strong with the engineering changes that we made,” explained Miller. “The goal of moving to the Indy Pro 2000 ranks in 2021 was always on the table and after two years in USF2000, the time is right. The 2021 grid is set to be the most competitive Indy Pro 2000 Championship grid to date, and I can’t wait to get the season started.”
Vaccaro made his USF2000 debut in the season’s penultimate event at the New Jersey Motorsports Park, improving his finishing position in all three races. The Plattsburgh, New York driver made his junior open-wheel debut in 2017 and has experience in the F4 United States Championship Powered By Honda, F2000 Championship Series, and Formula Regional Americas Championship Powered By Honda.
“I am excited to join both the Miller Vinatieri Motorsports program and the famed Road to Indy next season,” said Vaccaro, a student at Purdue University. “I have had the opportunity to spend some time with Jack and his entire crew and have come to know them well and enjoy spending time with them. The upward trend in 2020 speaks volumes of their program, which was evident in the one event that I competed at this season. I am looking forward to a fresh start and can’t wait to not only start our winter test program, but also the 2021 season.”
Kent Vaccaro will join Miller Vinatieri Motorsports for the full 2021 USF2000 season after taking part in three races with the team at New Jersey Motorsports Park in 2020 (Photo Courtesy Of Andersen Promotions)
“Right now, we will be a two-car program with Kent Vaccaro in USF2000 and Jack in Indy Pro,” explained co-owner Jack Miller. “We are looking forward to launching our winter test program and a successful 2021 season.”
Miller Vinatieri Motorsports would like to thank the following: Patterson Dental, CAO Group Inc, Blue Marble Premium Cocktails, Picasso Lite, and AMD Lasers, Lumist Advanced Teeth Whitening Strips, Indy Dental Group, Shadow Graphix, Edge Rock Realty, BMO Private Bank, Barnes and Thornburg, Express Auto Body, RTD Media & Management, Indiana Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Associates, Biggs-Hansen Orthodontics, Bell Helmets, NDX Lumident, Indy Eye Physicians, Hamilton County Endodontics, Wolfies Bar and Grill, and K1 Racegear.
Side note from Steve on of the team’s partners – If you are on the north side of the Indianapolis metro, I highly recommend Wolfies Bar and Grill, they have plenty of locations to try out.
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