Archives for 2022 Indy Pro 2000 Coverage

Andersen Promotions releases 2023 USF Pro 2000, USF2000 and USF Juniors schedules, including increased scholarships

Andersen Promotions and the series they own and manage – USF Pro 2000 Presented By Cooper Tires, Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship, and USF Juniors Presented by Cooper Tires – today announced the series schedules, along with increased advanced scholarship prizes for the champions.

The top two rungs of the USF Pro Championships Presented By Cooper Tires ladder will conduct 30 of 36 races alongside the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, with all events featuring INDYCAR services, including Race Control, Timing & Scoring and the AMR INDYCAR Safety Team.

The first rung on the USF Pro Championships ladder, USF Juniors includes one race alongside the NTT INDYCAR SERIES and one with NASCAR.

“I want to again start off by thanking all of the promoters for working with us to create a great 2023 schedule for our competitors,” said Dan Andersen, Owner and CEO of Andersen Promotions. “We are extremely pleased with the opportunity to showcase our rising talent at premier, professionally run events.

“Next year is shaping up to be an all-time high in terms of drivers advancing up the ladder and it is both exciting and rewarding for all of us at Andersen Promotions. Our launch of the Tatuus IP-22 and USF-22 was a great success as was the debut of USF Juniors, which surprised some of us with the depth of talent in that field. We look forward to seeing the new USF Juniors car make its competition debut, which will complete our goal of ensuring all our equipment packages are of the highest safety standards, and to the start of a new season.”


The 2023 USF Pro 2000 Presented By Cooper Tires, will begin their season on the 1.8-mile, 14-turn St. Petersburg street circuit for the tenth time.

The 18-race schedule will include a visit to nine venues, including six natural terrain road courses, two street circuits, and one oval.

The schedule includes returns to Sebring International Raceway and Circuit of The Americas. The series, once known as Star Mazda, Pro Mazda, and Indy Pro 2000, raced at the former Army Air Base in Sebring, Fla., ten times between 1999 and 2010. The series made one previous visit to Austin, Texas, in 2013 and was set to return in 2020 before the global pandemic.

USF Pro 2000 Presented By Cooper Tires 2023 Schedule

DATEROUNDSTRACKLOCATION
March 4-51 & 2Streets Of St. PetersburgSt. Petersburg, Fla.
March 25-263 & 4Sebring International RacewaySebring, Fla.
May 12-135 & 6Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road CourseSpeedway, Ind.
May 267Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway ParkClermont, Ind.
June 17-188 & 9Road AmericaElkhart Lake, Wisc.
July 1-210 & 11Mid-Ohio Sports Car CourseLexington, Ohio
July 15-1612 & 13Streets Of Exhibition PlaceToronto, Ontario, Canada
August 26-2714 & 15Circuit of The AmericasAustin, Texas
September 2-316, 17 & 18Portland International RacewayPortland, Ore.

Louis Foster, the 2022 champion, received a $614,425 scholarship to move to the Indy Lights series. The Briton has signed with Andretti Autosport for the 2023 season.

For the 2023 season, the USF Pro 2000 Presented By Cooper Tires scholarship has increased by $50,000 (8.1%) to $664,425.

2022 USF Pro 2000 Presented By Cooper Tires champion Louis Foster (Exclusive Autosport) – Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

The 2023 Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship season starts in St. Petersburg, Fla., for the eighth time, and in the Sunshine State for the 18th time.

The 18-race schedule will include visiting eight venues, which includes five natural terrain road courses, two street circuits, and one oval.

The schedule includes returns to Sebring International for the first time since 2013. Chip Ganassi Racing technical director and race engineer for Scott Dixon, Chris Simmon, won the series first of 17 trips to the former Army Air Base in 1992.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship 2023 Schedule

DATEROUNDSTRACKLOCATION
March 4-51 & 2Streets Of St. PetersburgSt. Petersburg, Fla.
March 25-263 & 4Sebring International RacewaySebring, Fla.
May 12-135, 6 & 7Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road CourseSpeedway, Ind.
May 268Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway ParkClermont, Ind.
June 17-189 & 10Road AmericaElkhart Lake, Wisc.
July 1-211, 12 & 13Mid-Ohio Sports Car CourseLexington, Ohio
July 15-1614 & 15Streets Of Exhibition PlaceToronto, Ontario, Canada
September 2-316, 17 & 18Portland International RacewayPortland, Ore.

Michael d’Orlando earned a $406,925 scholarship during his come-from-behind USF2000 title chase.

The 2023 scholarship will increase by 8.1%, growing to $440,125 for the driver moving to USF Pro 2000

Michael d’Orlando at the Championship Celebration Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

The newest official starting point on the USF Pro Championships Presented By Cooper Tires ladder, USF Juniors, returns for a second season of action with a new competition package.

The Tatuus JR-23 is the same safety-enhanced chassis – With cost-saving modifications made to the uprights, brake package, dampers, and wheels – that made a competitive debut in the USF2000 and USF Pro 2000 this season.

Powering the lowest rung on the road to the NTT INDYCAR SERIES is the ultra-reliable Elite Engine prepared 2-liter restricted to 150hp.

The USF Juniors Presented by Cooper Tires drivers and teams, will begin the 2023 season alongside their big brothers – USF2000 and USF Pro 2000 at Sebring International Raceway the last weekend in March.

The schedule features 16 races spread across six weekends at six iconic American Road Courses.

USF Juniors Presented by Cooper Tires 2023 schedule

DATEROUNDSTRACKLOCATION
March 23-251,2 & 3Sebring International RacewaySebring, Fla.
April 284 & 5Barber Motorsports ParkBirmingham, Ala.
June 3-46,7 & 8Virginia International RacewayAlton, Va.
July 89 & 10Mid-Ohio Sports Car CourseLexington, Ohio
August 12-1311, 12 & 13Road AmericaElkhart Lake, Wis.
August 25-2714, 15 & 16Circuit of The AmericasAustin, Texas

Mac Clark, also a winner in USF2000 at Portland International Raceway, took home a $221,125 scholarship, clinching the inaugural USF Juniors Presented by Cooper Tires title at Circuit of The Americas.

In 2023, the scholarship to help a driver move up to the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship series will increase to $248,815, an increase of 12.5%

USF Juniors Presented by Cooper Tires champion Mac Clark – (Photo Courtesy of Jose Mario Dias/USF Juniors)

Gold Wins Portland Race #3 in Portland

By Diane Swintal

Indy Pro 2000 Presented by Cooper Tires held their second race of the weekend with the temperature at 68F and a very welcome cloud cover.

With first and second in the championship decided, it’s a chance for much of the field to go for broke (hopefully not literally) without having to worry about season-ending standings.

The NTT INDYCAR SERIES had their qualifying about an hour ago, and the ARCA series just had theirs, so several different kinds of rubber on the racetrack.

The race was delayed an hour cleaning up after an ARCA car leaked oil on track.

Green flag – big lock up for Foster, who takes the chicane and comes back on track at the back of the field. Again, no championship implications there!

The rest of the field managed to make it cleanly through the Festival Curves, that might be a first this weekend.

At the start of the second lap, Braden Eves and Salvador de Alba both locked up and had to go through the chicane.

By lap four, Foster up to P11.

Marcos Flack received a drive-through penalty for improperly coming back on track after short cutting the chicane. For safety reasons, the series has very specific requirements to make sure that drivers return to the track in the proper fashion.

Reece Gold held a 1.5 second lead ahead of Kiko Porto, Nolan Siegel and Enaam Ahmed.

Jack William Miller had also gone wide going into turn one, but held on through that first lap to pace in fifth position.

Quick lap of the race for Gold on lap five. Miller has the second quickest lap.

Ahmed currently P3 in the championship, Siegel looking to get around as the two are separated by five points.

Foster right on the rear wing of Josh Green for seventh, with the fast lap of the race on lap 11.

At the halfway point, Gold held a three-second lead over Porto, with Siegel another two seconds back.

Foster upped his quick lap time on lap 14, 1:08.959.

Foster into P7, Green tried to block in the Festival Curves but Foster did the over/under and made the pass on lap 21.

Foster makes the move on de Alba in turn 10 but de Alba refused to give way, so Foster had to back off.

De Alba chipping away at Miller in P5, with Foster right behind.

At the white flag, Gold with a four-second lead over Porto.

More defending from de Alba going into turn one, side by side but again, Foster backs off before the two make contact.

Race control watching the battle for possible blocking.

De Alba takes the inside in turn one with Foster outside and de Alba can’t make the corner – locks up and heads through the chicane.

Checkered flag and the fourth win of the season for Reece Gold, Kiko Porto second, Nolan Siegel third. Louis Foster up to sixth in the end.

Reece Gold celebrates on pit lane after winning Indy Pro 2000 Race #3 at Portland. Road to Indy – Gavin Baker

“I’m super happy to end this on a high note,” said Gold. “The last few weekends weren’t the best (seven straight races off the podium before this weekend). We have a long off-season, so it’s a good way to end the season. We have a lot coming up and we’re super excited about next season – huge thank you to everyone at Juncos Hollinger Racing for a great year.”

Gold is rumored to soon be announcing his move to Indy Lights with Juncos Hollinger Racing next season. With Foster also moving up the ladder, TSO believes as many as five drivers could move from Indy Pro 2000 to Indy Lights in 2023 – much need additions to the series’ car count.

Kiko Porto, Reece Gold, and Nolan Siegel celebrate on the podium for Portland Race #3. Road to Indy – Gavin Baker

Results – Portland Race #3 Indy Pro 2000:

Pos Car # Driver Laps Diff ST
Team
1 55 Reece Gold 30 LAP 30 1
Juncos Hollinger Racing
2 1 Kiko Porto 30 3.6582 3
DEForce Racing
3 8 Nolan Siegel 30 5.586 4
DEForce Racing
4 47 Enaam Ahmed 30 6.2776 5
Juncos Hollinger Racing
5 40 Jack William Miller 30 12.6487 6
Miller Vinatieri Motorsports w/Exclusive Autosport
6 90 Louis Foster 30 16.0585 2
Exclusive Autosport
7 6 Salvador De Alba 30 16.7746 7
Jay Howard Driver Develpment
8 3 Josh Green 30 17.3287 8
Turn 3 Motorsport
9 19 Jordan Missig 30 20.4513 13
Pabst Racing
10 4 Braden Eves 30 20.9996 11
Jay Howard Driver Development
11 18 Yuven Sundaramoorthy 30 22.0479 10
Pabst Racing
12 2 Jonathan Browne 30 29.5941 12
Turn 3 Motorsport
13 7 Bijoy Garg 30 30.0277 9
DEForce Racing
14 93 Lindsay Brewer 30 46.1986 14
Exclusive Autosport
15 5 Marcos Flack 30 47.8811 15
Jay Howard Driver Development

 

Good Morning from Portland – Today’s RTI Schedule and Some Notes

By Diane Swintal

That crooked video board (due to a hydraulic failure) that delayed the USF2000 and Indy Pro 2000 races yesterday – it’s still crooked, but secured and working! TSO Photo by Patrick

Good morning from cloudy and cool Portland International Raceway. 63F at 8:00 a.m. Pacific, with highs only in the mid-70s and much later in the day.

Four Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires sessions today, with the Cooper Tires USF200 Championship and the Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires conducting their final races of the season.

Road to Indy schedule:

10:15 – 11:00 a.m. USF2000 race three (25 laps or 45 minutes)

11:15 – 11:55 a.m. Indy Lights practice

11:30 a.m. – Noon Indy Pro 2000 autograph session (Fan Village)

1:30 – 2:00 p.m. Indy Lights autograph session (Fan Village)

2:20 – 3:10 p.m. Indy Pro 2000 race three (30 laps or 50 minutes)

3:25 – 3:45 p.m. Indy Lights qualifying

The Indy Pro 2000 championship is done, as Exclusive Autosport’s Louis Foster took the title with a victory in race one yesterday. With a win in race two, Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Reece Gold secured second in the title chase. Gold is expected to follow Foster into Indy Lights next season.

USF2000 is a very different story. With incidents in both races yesterday, Pabst Racing’s Myles Rowe threw the championship chase wide open. When Rowe and teammate Jace Denmark – the pole sitter and second in the championship – made contact in turn one at the start of race two, Cape Motorsports’ Michael d’Orlando returned to the championship conversation. Here are the points as they stand:

Points

Back

Myles Rowe

363

Michael d’Orlando

357

6

Jace Denmark

357

6

Reminder that the winner gets 30 points, 25 to second, 22 to third. Three bonus points are available – the points above include Denmark’s race three pole point.

USF2000 race three starting lineup:

SP Car Driver Name Time

1 23 Denmark, Jace 01:11.8365

2 22 Rowe, Myles 01:11.9434

3 10 Nepveu, Thomas 01:11.9900

4 17 Johnson, Nikita (R) 01:12.0391

5 5 Hays, Nicky (R) 01:12.1835

6 4 d’Orlando, Michael 01:12.2481

7 12 Clark, Mac (R) 01:12.2590

8 32 Weir, Christian 01:12.2942

9 92 Frazer, Billy 01:12.3369

10 11 Christie, Dylan 01:12.3809

11 91 Brienza, Joey (R) 01:12.4824

12 90 Douglas, Jacob (R) 01:12.5460

13 9 Garciarce, Jorge (R) 01:12.5560

14 33 Kohlbecker, Spike 01:12.5826

15 8 Dyszelski, Danny (R) 01:12.6456

16 6 Papasavvas, Evagoras (R) 01:12.6842

17 3 Jones, Jagger (R) 01:12.6919

18 93 d’Orlando, Nicholas (R) 01:12.9373

19 16 Ho, Ethan (R) 01:13.0621

20 34 Mann, Lucas (R) 01:13.1247

Jagger Jones (grandson of Parnelli) has secured rookie of the year honors over Cape Motorsports’ teammate Nicky Hays, 275 to 210 points. Jones experienced engine issues in the lone qualifying session that put him back in the field in all three races and while Hays’ first series podium finish yesterday helped his cause, it won’t be enough to eclipse his teammate in the final standings.

The pair are the only rookies in the series top 10.

Portland Indy Pro 2000 Race #2 Report and Results

By Diane Swintal

The day was going along as expected – until it wasn’t.

The NTT INDYCAR SERIES practice was significantly delayed when a very large video screen along the front straight lost all its hydraulic fluid and tiled very precariously mere feet from the racing surface.

Track services secured the screen and INDYCAR practice resumed nearly 90 minutes later – but obviously, the Road to Indy races were quite delayed.

Instead of 4:00 and 5:00 p.m., the command to start engines was given at 5:25 p.m. First up is Indy Pro 2000 then USF2000 – the races were flipped, since there is no time for a podium after the first race. The races were originally scheduled to be 45 minutes for USF2000 and 50 minutes for Indy Pro 2000 – instead, both will be 30 minutes long. The first ARCA practice will be after the pair of races, making for a very long day for the corner marshals.

To save time, both series loaded into pit lane together.

The sun is quite low in the sky, which will make the entry to turn one even more difficult. In the video screen delay, Portland organizers moved the barriers in the chicane inside the Festival Curves, to make it a bit easier for cars who were not able to make turn one. It remains to be seen whether than will help Road to Indy drivers.

Low sun also means heat – 86F, but it feels much hotter.

Reece Gold on pole, with Louis Foster alongside, Kiko Porto and Nolan Siegel in row two.

Happily, all 15 cars made it through the Festival Curves – a nice feat, given the fact that the field immediately went into three sets of three-wide racing going into turn one.

On lap three, Yuven Sundaramoorthy and Josh Green came together in turn 11, which has been a very popular spot for incidents this weekend. Both continued, at the back of the field.

Marcos Flack also had an off-and-on, in turn 10, but subsequently retired.

On lap four, Kiko Porto set up Foster nicely in turn three, making the pass for second position.

Foster returned the favor on lap eight, with the over/under in turn three to make the pass on Porto to retake second.

A nice battle started brewing between Bijoy Garg and Lindsay Brewer, for 10th position, with Garg adhered to Brewer’s rear wing (apologies, we couldn’t help the “brewing” comment…)

Another good battle – Enaam Ahmed and Jack William Miller for fourth position.

At the halfway point, Gold had broken out to a six-second leader over Foster, with Porto two seconds back in third. Miller remained on the rear wing of Ahmed.

Garg was able to make the pass for 10th, bringing Sundaramoorthy with him into 11th. The pair reeled in Braden Eves and Jordan Missig, with Salvador de Alba and Nolan Siegel battling just ahead. With two laps remaining, Missig pulled off the pass of Siegel for seventh.

At the checkered flag, Gold had his third win and fifth podium of the year. Foster in second took his eighth podium in 17 races. Porto brought it home in third – his second podium of the season.

A very nice 18th birthday gift for Reece Gold!

Reece Gold on track at Portland. Road to Indy Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

 

Portland Indy Pro 2000 Race #2 Results:

Pos Car # Driver Laps Diff ST Team
1 55 Reece Gold 22 LAP 22 1
Juncos Hollinger Racing
2 90 Louis Foster 22 3.5502 2
Exclusive Autosport
3 1 Kiko Porto 22 10.2385 3
DEForce Racing
4 47 Enaam Ahmed 22 11.037 5
Juncos Hollinger Racing
5 40 Jack William Miller 22 12.8453 6
Miller Vinatieri Motorsports w/Exclusive Autosport
6 6 Salvador De Alba 22 20.775 7
Jay Howard Driver Develpment
7 19 Jordan Missig 22 21.3239 13
Pabst Racing
8 8 Nolan Siegel 22 21.8212 4
DEForce Racing
9 4 Braden Eves 22 22.404 11
Jay Howard Driver Development
10 7 Bijoy Garg 22 22.9929 9
DEForce Racing
11 18 Yuven Sundaramoorthy 22 29.1919 10
Pabst Racing
12 93 Lindsay Brewer 22 42.0007 14
Exclusive Autosport
13 3 Josh Green 22 42.2405 8
Turn 3 Motorsport
14 2 Jonathan Browne 20 2 LAPS 12
Turn 3 Motorsport
15 5 Marcos Flack 3 Contact 15
Jay Howard Driver Development

Portland Indy Pro 2000 Race #1 Race Report

By Diane Swintal

Two Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires races Saturday, one race on Sunday, to decide the series champion.

At stake is a scholarship packaged valued at almost $615,000 to graduate to the 2023 Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires.

Exclusive Autosport’s Louis Foster holds a 77-point lead over Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Reece Gold and only needs to finish 11th or better to secure the title – the first driver’s championship for the team.

78F under hazy/sunny skies as we get ready for the second of four Road to Indy races today.

Green flag at 12:18 p.m. – with chaos once again ensuing in turn one, with six cars going through the chicane and two cars stopping in turn one. Yuven Sundaramoorthy, Jack William Miller, Nolan Siegel, Kiko Porto, Bijoy Garg, Lindsay Brewer and Jordan Missig all involved.

It appeared that Miller, moving from the inside of the corner to the middle, tagged Sundaramoorthy and started the chain reaction. All eight cars managed to continue with no full course caution.

With all the chaos, Marcus Flack – in his series debut – wisely checked up early and went from last to fourth on lap one.

Once the field settled in, the race quieted rapidly. Gold remained right behind Foster but was not able to make a move. Enaam Ahmed paced four seconds behind Gold, with Flack in fourth.

For Foster, it was the polar opposite race than the non-stop battle USF2000 points leader Rowe had experienced an hour earlier. Once Foster had established a three-second lead over Gold, it was just a matter of keeping his head down and not making any mistakes.

But behind Foster, Gold and Ahmed, fourth through 10th fought nose-to-tail, with Sundaramoorthy going through the chicane on lap 27 and losing eighth position. Flack worked to hold off Jonathan Browne, Braden Eves, Jordan Missig, Salvador de Alba, Joseh Green and Bijoy Garg.

Back at the front of the field, the 19-year-old Brit did not put a foot wrong and when the checkered flag flew after 30 laps, he had captured his first championship title in the U.S. – and the first driver title for Michael Duncalfe’s Exclusive Autosport.

“It’s been a whole year of hard work, long nights, long weekends, as well as a bit of frustration here and there,” said Foster, holding the champion’s trophy. “But our hard work has come to fruition this season – it just shows that if you work hard enough, something good happens. It’s so good to seal the deal in race one. I managed to get pole and while Reece charged really hard into turn one, I managed to keep him back there. From there, it was just a matter of preserving the tires. It’s been an amazing day but there are two more races to win! But I’m the 2022 champion, I can’t thank the team and the series enough.”

Portland Indy Pro 2000 Race #1 Results:

Pos Car # Driver Laps Diff Team
1 90 Louis Foster 30 LAP 30 Exclusive Autosport
2 55 Reece Gold 30 2.1474 Juncos Hollinger Racing
3 47 Enaam Ahmed 30 11.6947 Juncos Hollinger Racing
4 5 Marcos Flack 30 28.1933 Jay Howard Driver Development
5 2 Jonathan Browne 30 29.1087 Turn 3 Motorsport
6 19 Jordan Missig 30 30.4428 Pabst Racing
7 4 Braden Eves 30 30.9413 Jay Howard Driver Development
8 6 Salvador De Alba 30 32.8622 Jay Howard Driver Develpment
9 3 Josh Green 30 33.1841 Turn 3 Motorsport
10 7 Bijoy Garg 30 33.7361 DEForce Racing
11 18 Yuven Sundaramoorthy 30 36.4132 Pabst Racing
12 93 Lindsay Brewer 30 47.7191 Exclusive Autosport
13 40 Jack William Miller 21 9 LAPS
Miller Vinatieri Motorsports w/Exclusive Autosport
14 8 Nolan Siegel Contact DEForce Racing
15 1 Kiko Porto Contact DEForce Racing

Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires Portland Qualifying

By Diane Swintal

#90 Louis Foster, Exclusive Autosport, Copart.com, Novara Technologies Road to Indy Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy – IndyPro 2000

Green flag on race one qualifying as the day begins to warm up – 68F with an expected high of 88 degrees.

Exclusive Autosport’s Louis Foster holds a 77-point lead over Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Reece Gold, and only needs to finish ahead of Gold and DEForce Racing’s Nolan Siegel to secure the championship title.

Wishing Gold a very happy birthday – 18 years old today!

Foster posted the first quick time, immediately eclipsed by Gold, and Gold’s teammate Enaam Ahmed.

Watching this space for more information on flood relief efforts coordinated by Pakistan native Ahmed – per Rob Howden, Ahmed is heading home immediately after the race weekend to see what he can do to help, after torrential rains have caused widespread flooding and devastation throughout the country.

Nine minutes into the session, Gold held the quick time, 4/100s of a second over Foster, with DEForce Racing’s Kiko Porto, Siegel, and Ahmed within 40/10s.

With six minutes remaining, must of the field headed to pit lane for fresh Cooper Tires.

With four minutes remaining, Foster grabbed the top stop by 1/10 of a second over Gold – but immediately thereafter, Marcos Flack – making his series debut – went into the tires in turn 11. The AMR INDYCAR Safety Team was able to get Flack out of the tires quickly and back underway, but he would lose his quick time for causing a red flag.

The green flag flew once again, but Gold was not able to post a quicker time, so Foster scored his fifth pole of the season and the valuable championship point. Gold will start race one in P2, with Siegel third – so the top three in points starting in the top three in this afternoon’s race one.

Indy Pro 2000 Race #1 Grid:

RANK

CAR NO.

DRIVER

TEAM

FAST LAP

DIFF.

1

90

Louis Foster

Exclusive Autosport

1:08.2477

——

2

55

Reece Gold

Juncos Hollinger Racing

1:08.3841

0.1364

3

8

Nolan Siegel

DEForce Racing

1:08.4472

0.1995

4

1

Kiko Porto

DEForce Racing

1:08.5775

0.3298

5

47

Enaam Ahmed

Juncos Hollinger Racing

1:08.6333

0.3856

6

3

Josh Green

Turn 3 Motorsport

1:08.7413

0.4936

7

40

Jack William Miller

Miller Vinatieri Motorsports w/EA

1:08.7555

0.5078

8

18

Yuven Sundaramoorthy

Pabst Racing

1:08.8123

0.5646

9

6

Salvador De Alba

Jay Howard Driver Develpment

1:08.8699

0.6222

10

7

Bijoy Garg

DEForce Racing

1:08.9073

0.6596

11

2

Jonathan Browne

Turn 3 Motorsport

1:09.0158

0.7681

12

19

Jordan Missig

Pabst Racing

1:09.0384

0.7907

13

4

Braden Eves

Jay Howard Driver Development

1:09.0880

0.8403

14

93

Lindsay Brewer

Exclusive Autosport

1:09.3325

1.0848

15

5

Marcos Flack

Jay Howard Driver Development

1:09.6071

1.3594

With the race two grid decided by the second quick time in qualifying versus the quick race lap – second-quick quali time here:

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER TEAM FAST LAP
1 55 Reece Gold Juncos Hollinger Racing 68.4016
2 90 Louis Foster Exclusive Autosport 68.4191
3 1 Kiko Porto DEForce Racing 68.5791
4 8 Nolan Siegel DEForce Racing 68.6298
5 47 Enaam Ahmed Juncos Hollinger Racing 68.7660
6 40 Jack William Miller Miller Vinatieri Motorsports w/EA 68.8066
7 3 Josh Green Turn 3 Motorsport 68.9216
8 18 Yuven Sundaramoorthy Pabst Racing 68.9841
9 7 Bijoy Garg DEForce Racing 68.9885
10 6 Salvador De Alba Jay Howard Driver Develpment 68.9971
11 4 Braden Eves Jay Howard Driver Development 69.1122
12 2 Jonathan Browne Turn 3 Motorsport 69.1149
13 19 Jordan Missig Pabst Racing 69.2489
14 93 Lindsay Brewer Exclusive Autosport 69.6983
15 5 Marcos Flack Jay Howard Driver Development 71.3575

Good morning from USF2000 & Indy Pro 2000 championship weekend

USF2000 points leader Myles Rowe navigates Portland International Raceway in Penske Enterainment sponsored No. 22 from the Pabst Racing stable during testing Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

By Diane Swintal

It’s an action-packed schedule for the Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires today, with qualifying and two races for both the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship and the Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires, and practice for Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires.

USF2000 and Indy Pro 2000 will have one qualifying session which will determine the race one grid. The race two grid will be determined by the second-quickest lap in qualifying or the quickest race lap, whichever is faster.

In USF2000, Pabst Racing’s Myles Rowe leads Cape Motorsports’ Michael d’Orlando by 23 points, and teammate Jace Denmark by 25 points. Denmark is the only driver who has experience at Portland, having done a Formula Ford session here two weeks ago. Rowe topped the late-afternoon practice session yesterday, while Rowe and Denmark split the two test sessions. D’Orlando missed the official practice session due to damage from an incident that occurred late in the second test session.

In Indy Pro 2000, Exclusive Autosport’s Louis Foster needs only to finish 11th to secure the championship title. He leads Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Reece Gold by 77 points, but Gold led both test sessions and the practice session yesterday – though Foster was close behind in all three sessions.

Friday’s schedule:

  • 9:00 a.m.      USF2000 qualifying
  • 9:55 a.m.      Indy Pro 2000 qualifying
  • 11:20 a.m.     USF2000 race one (25 laps or 45 minutes)
  • 12:20 p.m.    Indy Pro 2000 race one (30 laps or 50 minutes)
  • 1:25 p.m.      Indy Lights practice
  • 1:40 p.m.      USF2000 autograph session (Fan Village)
  • 4:00 p.m.      USF2000 race two (25 laps or 45 minutes)
  • 5:00 p.m.      Indy Pro 2000 race two (30 laps or 50 minutes)

 

Gold leads disjointed Indy Pro 2000 practice at Portland International Raceway

Reece Gold aboard the Juncos Hollinger Racing, The Ticket Clinic sponsored No. 55 Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires

By Diane Swintal

Indy Pro 2000 track records (both set on September 1, 2018):

  • Race Record  Rinus VeeKay  1:07.1597 (105.277 mph)
  • Qualifying Record  Rinus VeeKay   1:05.8973 (107.294 mph)

It was 62F at the start of the first test session, under cloudy skies.

There is one new driver in the field this weekend – Australian Marcos Flack, driving for Jay Howard Driver Development. Following a successful karting career, Flack has contested a variety of European Formula 4 series over the past two years, all in Tatuus chassis similar to the PM-22 he will drive this weekend.

Of the 15 drivers here this weekend, only six (Reece Gold, Yuven Sundaramoorthy, Braden Eves, Jack William Miller, Josh Green and Nolan Siegel) have raced at Portland before (all in the 2019 USF2000 races).

15 minutes into the session, championship leaders Reece Gold and Louis Foster had traded the top time back and forth several times, with both drivers the only ones under 1:09. Kiko Porto joined them in the sub-1:09 club with 10 minutes remaining, as did Braden Eves with two minutes to go. At the checkered flag, Gold held the quick time with a lap at 1:08.335. 

JHDD’s Salvador de Alba was shown as having no time, as his transponder was nonoperational.

Under sunny skies and ambient temps in the mid-70s, the cars returned to the track early in the afternoon for the second test session. Once again, Gold and Foster topped the speed charts, with Gold holding the top spot. 15 minutes into the session, 13 of the 15 cars had set quick times under 1:09. Ahmed joined Gold on the sub-1:09 list, setting quick time with 27 minutes remaining. Not to be outdone, Gold returned to the top spot minutes later.

Jonathan Browne stopped on course (reported as being out of fuel) and had to be retrieved, resulting in a 10-minute red flag. Only 10 minutes remained as the green flag came back out. Ahmed had a quick of-and-on in turn six but was able to continue with no damage. 

Gold once again held the top spot at the end of the test session, with a lap of 1:08.619 – slightly slower than his morning lap (done in much cooler conditions).  

Temps had increased to 83F by the time the green flag flew on the official practice session later in the afternoon. Porto held the top spot for the first five minutes, before Gold once again assumed command. But several minutes later, Green made hard contact with the turn 11 tires, bringing out the red flag. 

The session returned to green with 13 minutes left, but five minutes, later, the turn 11 tires claimed another victim, as Browne made contact. With insufficient time to retrieve the car, the checkered flag flew, with Gold making it a clean sweep of the day with a lap at 1:09.065.

Qualifying takes the green at 9:55 a.m. Pacific Friday, with race one at 12:20 p.m. and race two at 5:00 p.m.

Indy Pro 2000 practice times

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER TEAM FAST LAP DIFF. LAPS
1 55 Reece Gold Juncos Hollinger Racing 1:09.0649 —— 12
2 90 Louis Foster Exclusive Autosport 1:09.4767 0.4118 13
3 4 Braden Eves Jay Howard Driver Development 1:09.5287 0.4638 14
4 47 Enaam Ahmed Juncos Hollinger Racing 1:09.5404 0.4755 10
5 3 Josh Green Turn 3 Motorsport 1:09.6028 0.5379 7
6 18 Yuven Sundaramoorthy Pabst Racing 1:09.6862 0.6213 12
7 8 Nolan Siegel DEForce Racing 1:09.7012 0.6363 10
8 6 Salvador De Alba Jay Howard Driver Develpment 1:09.7054 0.6405 13
9 40 Jack William Miller Miller Vinatieri Motorsports w/Exclusive Autosport 1:09.7156 0.6507 13
10 1 Kiko Porto DEForce Racing 1:09.7308 0.6659 9
11 2 Jonathan Browne Turn 3 Motorsport 1:09.8357 0.7708 13
12 19 Jordan Missig Pabst Racing 1:09.9301 0.8652 9
13 5 Marcos Flack Jay Howard Driver Development 1:10.2034 1.1385 14
14 7 Bijoy Garg DEForce Racing 1:10.7561 1.6912 8
15 93 Lindsay Brewer Exclusive Autosport 1:11.1621 2.0972 9

Louis Foster is headed for the Indy Pro 2000 title – previewing Portland

Briton Louis Foster and Exclusive Autosport team owner Michael Duncalfe celebrate one of six Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires victories during the 2022 season. Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

By Diane Swintal

Only three drivers have held the top spot in the Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires point standings this season: Turn 3 Motorsport’s Josh Green, DEForce Racing’s Nolan Siegel and Exclusive Autosport’s Louis Foster.

The points lead has changed hands four times, but not since the oval at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park back in May, when Foster took the points lead for good. He comes into the triple-header weekend at Portland with a 77-point lead over Reece Gold and with 99 points on the table this weekend All the native of Basingstoke, England has to do is virtually show up at Portland this weekend to take the championship title – and the Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires scholarship package valued at $614,425.

Without Foster’s second-half surge, which saw him capture five race wins in seven races, the title chase would be stout: only 35 points separate Reece Gold, Nolan Siegel, Enaam Ahmed and Braden Eves in positions two through five. With the exception of Ahmed, all five are race winners in 2022.

As is the case in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship, Exclusive Autosport is seeking its long-awaited first driver championship, having finished second with Parker Thompson in 2019 (behind Rinus VeeKay) and Eves last year. The team captured its first series team championship in 2021 with the combined efforts of Eves and Artem Petrov, but team owner Michael Duncalfe is ready to see one of his drivers take the title.

Foster came to the U.S. this season after finishing second in the 2021 Euroformula Open series. He came up through the English junior open wheel ranks, finishing second in the 2018 Ginetta Junior series, third in the 2019 British F4 series and third in British F3 in 2020. The 19-year-old has become a basketball fan since moving to Los Angeles, counting the Golden State Warriors as his favorite team and the late Kobe Bryant as his sporting hero.

Juncos Hollinger Racing teammates and one-time championship contenders Enaam Ahmed (left) and Reece Gold (right) Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

Green and Siegel each held the points lead in the first weekend at St. Petersburg, Fla. by virtue of their race wins. But with podiums in three of the first four races, Foster took the lead for the first time after Round Three at Barber Motorsports Park. Siegel then regained the top spot with a win in Round Four and held that position through the GMR Grand Prix weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, as contact in Rounds Five and Six put Foster outside the top 10. A win in Round Seven at Indy, coupled with a victory at LOR in his very first oval start, put Foster back on top for good.

Nolan Siegel (DEForce Racing), who is in a five-way battle for second place in the Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires championship celebrates a victory at Barber Motorsports Park Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

Coming into the weekend, Foster has scored six wins, four pole positions and 10 podiums in 15 races. Once the title is clinched, he will begin to plan his graduation to Indy Lights, but several other drivers are expected to move up the ladder as well, giving Indy Lights a much-needed boost in car count. Gold, Siegel and Eves are all ready to make the jump, naturally depending on budget constraints.

Indy Pro 2000 – Salvador De Alba Dominates for WWT Raceway Victory

Salvador De Alba, Jay Howard Driver Development, Groupo Indi, Mecano, Sidral Aga Indy Pro 2000, took the win. Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography/Road to Indy

By Tony DiZinno

Salvador De Alba’s weekend of dominance on the 1.25-mile World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway continued with his first win on the road in Indy Pro 2000 competition this weekend. He inherited his first earlier this year at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, but this second win of the year was authoritative in a flag-to-flag victory from pole position. 

A quick, brief heavy shower interrupted proceedings but only pushed the Indy Pro 2000 start back by less than 10 minutes. The field of 14 cars, down one with Jordan Missig unable to start following his accident in qualifying, took the green flag at 2:24 p.m. CST and local time.

De Alba led the field to green over Gold, Foster, Siegel and Green. The field made it through the first lap cleanly with Siegel gaining two positions, up to second with Gold, Foster and Green just behind.

De Alba maintained the gap ahead of Siegel but Green showed promise, with he and Foster getting by Gold on Lap 4. Further back, Sundaramoorthy was a big mover up to ninth, just behind Eves.

Through 10 of 55 laps, De Alba led Siegel by 2.0718 seconds. Green, Foster and Gold completed the top five with Eves sixth, Ahmed seventh, Flack, Sundaramoorthy and Garg in the top 10. The field of 14 was separated by 18.7976 seconds, so about 14 seconds away from the leaders hitting traffic.

Miller pitted on Lap 14, the first driver to hit trouble this race, and retired with a mechanical issue. 

On Lap 19, Eves got Gold for fifth and began to charge after Foster.

At the halfway point, Lap 28 of 55, De Alba led Siegel by 3.8967 seconds. Green, Foster and Eves were in the top five with Gold, Ahmed, Flack, Sundaramoorthy and Garg completing the top 10. 

Siegel was having to hang onto second with Green and Foster able to close up. Eves was within decent striking distance as well in fifth. 

Green tried the outside of Turn 4 on the run into Turn 1 to get by Siegel for second, and the Turn 3 Motorsport driver completes the move exiting Turn 2. Siegel meanwhile fought back, trying back on the inside into Turns 3 and 4. But he wasn’t able to keep it as Green moved back ahead. 

With 20 to go, De Alba’s lead to Green was 4.8426 seconds. At 10 to go, the lead was 6.1303 seconds. 

Siegel made it back around Green for second on Lap 46 with big commitment on the high side, and that left Green ready to fall back into Eves’ clutches. Eves tried to Green’s inside to get third, which allowed Siegel a bit of wiggle room to go away. Foster had a good bit of momentum to get by Green as well. 

Just 5 to go and De Alba’s lead was 6.7474 seconds with Siegel, Eves, Foster and Green the new top five. 

Checkered and De Alba takes his first win on the road this year, second this season (IMS road course won following a post-race technical infringement) by 5.9398 over Siegel, with Eves, Foster and Green completing the top five. Gold, Ahmed, Flack, Sundaramoorthy and Garg finish the top 10 in a caution-free race. 

VP Racing Fuels Oval Challenge of St. Louis – Race

P No Name Team Laps Diff
1 6 Salvador De Alba Jay Howard Driver Develpment 55 LAP 55
2 8 Nolan Siegel DEForce Racing 55 5.9398
3 4 Braden Eves Jay Howard Driver Development 55 6.3174
4 90 Louis Foster Exclusive Autosport 55 6.7537
5 3 Josh Green Turn 3 Motorsport 55 9.9415
6 55 Reece Gold Juncos Hollinger Racing 55 17.1472
7 47 Enaam Ahmed Juncos Hollinger Racing 55 26.7828
8 5 Marcos Flack Jay Howard Driver Development 55 27.1056
9 18 Yuven Sundaramoorthy Pabst Racing 55 28.9998
10 7 Bijoy Garg DEForce Racing 55 31.8387
11 1 Kiko Porto DEForce Racing 54 1 LAPS
12 2 Trey Burke Turn 3 Motorsport 54 1 LAPS
13 93 Lindsay Brewer Exclusive Autosport 53 2 LAPS
14 40 Jack William Miller Miller Vinatieri Motorsports w/Exclusive Autosport 13 Mechanical
15 19 Jordan Missig Pabst Racing DNS
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