Welcome to Carb Day here at IMS. We’re covering all the activities at both TrackSideOnline.com and of course the MRTI focused coverage here of the Indy Lights Series presented by Cooper Tires.
The race got off to a tough start. Pole sitter Matheus Leist brought the well formed field down to the green at what looked to be a bit of a slow pace. But, as soon as the green waved, everyone jumped out of position and started battling down to Turn 1. The field made it through the first turn ok, but over in Turn 2, we saw second place starter Colton Herta get sideways right in front of the pack.
The Lights cars are able to run side by side through the turns here at times and it looked like Herta didn’t know that Dalton Kellett was still underneath him as they ran through Turn 2. Herta’s car turned sideways and slid for quite a while as some drivers stuck to the low line.
Unfortunately, Herta’s car slid backwards toward the wall around the exit of Turn 2 as the laws of physics took over and pushed him wide, directly in to the path of Ryan Norman who wasn’t able to take the low line as he had cars to his inside. They made pretty solid contact as Norman’s left front hit the left rear of Herta’s sideways race car.
Both cars then slid across the track as the rest of the field scrambled to avoid hitting those spinning and disabled race cars. This was Norman’s best start of the year (4th) and he said after the accident that he was proud of that, and he’ll have to just now focus on being quick at Road America (the next race weekend for Indy Lights).
Herta wasn’t sure what happened and wanted to look at the data, but he did acknowledge the contact with Kellett (who started third).
The race restarted after 5 laps under yellow, with Leist still up front and leading his first laps of the season.
Things would settle out a bit as the race ran on. Kellett would get around Claman de Melo for second, and then around lap 18, Aaron Telitz would himself move to second as he passed Kellett.
On lap 21, the order was Leist, Telitz, Kellett, Alberico, Claman de Melo, Urrutia, Piedrahita, Rickards, Kaiser, Blackstock, Jamin, Dapero, Herta, Norman.
The lead on lap 26 was up to 0.355, but third place was another .06 back, giving us one of the most spread out fields we’ve seen for a while. Looked like the drivers up front were settling in and waiting for a bit later in the race to make a move.
Then on lap 31, Telitz attempted a move on the high side of Turn 1, but he wasn’t able to complete the pass on Leist. The top 6 were within about 2.1 seconds as Leist, Telitz, Kellett, Alberico, Claman de Melo and Urrutia had broken away from the rest of the field.
Lap 34 ad Telitz goes to the high side again in Turn 1 and stays there all the way through Turn 1 and most of the way through Turn 2. Leist got away from Telitz on the back stretch and Kellett himself tried the outside on Telitz. The move worked and Kellett then set his sights on Leist and the lead.
Urrutia then started to make a move himself, moving to fourth and on lap 36, the order was Leist, Kellett, Telitz, Urrutia, Alberico and Claman de Melo.
Lap 37 and Urrutia has brushed the wall in Turn 2, and he slows for a bit, dropping to 5th as Alberico takes 4th position.
The white flag waved over Leist and the field, with Kellett 0.4542 back at the line. Leist is able to make a clean lap and keep Kellett out of his draft, winning the race by 0.7760 seconds.
While the victory seemed fairly locked up as the field came off Turn 4, who would finish second – well, that was far from decided. Telitz followed Kellett off Turn 4 as they drifted back to the low line until Telitz was able to jump to the outside and pull side by side with Kellett as the duo approached the yard of bricks.
At the line, it was Telitz taking second by just 0.0641 seconds.
Patrick’s Opinion – that was a very good race, and I really liked that the winner had the best car – we saw some great moves and some great attempts that failed – but when the checkered flag fell it seemed like Leist was just a bit better today. And congrats to him for managing his Carlin Racing car and the race so well. Some of those side by side laps with Kellett were thrilling as was the action in the pack. But, it didn’t feel too “artificial” and the leader was only to be passed by a better car – I like that!
Ok, back with more in an little while. Here is the finishing order of the 2017 Freedom 100:
After a long weather delay, and only 20 minutes of practice, Matheus Leist, who is making his first ever oval start, put together a pair of consistent laps of 199.268mph, and 199.128mph. The 18 year-old rookie’s prize included a check for $3,000, but more importantly, Leist will start on pole for the Freedom 100, the most prestigious race of the Indy Lights season.
Carlin rookie Matheus Leist gets ready for Freedom 100 qualifying. The Brazilian who is making his first ever oval start, put together two consistent laps to take the pole for the 2017 Freedom 100 (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)
The Brazilian’s fastest lap of 199.268mph, shattered the previous qualifying lap record of 197.866 mph, that was set by Ethan Ringel in 2015.
Leist, who was the seventh driver to take to the 2.5 mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval, knocked Andretti Autosport veteran Dalton Kellett off the provisional pole with his consistent qualifying effort. Kellett, who after starting 14th, finished third in last year’s Freedom 100, also lost a spot to Herta, but will still start on the inside of the front row.
Herta, who had the quickest speed in testing on Monday, and the second quickest speed in the abbreviated pre-qualifying practice, will start his first Indy Lights and second MRTI oval race on the outside of the front-row. Despite a half-spin as he exited the pits to start his qualifying effort, the 17 year-old second generation driver was able to recover and post a two lap average speed of 198.648mph.
“I simply just lost it coming up on the track, my engineer (Doug Zister) kept telling me to put it down to second gear in practice, and see how it is, and I never did that, so it’s my fault,” explained Herta, who is currently third in the quest for the $1million Mazda Motorsports Advancement Scholarship. “Coming back up on the track, I lost it and went down into the pit entry, and then had to drive out of the pit entry. We lost some speed in that, but I don’t know how much. The Carlin guys had a good car today, so I don’t much we could have clawed back.”
Oval newbie and Andretti Autosport rookie Ryan Norman will start outside of his Andretti Autosport teammate Kellett after an impressive two lap qualifying average of 197.697mph.
“This place is amazing. I absolutely love this place, and this is definitely my favorite track so far,” exclaimed a very happy Norman. “We have a great car and I think it’s a winning car. Qualifying went well today and I gave it everything I had. We used every inch of the track we could leaving little room to spare. We just have to time it right in the race tomorrow, keep the tires under me and we should we good. I can’t wait!”
Kellett, with nine MRTI oval starts is the lone veteran among the first two rows. Leist and Norman are making their first ever oval starts and Herta has only one USF2000 oval start on the 0.625 mile Lucas Oil Raceway.
MRTI veteran Dalton Kellett will start his second Freedom 100 from the inside of the second row. (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)
Aaron Telitz, the reigning Pro Mazda Champion was the last car out on track, will start on the outside of the third row. The Rice Lake, Wisc. native told TSO that their were rain drops on his visor during his entire run, but was able to kept his foot in it and cross the “Yard of Bricks” to end his qualifying effort with his Soul Red No. 9 Belardi Auto Racing car in one piece.
Kyle Kaiser, and Nico Jamin – the two drivers currently sitting atop the championship standings, both had qualifying efforts to forget. Kaiser, who holds a 14 point lead over Jamin, will start his third Freedom 100 from the inside of the sixth row, while the 21 year-old Jamin will start directly behind him.
“Overall, it was a tough qualifying session. We had some engine issues when testing Monday, so we had it changed before today,” explained Jamin. “We’re not starting where I’d like to start, but we’ll see what we can do tomorrow. It’s a long race and I love drafting, so I’ll do what I can to work my way up there.”
2017 Freedom 100 qualifying results:
RANK
DRIVER
TEAM
2 LAP AVERAGE (mph)
1
Matheus Leist
Carlin
199.198
2
Colton Herta
Andretti-Steinbrenner Racing
198.648
3
Dalton Kellett
Andretti Autosport
198.011
4
Ryan Norman
Andretti Autosport
197.697
5
Zachary Claman De Melo
Carlin
197.645
6
Aaron Telitz
Belardi Auto Racing
197.216
7
Neil Alberico
Carlin
196.938
8
Garth Rickards
Carlin
196.741
9
Shelby Blackstock
Belardi Auto Racing
196.417
10
Juan Piedrahita
Team Pelfrey
196.246
11
Kyle Kaiser
Juncos Racing
196.058
12
Santi Urrutia
Belardi Auto Racing
195.861
13
Nico Jamin
Andretti Autosport
195.661
14
Nicolas Dapero
Juncos Racing
195.445
Practice notes:
After a delay of seven hours due to a persistent drizzle, the Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tire series finally took to the 2.5 mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval for practice and qualifying for the 15th Freedom 100.
The 20 minute practice session began promptly at 4:30pm, and it wasn’t long before a gloomy Speedway, Ind., was alive with the bubbling note of the Mazda 2.0L turbo-charged engines powering the 14 entries.
With conditions very different from when the series tested on Monday afternoon, most teams sent their drivers out for a qualifying simulation when the track opened for business. With a temperature of 61F and a slight breeze from the North, the temperatures were perfect for laying down quick lap speeds.
The quickest lap of the abbreviated session was a 201.032mph tow-aided lap by Carlin rookie Matheus Leist, who also had the fastest no-tow lap, a scorching 199.370mph laps. The 18 year-old Brazilian will be making his first ever oval start in tomorrow’s 40-lap race.
Carlin rookie Matheus Leist gets ready for Freedom 100 qualifying. The Brazilian who is making his first ever oval start, put together two consistent laps to take the pole for the 2017 Freedom 100 (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)
With three of the last four Freedom 100’s being decided by mere thousandths of a second, the annual 40-lap (100 mile) Indy Lights race has become a must watch for the 100,000+ raucous fans that stream into the 560 acre Indianapolis Motor Speedway facility for the Carb Day party that kicks off the “Greatest Spectacle In Racing” weekend.
For the first two years of the event, the Freedom 100 was held on the Saturday of second week Indianapolis 500 qualifying. It moved to it’s present home, Carb Day, in 2005, when Indianapolis Motor Speedway moved the final IndyCar practice from Thursday to Friday.
With 24 of the 33 starters in the 101st Indianapolis 500 presented by PennGrade Motor Oil being Indy Lights graduates, the Freedom 100 provides fans a great opportunity to catch the Verizon IndyCar Series stars of the future.
Watch the 2016 Freedom 100
Not a race for novices
In 14 Freedom 100s, the race has only been won by rookies on four different occasions, and on only one occasion, has that rookie been making their first ever oval start.
Josef Newgarden, who finished third in last years Indianapolis 500, is the only driver to win the Freedom 100 in his first ever Indy Lights oval start. Jaime Camara (2005), Dillon Battistini (2008), and Dean Stoneman (2016) all won as Indy Lights rookies, but all three had made at least one oval start in the top level of the Mazda Road To Indy presented by Cooper Tire.
Josef Newgarden celebrates his 2011 Freedom 100 win (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)
Of the seven rookies, two will be making their first ever starts on an oval. Carlin’s Matheus Leist, and Andretti Autosport’s Ryan Norman. Both drivers were able to test on the oval at Homestead-Miami Speedway in February, and both were quick in Monday’s Indy Lights test. Despite brushing the wall at the exit of Turn 2 late in the session, Leist had the third fastest lap overall, while Norman’s quickest lap speed was seventh best.
“When I first got out there, I thought ‘here I am, this is really big! We tested at Homestead back in March but this is very different,” explained the reigning 2016 BRDC British Formula 3, who is coming off his first Indy Lights podium two weekends ago. “It was very strange in the beginning, with the steering wheel not being straight and the speeds being so much faster than on a road course. I got the pace pretty quickly. We did some qualifying simulations early this afternoon and I set the fastest lap so that’s good. It still feels on the edge to me, with the car moving a lot, but I’m getting used to it. I’m a bit disappointed with my run in all the traffic late in the session but it’s my first day and I think I learned a lot – and brushing the wall is all part of the game.”
Nico Jamin, and Aaron Telitz will both be making their fourth turn left only starts, and both have had success, albeit only on the 0.625 mile Lucas Oil Raceway (LOR) flat oval.
Telitz is the only driver to have a win at LOR, coming from sixth place to take his first MRTI victory in a 75 lap USF2000 race in 2014.
“I won my first MRTI race on an oval in Indy, so I can’t wait for my first Indy Lights race on an oval. And not just any oval, but IMS! The Belardi guys have had lots of success here in the past so we have a lot to live up to this week. But I know that we are going to be fast and can hopefully be the first team to bring the Soul Red Mazda to victory lane in the Freedom 100.”
Jamin, also has a podium at LOR, starting second and fishing second in the 2015 USF2000 race.
Both drivers struggled in Pro Mazda at LOR in 2016, with Telitz finishing a disappointing fifth and Jamin finishing 7th in the series last visit to the Clermont, Ind. track.
Garth Rickards has two-top 10 finishes in his two USF2000 oval starts at LOR. The Carlin rookie finished ninth with Team Pelfrey in 2015, and improved to seventh with Pabst Racing last year.
Nicolas Dapero was impressive in his oval debut during the 90 lap Pro Mazda race at LOR in 2016. The 19 year-old Indy Lights rookie started second and finished third, his first MRTI podium.
Colton Herta, who led testing earlier this week with the only lap above 200mph, started 16th and finished fourteenth in his only MRTI oval outing, a Cooper Tires USF2000 Powered by Mazda race at Lucas Oil Raceway in 2014.
Herta, who has raced in oval free Europe for the last two years, is aware that he needs to learn quickly if he wants to contend for the win in his first Freedom 100.
“The draft was the same in the straight-line everywhere. Obviously, it was a bit more here [rather than Homestead] since we’re going quicker at Indianapolis. The main thing is slipstreaming in the corners. It’s really different from anything I’ve experienced, especially when you’re right behind someone and you put half of a wing out or a quarter of the wing out,” explained Herta. “The balance shift is massive. That’s obviously going to be something all the rookies will have to get used to. I would say down the straights, it’s nothing too different. It’s really crazy when you pull out of the slipstream, how far your head will move down in the car. You get pushed down so much with the wind, and that’s probably the biggest difference I’ve felt. You feel like you’re going that fast the first few laps, but once you kind of get into it, the other cars around you move at a similar pace, so I don’t really think about it.
Andretti-Steinbrenner Racing rookie Colton Herta was the only driver to turn a lap faster than 200mph in testing for the 2017 Freedom 100 on Monday (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)
Despite his inexperience, Herta does have a few intangible assets on his side.
The first is his race engineer Doug Zister. The Canadian engineer has won the Freedom 100 four times; in 2006, 2009, and 2010 with Wade Cunningham and in 2011 with another oval novice, Josef Newgarden.
The second, is having the wisdom of his dad Bryan Herta, and team owner Michael Andretti. The elder Herta has been able to guide two of the last six Indianapolis 500 winners to victory as their strategist, and Andretti has led 431 laps on the 2.5 mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval.
A struggle at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the championship leading team
Since the introduction of the IL-15 two years ago, the 2.5 mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval has not been kind to Juncos Racing.
In 2016: Kyle Kaiser, the current points leader started on the inside of the front row, but made hard contact with the wall at the exit of Turn 4 on the first green flag lap, and rookie Zachary Claman DeMelo finished 13th in his first Freedom 100.
In 2015: Kaiser did manage a top five finish, but clearly had nothing for the Schmidt Peterson Motorsports foursome that finished 1-2-3-4, and Spencer Pigot, the eventual 2015 title winner, was way off the pace, finishing a lap down and ninth of a 12 car field.
The Ricardo Juncos owned team will hope that the move from Brownsburg, Ind. to a new 44,000 square foot shop that is situated only half-a-mile south of the apex of the daunting Indianapolis Motor Speedway Turn 1, will change their luck at the 108 year-old speed-plant.
The current Juncos Racing duo, championship leader Kaiser and Nicolas Dapero, finished Monday’s test with the only 12th and 13th quickest speeds, but Kaiser does not seem worried by the team’s lack of pace in testing.
Juncos Racing veteran Kyle Kaiser gets ready to head on track in preparation for testing for the 2017 Freedom 100 (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)
“We didn’t really run qualifying trim. Our focus has been working on the race car,” explained the 21 year-old after testing on Monday. “We had a lot of downforce so our trap speeds haven’t been the best, but we’re working on having a good balance in the car. Everyone wants to win this race, whether your last in points or the points leader. I’m just going in trying to build a good race car and we’ll see what happens from there.”
Under the radar????
If you were to look strictly at the current points table, it would be easy to exclude Shelby Blackstock (9th), Dalton Kellett (12th) and Juan Piedrahita (14th) as threats to win the Freedom 100. That would be a big mistake.
Veteran Shelby Blackstock has two podiums in his 13 oval MRTI starts, and will be making his third Freedom 100 start. The Nashville, Tenn. native had an impressive fourth place finish in 2016, after starting 10th.
“I’m really looking forward to our biggest race of the year, the Freedom 100! It’s by far the best race and the one I look forward to the most,” said Blackstock. “Testing has been going good so far, so I’m excited to get back out there and trim more. I want to thank the entire Belardi Auto Racing team for giving us a great starting car.”
Dalton Kellett, who finished third after starting 14th last year, is the highest placed returning driver, and will be making his ninth oval start as part of the MRTI.
Dalton Kellett, who finished third in last year’s Freedom 100, during testing for the 2017 event. (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)
“The best week in racing is here! I’m extremely excited to race in the Freedom 100 this week, and to get on track,” exclaimed the 23 year-old Canadian Kellett. “Indianapolis is a magical place, and as a driver it’s a special feeling running around the oval. Last year, we had quick cars. It was an exciting race, and we were able to run well in traffic. We didn’t get the chance to see our outright speed last year with qualifying rained out, but we’re hoping for good weather this year and hope to see what two laps trimmed out feels like on the speedway. It’s our first oval race of the season, and I know we’ve all been working hard to get to this point and see the team’s hard work pay off.”
Piedrahita, who made his 100th MRTI start during the INDYCAR Grand Prix weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, is also the most experienced oval pilot in the 14 car field.
The Bogota, Colombia native will be making his 16th MRTI oval start and fourth in the Freedom 100. Piedrahita has four oval podiums and was poised to take his first victory during the 2016 Freedom 100. The 24 year-old had moved from his 13th starting spot to second place when the yellow flag came out on Lap 36. Piedrahita was balked by leader Dean Stoneman on the Lap 39 restart, almost hitting the pit attenuator, before falling to eighth place.
With an iffy weather forecast for Thursday, these three drivers will really be hoping that qualifying is not cancelled, and they get a chance to start close to the front of the 14 car field.
Three big question marks
The most pleasant surprise of the 2017 Indy Lights season so far? The performance of the Rising Star Racing sponsored Neil Alberico, who heads into the Freedom 100, in fourth place in the championship, only 37 points behind fellow points leader and fellow MRTI veteran Kaiser.
In 2016, Alberico battled engine related gremlins all season, but his seventh place finish (after starting 15th when qualifying was rained out) in the Freedom 100, that included the fastest race of the lap, was a highlight.
Neil Alberico during testing in preparation for the 2017 Freedom 100 (Photo Courtesy of IndyCar)
“Indianapolis is the Holy Grail,” said Alberico, who finished testing on Tuesday with the fourth quickest time. “You head to Indy always wanting a good result. The one race every driver wants to win is the Freedom 100 and we’re working towards that.
How Santiago Urrutia will perform on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval, is one of the big question marks heading into the Freedom 100. After a disappointing start to the his sophomore campaign, the 2016 Indy Lights vice-champion has moved into a tie for seventh. However, Urrutia’s results have been middling in his four oval events. The Uruguayan made his first oval start at Lucas Oil Raceway in Pro Mazda in 2015, and was only able to finish 15th.
After winning the 2015 Pro Mazda championship, the 20 year-old made the jump to Indy Lights, and was unable to finish in the top three in his three oval starts. That included a rough Freedom 100 in which Urrutia’s Soul Red car end the day with a mechanical issue after spin in the second half of the race.
“I am very much ready for the Freedom 100, it is the biggest race of the year,” said Urrutia. “I believe that it will be important for us to unload a good car from the hauler on Thursday, so that we can work on it and improve on it. We need a really good car so that I can be right at the top to get the crucial points we need for the championship.”
Which version of Carlin sophomore Zachary Claman DeMelo will show at Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend?
The Claman DeMelo who drove mistake free races at Barber Motorsports Park (Race 1) and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course (Race 1), or the mistake prone driver that shows up on occasion. There is no question that the 19 year-old has the pace to be a factor for race wins, having top five quickest laps in five of six race so far this year, but need to find some consistency if he wants to be a constant threat for the podium.
DeMelo started his Freedom 100 weekend off on the right foot, scoring the sixth fastest lap in testing last Monday.
Who replaces Schmidt at the top of the heap?
In 14 tries, a Sam Schmidt owned entry has visited the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Victory Podium after taking the Freedom 100 checkered flag first. The Indianapolis, Ind. based team shuttered their Indy Lights team late in 2016, and for the first time won’t field a car in the race.
Among teams entered in this year’s Freedom 100 only Belardi Auto Racing and Andretti Autosport have collected Indy Lights Victories on the 2.5 mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval.
Belardi Auto Racing’s two victories are the two most exciting finishes in Indianapolis Motor Speedway history. In 2013, Peter Dempsey, who is currently an engineer with the Juncos Racing Indy Lights program, won a four-wide drag race, beating Gabby Chaves to the line by a scant 0.0026 seconds to score the Brian Belardi’s first win at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. In 2014, it was Chaves turn to cross the yard of bricks first 0.0050 seconds ahead of Matthew Brabham in another photo finish.
A Michael Andretti owned entry made it’s first Freedom 100 appearance in 2005, when current Verizon IndyCar Series driver Marco Andretti finished 16th after starting tenth.
Over the course of the next decade, Andretti Autosport collected seven podiums at the Freedom 100 (Jaime Camara (2), Matthew Brabham, J.R. Hildebrand, Charlie Kimball, Carlos Munoz, and Zach Veach), but did not score their first win until last year, when Dean Stoneman beat Carlin’s Ed Jones to the line by a minuscule .002 seconds.
That leaves Carlin, Juncos Racing, and Team Pelfrey as the squads still looking for that coveted first win on Carb Day.
Freedom 100 – Wins By Team
Schmidt Peterson Motorsports —> 8
Belardi Auto Racing —> 2
A.J. Foyt Racing —> 1
Andretti Autosport —> 1
Brian Stewart Racing —> 1
Panther Racing —> 1
Conclusions and predictions
Despite plenty of passing, the Freedom 100 is still a race that has been won from one of the first six starting spots on all but one occasion (Esteban Guerrieri won from 15th in 2012). That means that an engineer and crew that is able to rub every little bit of friction out of the Mazda powered Dallara, and a driver that is the bravest during the two white knuckle laps will have an advantage when race downforce is added back to the car for the 40-lap Carb Day race.
Aaron Telitz leads a group of four cars during a hectic Monday test session in preparation for the Freedom 100 (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)
This has to be one of the more difficult Freedom 100’s to handicap, there are at a bare minimum 10 drivers that will have a shot to cross the “Yard of Bricks” ahead of their rivals. If someone absolutely forced me (Steve), to pick three drivers for the win, it would be veterans Kyle Kaiser, Neil Alberico, and Dalton Kellett. Having experience with the draft, while not mandatory, is a learned skill, and one that is key to performing well on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval.
Freedom 100 schedule
Thursday, May 25
9am – 9:30am – Indy Lights Practice 1
11am – 11:30am – Indy Lights Practice 2
1:30pm – 2:30pm – Indy Lights Qualifying
Friday, May 26
10am -10:30am – Indy Lights Autograph Session
12:30pm – Indy Lights Freedom 100 (40 laps)
Freedom 100 qualifying order
Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tire points headed into the Freedom 100
If this afternoon’s Indy Lights test session is an indicator of what kind of a race the Freedom 100 will be, the annual 40-lap race will be sure to wow the Carb Day Crazies.
The quickest lap of the afternoon test session was turned by Carlin rookie Matheus Leist, who will be making his first oval start on Friday. Liest’s quickest lap was clocked at 199.568mph, and the Brazilian also experienced a his first big oval moment, when his No. 26 had a tank slapper, just missing the wall at the exit of Turn 2 near the end of the session.
The first-half of the second Indy Lights test session in preparation for the Freedom 100 had the majority of the 14 entered drivers doing qualification simulations. The no-tow speeds ranged between 197.371mph and 191.762mph. Colton Herta had the fastest lap no-tow lap at 197.371 mph, and was followed closely by fellow rookies Leist, and Ryan Norman.
The final 30 minutes of the session had the 14 drivers mixing it up in what looked more like race day than a test session.
The final yellow flag of the session flew when Juncos Racing rookie Nicolas Dapero got well below the white line while going by Dalton Kellett in Turn 1. The rear end of the No. 31 stepped out at the exit of the corner and the distinctive green, white and orange liveried machine did a 360 degree spin before making contact with the SAFER barrier on the inside Turn 2.
The session went back to green with seven minutes left and once again, the track was buzzing with a horde of 2.0L turbo-charged Mazda power plants, as drivers went two and three wide into Turn 1 and Turn 3, often remaining two-wide for an entire lap.
Herta’s morning lap of 200.070mph was the quickest of the day, while Aaron Telitz’s morning lap of 199.610mph also left him ahead of Leist.
Indy Lights hits the track again for three sessions on Thursday. The 14 drivers will have two practice sessions at 9am and 11am and will qualify at 1:30pm. The green flag for the Freedom 100 is on Friday at 12:30pm.
Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tire test session #2 overall time sheet
The Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tire drivers and teams took to the 2.5 mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval for the first of two hour-and-a-half test sessions in preparation for the 15th edition of the Freedom 100 at 10 a.m.
The session began when all entries were allowed to make one install lap before the track opened up for a half-hour rookies only session. The quickest driver was Andretti Autosport rookie Colton Herta, who was turning laps in the 197mph range.
The yellow lights flashed on at almost exactly the halfway point of the session. Herta had upped his quickest lap speed to 198.069mph, and was followed closely by a trio of veterans in Zachary Claman DeMelo (Carlin), Juan Piedrahita (Team Pelfrey) and Santiago Urrutia (Belardi Auto Racing). Urrutia’s Belardi Auto Racing teammate Aaron Telitz rounded out the top five at the half-way point.
The majority of the laps in the second-half of the session had drivers trying to find traffic to learn more about how their turbo-charged Mazda powered Dallara IL-15s would behave in traffic.
With just over 30 minutes left in the session, Herta was the first driver to turn a lap over 200mph, when he went 200.070mph while running in traffic. The second generation driver ended up being the only driver north of ended up being the fastest lap of the session.
The last 15 minutes of practice had a large group seven or eight cars form up to simulate race running.
Near the end of the session, a number of drivers put on a fresh set of Cooper Tire slicks and made qualifying simulations. One of those was Andretti Autosport rookie Nico Jamin, who despite having only the 13th fastest lap overall, had the fastest no-tow lap at 196.277mph.
Carlin teammate Leist (196.116mph), and Claman De Mello (195.861mph) had the second and third quickest no-tow laps.
Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tire test session #1 overall time sheet
RANK
CAR NO.
DRIVER
QUICK LAP
LAPS TURNED
1
98
Colton Herta
200.070
44
2
9
Aaron Telitz
199.610
44
3
2
Juan Piedrahita
198.846
28
4
26
Matheus Leist
198.745
40
5
48
Ryan Norman
198.527
39
6
13
Zachary Claman De Melo
198.302
23
7
51
Shelby Blackstock
198.281
37
8
5
Santi Urrutia
198.196
32
9
22
Neil Alberico
197.807
27
10
31
Nicolas Dapero
197.443
52
11
18
Kyle Kaiser
197.417
32
12
28
Dalton Kellett
197.166
22
13
27
Nico Jamin
196.277
41
14
11
Garth Rickards
193.747
36
The Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tire drivers will be back on track from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.
In the first five races of the 2017 Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires season, Kyle Kaiser was the model of consistency. He finished between second and sixth in each race, but was yet to secure his first win of the year.
Kaiser changed the narrative today though to one of dominance, en route to an authoritative first win in 2017 in the No. 18 Juncos Racing Dallara IL-15 Mazda, to move into the series points lead. He began the day down three points to Colton Herta, in a tie for second with Nico Jamin (110 to 107).
The Californian snatched the pole position this morning for the second race of the Mazda Road to Indy Grand Prix Presented by Royal Purple Supporting the Lupus Foundation of America at the 2.439-mile, 14-turn Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, and controlled the race from the start.
Kaiser led all 35 laps and took the victory by 6.4768 seconds over Santiago Urrutia, who scored a season-best result of second place in the No. 5 Belardi Auto Racing with SPM car, the first podium for the now ARROW Electronics-liveried gold and black car. Kaiser is the first sophomore driver to win this year, after three rookies in Herta, Jamin and Aaron Telitz won the first five races.
Meanwhile Brazilian rookie Matheus Leist took his first career podium finish in third place in the No. 26 Carlin car, emerging ahead of teammate Neil Alberico in a spirited battle.
Another tough day for Herta saw him finish further down the order in 10th, which changes the championship standings.
Kaiser got a good launch away from the start ahead of Urrutia, who leapt to second from fourth on the grid, Leist, Herta, Jamin and Alberico.
On Lap 2 there was contact between rookies Nicolas Dapero and Ryan Norman at Turn 2, and as Dapero re-entered it allowed Shelby Blackstock to pass his teammate Telitz. Both Belardi Auto Racing cars though were then temporarily backed up by Zachary Claman De Melo, who ran off course on his own.
Blackstock then had his own off course excursion at Turn 1 on Lap 3, and that cost him a couple laps.
Kaiser’s primary challenge came on Lap 4 from Urrutia. The battle of sophomores – a rarity in a year dominated by rookies – saw Urrutia dive past to the inside and through. But Urrutia overshot his braking point and that allowed Kaiser back through, and as Urrutia came back to the line, it allowed Leist through to second.
Kaiser’s gap to Leist at that stage was 0.6638 of a second and grew to over a second a few laps later.
By Lap 10, Kaiser’s lead over Leist was 2.2783 seconds with Urrutia closing the gap down to just three tenths for second. Herta ran fourth ahead of Jamin, Alberico and Piedrahita.
The following lap Urrutia made it past Leist for second at Turn 12, and would be 3.6732 seconds behind Kaiser, but unfortunately for him he would get no closer than within three seconds.
Alberico got Jamin for position on Lap 12 and would look to close on Herta for fourth.
At halfway, Lap 18 of 35, Kaiser led Urrutia by 3.3754 second with Leist, Herta, Alberico, Jamin and Piedrahita in the top half of the field. After his and Dapero’s contact on Lap 2, Norman had rebounded nicely to eighth place.
The complexion of the championship battle and race changed again on Lap 20 as Herta slowed for a second straight day, this time with an apparent electrical issue per IndyCar Radio. The team confirmed Herta sustained a slow puncture from running over debris on Friday and called him in to pit, and there was no contact as Kaiser made his way past for position on Friday.
Alberico and Jamin got Herta, which dropped him to sixth after a lap of 1:20.5758. It got worse a lap later when Herta only ran a lap of 1:23.7084 and dropped five more positions, with Piedrahita and Norman through and then the trio of Dapero, Claman De Melo and Dalton Kellett. Herta’s woes backed him up to 11th, ahead of his St. Petersburg sparring partner Telitz.
With 10 laps to go Kaiser and Urrutia maintained the top two positions with more than five seconds separating them but the battle was shaping up for third between the Carlin teammates, Leist and Alberico, for the final podium position.
As of Lap 34, Kaiser led Urrutia by 6.3819 seconds with Leist third, Alberico in fourth and Jamin, Piedrahita and Norman within striking distance.
Alberico closed a bit on Leist but not enough to properly complete a pass. He damaged his front wing while running behind the Brazilian and began the tour of his final lap with debris shedding on the front straight and smoke from the damage. A piece of debris nearly struck Piedrahita, running in his own repaired Team Pelfrey chassis, as he tried to evade the stricken Alberico as he opted not to pit.
Jamin made it past for fourth, with Piedrahita making it past later in the lap for fifth. Alberico limped home to the line for sixth over Norman by just 0.063 of a second, after a final lap at 1:21.6959 – more than 3.4 seconds slower than Kaiser up front.
But indeed it was Kaiser who had none of the drama the others in this race did, with the victory margin north of six seconds over Urrutia, and Leist on the podium.
Jamin salvaged a fourth after starting seventh with Piedrahita a season-best fifth – a fitting result for his 100th career start in the Mazda Road to Indy presented by Cooper Tires. His best prior to today was 10th in St. Petersburg race two.
Alberico was sixth ahead of Norman, who also turned in a season-best result of seventh. The driver of the No. 48 Flip Side entry for Andretti Autosport had a best result of eighth on Friday in race one; this is his fifth top-10 finish in six starts in what is quickly becoming a quietly consistent season.
Dapero and Kellett were next with Herta only 10th, after he and Kellett got around the ailing Claman De Melo in the final few laps.
Garth Rickards ended 12th ahead of Telitz in 13th, who endured something of a second straight nightmare weekend, and Shelby Blackstock completed the runners.
Kaiser was worried about the start but once he got through that, said he was thrilled with the performance the rest of the race. Because he’s been with Juncos several years, there is a chemistry with his crew – especially as he now lives in Indianapolis – that comes from frequently attending the shop. The team has improved its setup and performance at Indianapolis over the years to where there’s a confidence now that perhaps didn’t exist in the past.
For Urrutia, the runner-up finish was not the easiest to accept, because while his car had pace, the rest of his Belardi team did not seem to this weekend. He said they need to dig deep to understand the gap to some of the other teams for the following races.
Leist drove smartly in his run to his first podium finish, and said it was nice to finally get a result after having pace but not necessarily results in the opening two weekends. A potential podium in St. Petersburg went begging with mechanical issues.
Indy Lights’ next race is the Freedom 100 from the IMS oval on Friday, May 26, Carb Day – a marquee event for the series and its drivers given its propensity for close, grandstand finishes.
Two of the three leading contenders for the Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires championship will start in the top two positions on the grid for the second race of the Mazda Road to Indy Grand Prix Presented by Royal Purple Supporting the Lupus Foundation of America weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.
Kyle Kaiser has his second pole position of the season for Juncos Racing, as the driver of the No. 18 Dallara IL-15 Mazda set the only sub-1:15 lap around the 2.439-mile, 14-turn circuit in Saturday morning’s 30-minute qualifying session, at 1:14.9629.
Kaiser has finished between second and sixth in all five races thus far and enters three points behind Andretti/Steinbrenner Racing rookie Colton Herta, like Kaiser a fellow Californian, ahead of today’s race. Herta put his No. 98 entry into second on the grid at 1:15.1339.
The two will be looking for a smoother start today then the last time they qualified first and second at Barber race one. There, Kaiser and Herta had the front row but a bunched up start coming to the line saw Herta damage his front wing while trying to slot in behind Kaiser going into the downhill, left-handed Turn 1. Herta ultimately fell to 10th while Kaiser was in some respects happy to be frustrated with second behind eventual winner Nico Jamin.
Jamin, the Andretti Autosport driver and Friday winner, who like Kaiser is also three points behind Herta entering today’s race (110-107), was only able to manage seventh on the grid today.
Brazilian Matheus Leist was best of the Carlin quartet in his No. 26 entry and will start third, ahead of Belardi with SPM driver Santiago Urrutia and Juan Piedrahita, impressing with fifth in the repaired No. 2 Team Pelfrey entry.
The Colombian driver will be set to make his 100th career start in the Mazda Road to Indy presented by Cooper Tires this afternoon, thanks to the Gary Neal-led team’s work in repairing the car. Neal told TSO the team was at the track until 8:30 p.m. on Friday following Piedrahita’s accident in practice, which saw him lose control through the chicane and sustain significant right side damage.
Neil Alberico was sixth ahead of Jamin, Dalton Kellett, Friday runner-up Zachary Claman De Melo and Shelby Blackstock. Aaron Telitz, the St. Petersburg winner, struggled to only 13th on the grid of 14 cars.
The feature race of the weekend sets sail this afternoon in the 1:15 to 2:25 p.m. window.
Nico Jamin’s roll of winning has continued in the first of two Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires races at the 2.439-mile, 14-turn Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, with his sixth win in his last seven overall starts between three series. This capped off nine sessions of activity for the Mazda Road to Indy presented by Cooper Tires today as part of the Mazda Road to Indy Grand Prix Presented by Royal Purple Supporting the Lupus Foundation of America weekend.
Crucially though, this is the second win in his last three starts in Indy Lights, and will move him within a handful of points of his Andretti Autosport teammate, Colton Herta, for the championship lead.
The Frenchman dominated the 30-lap sprint race from pole in the No. 27 DuraMAX Powered by RelaDyne Dallara IL-15 Mazda, en route to his second win this season and third at the IMS road course. He swept the pair of USF2000 races in 2015 with Cape Motorsports, in a year when he won that series championship.
Jamin had to hold off a challenge from the surprisingly quick, and tenacious, Zachary Claman De Melo. The teenaged Canadian had by far his best day in Indy Lights to date, starting and finishing second although it was not as straightforward as the results would indicate.
Californians Kyle Kaiser (Juncos Racing) and Neil Alberico (Carlin) were third and fourth on the day, after starting fourth and third, respectively. Brazilian rookie Matheus Leist completed the top five for Carlin for his second top-five finish this year.
The 14-car grid, which was already down by one with Pato O’Ward not appearing this weekend, suffered another hit before the race. Juan Piedrahita was unable to start after an accident in practice, which left Team Pelfrey without a driver and the field at an unlucky 13 cars.
Both Herta and Aaron Telitz (Belardi Auto Racing) advanced four spots from sixth and eighth on the grid up to second and fourth by the end of Lap 1 after a rocket start.
At the end of the first lap, Jamin led Herta, Kaiser, Telitz, Alberico and Claman De Melo, who’d dropped four spots on the opening lap.
Dalton Kellett pitted on Lap 2. Despite improved pace in qualifying it has been a struggle for the Canadian sophomore to back that up with results thus far this year at Andretti Autosport.
The race settled into a quick rhythm over the first third of the race.
At Lap 10, the order was still Jamin, Herta, Kaiser and Alberico, with Claman De Melo having got around Telitz to get back into the top five.
On Lap 12, Nicolas Dapero went off course past Turn 7 at the Turn 8/9 back-and-forth complex. The Argentine rookie resumed after the delay. Meanwhile for position, Claman De Melo got by Alberico for fourth place.
The dramatic moment of the race took place on Lap 14. Kaiser made it past Herta with an aggressive move to the inside at Turn 10, and it appeared there may have been contact between the pair of Californians, that knocked Herta back. An opportunistic Claman De Melo also seized his chance and followed Kaiser through, to slot into third.
Herta’s plunge continued as Alberico got past him for fourth place on Lap 15. With Herta ailing, Telitz was able to get past him on Lap 17 for fifth, but the Wisconsin native who now lives in Minnesota fell victim to Leist’s advances on the same lap.
With his car struggling, Herta opted to pit on Lap 17. The team confirmed this was due to a right rear tire puncture, which was enough to drop him down the order and cost him a significant result in the process. He ultimately ended in 12th place.
After this stop, and into the final 10 laps, Jamin led Kaiser by more than two seconds with Claman De Melo, Alberico and Leist the top five. Telitz was sixth ahead of teammate Santiago Urrutia in the ARROW Electronics-liveried Belardi with SPM entry, Ryan Norman, Shelby Blackstock and Garth Rickards in the top 10.
On Lap 24, Claman De Melo got aggressive again on his former teammate at Juncos Racing, Kaiser. Drafting Kaiser, he got a run to the outside, and nearly chopped back across once he completed the pass into Turn 1. His pace was excellent so he set sail from there to catch Jamin for the win.
What seemed a certainty for the win became in doubt as Claman De Melo carved anywhere from three to eight tenths per laps out of Jamin’s lead, which had been north of 2.5 seconds but quickly dwindled to just over one second with one lap to go.
Jamin held off Claman De Melo by 0.8405 of a second at the finish, with Kaiser continuing his consistent start to the year. He’s finished no worse than sixth in any of the first five races, and this was his third podium.
Alberico banked his fourth top-five in five races with Leist continuing the good day for Carlin behind him.
Pro Mazda champion and St. Petersburg winner Telitz did not seem to have the pace today and was perhaps lucky to escape with sixth, ahead of Urrutia, Norman, Blackstock and Rickards.
With 10th place, USF2000 graduate and Mechanicsburg, Pa. native Rickards has his first top-10 in Indy Lights, completing a four-for-four top-10 day for Carlin and thus ensuring each of the 15 drivers who have started an Indy Lights race this year has at least one top-10 result.
After the race, Jamin admitted he was a bit nervous as Claman De Melo closed the gap in the final stages of the race. He had one close call as both he and Herta locked up into Turn 1 earlier on, but once Herta fell out he was a bit relieved. Jamin has been in the heart of championship battles with his teammates before – he and Telitz both drove for Cape in the year Jamin won the USF2000 title – and has a head on his shoulders to handle the pressure.
Claman De Melo said his race craft has always been strong but his qualifying hasn’t properly measured up. With second on the grid today, his first podium was the goal and was achieved. He said he is working well with his four teammates at his new team, and having switched from Juncos last year he is now meshing with the group he’s got now, as Alberico has aided his transition.
Kaiser drove another smart race. He hailed Claman De Melo’s race craft but both drivers admitted the Canadian’s pass for second was a bit risky, although it was pulled off!
The championship swing sees Herta’s points lead drop. Unofficially he has 110 points to Jamin and Kaiser’s 107 each. Telitz with 89 and Alberico with 88 complete the unofficial top five.
The second Indy Lights race of the weekend is in the 1:15 to 2:15 p.m. window on Saturday.
The Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires series hasn’t had as much track time as the other two rungs of the Mazda Road to Indy presented by Cooper Tires ladder, Pro Mazda and USF2000, through today’s first practice and qualifying sessions. One of Indy Lights’ two test sessions on Thursday was rain affected and by the time Indy Lights was out for the first time on Thursday, it had came after Pro Mazda, USF2000 and the headlining Verizon IndyCar Series had all been on the 2.439-mile, 14-turn Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.
Quick recaps of practice and qualifying before race one are below.
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In a 30-minute qualifying session held this afternoon, but limited after an accident that caused a red flag, Nico Jamin has captured the pole position for today’s fifth round of the Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires season.
The driver of the slightly revised livery for Andretti Autosport, the No. 27 DuraMAX Powered by RelaDyne Dallara IL-15 Mazda otherwise sponsored by Synova, has the top spot with a best time of 1:15.2443.
On the front row in a surprise second place is Canadian teenager Zachary Claman De Melo in the No. 13 Carlin entry. Claman De Melo has several fourth place finishes in his Indy Lights career but has never stood on a podium. He slotted in with a best time of 1:15.3755.
Neil Alberico, Carlin’s leading driver this year, put the Rising Star Racing-supported No. 22 entry into third on the grid ahead of fellow Californian Kyle Kaiser, who led practice this morning for Juncos Racing.
The other two winners beyond Jamin this year, Colton Herta and Aaron Telitz, slot in sixth and eighth on the grid.
Unfortunately Juan Piedrahita’s quest to make his 100th career start on the Mazda Road to Indy may have been dealt a setback with an accident in qualifying. The Colombian driver of the No. 2 Team Pelfrey entry lost control exiting Turn 4 going into Turn 5, with TSO understanding the car has likely suffered significant wing, right side and suspension damage. It will make a long bit of work ahead for the Gary Neal-led team in the quest to see Piedrahita out for today’s first race of the weekend, or if not then, for tomorrow’s second race of the weekend. Team Pelfrey is down to one car this weekend anyway with Pato O’Ward not continuing into the doubleheader weekend.
The race runs within the one-hour window from 5:50 to 6:50 p.m. this evening.
P
No
Name
FTime
1
27
Nico Jamin
1:15.244
2
13
Zachary Claman De Melo
1:15.376
3
22
Neil Alberico
1:15.451
4
18
Kyle Kaiser
1:15.487
5
5
Santi Urrutia
1:15.494
6
98
Colton Herta
1:15.581
7
51
Shelby Blackstock
1:15.586
8
9
Aaron Telitz
1:15.770
9
26
Matheus Leist
1:15.835
10
28
Dalton Kellett
1:15.915
11
48
Ryan Norman
1:15.925
12
31
Nicolas Dapero
1:16.166
13
11
Garth Rickards
1:16.692
14
2
Juan Piedrahita
1:25.379
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Prior to qualifying, Indy Lights held its only 45-minute practice session Friday morning, following both USF2000 and Pro Mazda qualifying and then the first of two Verizon IndyCar Series practice sessions.
Kyle Kaiser looks to add his name to the winners list in Indy Lights this season and topped this first official session of the weekend, in the No. 18 Juncos Racing Dallara IL-15 Mazda at 1:15.1190.
Fellow California native and series points leader Colton Herta, in the No. 98 Andretti/Steinbrenner Racing entry, was second at 1:15.3540.
Belardi Auto Racing’s pair of Santiago Urrutia and Shelby Blackstock were next up, with Urrutia jumping to third right near the end of the session. Piedrahita of Team Pelfrey was fifth, thus making it four of the five teams in the top five.
The best of four Carlin entries was only Zachary Claman De Melo in seventh. Another driver who struggled this session was Belardi’s Aaron Telitz, only 12thh of the 14 drivers entered.
Qualifying was next up for Indy Lights, which ran from 1:45 to 2:15 p.m.
Thursday is a busy day for teams in all three rungs of the Mazda Road to Indy presented by Cooper Tires ladder, in preparation for this weekend’s six-pack of races on the 2.439-mile, 14-turn Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.
The official name of the race weekend is the Mazda Road to Indy Grand Prix Presented by Royal Purple Supporting the Lupus Foundation of America. It’s a long name but stems from an extended partnership between Royal Purple Synthetic Oil and the Mazda Road to Indy during May, which is Lupus Awareness Month. All cars are carrying a special decal and there’s also a hashtag, #RaceToEndLupus.
Prior to official track activity, there were six test sessions held on the cloudy, overcast day – two apiece per series – before USF2000 and Pro Mazda are set to hold their official first practice sessions of half an hour each. Quick notes from those and a couple other preliminary notes are below.
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In Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires, the best times were set in the only fully dry session for the series, held from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. ET and local time this morning.
Nico Jamin, in the newly revised DuraMAX Powered by Reladyne liveried No. 27 Dallara IL-15 Mazda for Andretti Autosport, was first at 1:15.064. Kyle Kaiser was second for Juncos Racing with Neil Alberico third for Carlin, and Colton Herta and Zachary Claman De Melo completed the top five.
Jamin enters the weekend after a run of winning five of his last six overall race starts in three entirely different types of cars. In a Ligier JS P3, he won both IMSA Prototype Challenge presented by Mazda races at Sebring in March, the week after his Indy Lights debut at St. Petersburg. Then he won his first Indy Lights race last time out Barber. Lastly a week after Barber, he won both GTS class races in Pirelli World Challenge in a KTM X-BOW GT4. Both sports cars he raced were entered by ANSA Motorsports.
With rain spritzing during the second session, very few cars took the opportunity to run on a damp track. Only five of the 14 drivers entered ventured out on the circuit, and Neil Alberico posted a best time of 1:25.484. Alberico and all three of his teammates, Claman De Melo, Garth Rickards and Matheus Leist, plus Juncos Racing’s Nicolas Dapero were the only drivers to venture onto the circuit.
Session 1
1 27 Nico Jamin 1:15.064
2 18 Kyle Kaiser 1:15.093
3 22 Neil Alberico 1:15.194
4 98 Colton Herta 1:15.252
5 13 Zachary Claman De Melo 1:15.280
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Pro Mazda Championship Presented by Cooper Tires saw two drivers not named Anthony Martin top the timesheets in the pair of sessions. TJ Fischer of Team Pelfrey paced the opening hour session with a best time of 1:24.015, while Victor Franzoni of Juncos Racing was fastest in the second session at 1:23.446. Martin was second in both sessions, and Carlos Cunha was third in both.
Both Fischer and Franzoni, who were third and second in the two St. Petersburg races to Martin, come into Indianapolis having been busy in the near two-month break.
Fischer completed a 63-flight climb of the Aon Center in Los Angeles in the American Lung Association’s Fight For Air Climb in Los Angeles, as part of Project O2’s #Race2TheRescue for asthma awareness.
Franzoni, meanwhile, comes to Indianapolis after racing old stock cars in his native Brazil. Franzoni made his Pro Mazda debut here for M1 Racing two years ago but last year was back in USF2000, and he also tested with Juncos at October’s Chris Griffis Memorial Mazda Road to Indy test. Franzoni told TSO there wasn’t a need to run too much this morning as he feels confident in the team’s setup and dynamic heading into this weekend, as he seeks his first Pro Mazda victory.
Session 1
1 82 TJ Fischer 1:24.015
2 8 Anthony Martin 1:24.097
3 81 Carlos Cunha 1:24.672
4 23 Victor Franzoni 1:24.729
5 80 Nikita Lastochkin 1:24.995
Session 2
1 23 Victor Franzoni 1:23.446
2 8 Anthony Martin 1:23.800
3 81 Carlos Cunha 1:23.811
4 82 TJ Fischer 1:24.185
5 15 Phillippe Denes 1:24.411
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In a surprise to almost no one, Cape Motorsports’ dynamic rookie Oliver Askew led both Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda on top of both test sessions.
The driver of the No. 3 Tatuus USF-17 Mazda posted a best time of 1:25.784 in the morning’s first one-hour session, which was the first session of the day, and then went nearly a second faster in the afternoon at 1:24.703. With the official track and qualifying record of Anthony Martin coming last year at 1:26.1053, the track record will be set this weekend if conditions remain dry.
Askew made his USF2000 test debut here at the Griffis test in October, a week after winning last year’s Team USA Scholarship. But he tested then in Cape’s previous generation Van Diemen chassis, as the combination of the older Van Diemens joined the fresh-out-of-the-box Tatuus cars.
Dakota Dickerson was second for Newman Wachs Racing in the opening session, as the team’s only entrant this weekend, with series debutante Callan O’Keeffe of South Africa third for Team BENIK. Kaylen Frederick of Team Pelfrey and Parker Thompson of Exclusive Autosport were second and third in the second session. Pelfrey’s Ayla Agren was fifth in both, as she seeks her first top-five finish of the year this weekend.
1 3 Oliver Askew 1:24.703
2 81 Kaylen Frederick 1:25.159
3 90 Parker Thompson 1:25.211
4 22 Calvin Ming 1:25.329
5 82 Ayla Agren 1:25.369
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Other pre-race notes from the Mazda Road to Indy paddock:
The paddock layout is changed from previous years here into just one main dividing road with teams from all three series split vertically on either side. Previously, it had been laid out horizontally, with more zigging-and-zagging between rows if you will.
Indy Lights’ car count drops by one to 14 as Pato O’Ward, who swept Pro Mazda here last year for Team Pelfrey, isn’t here. TSO understands O’Ward, who was only officially confirmed for St. Petersburg and continued into Barber, was unable to gather the necessary budget to offset crash damage from the opening two weekends.
Pro Mazda’s car count grows by one to 15 with the additions of Bob Kaminsky (Kaminsky Racing) and Steven Ford (World Speed Motorsports) to the National Class. It would have gone to 16, but Max Hanratty (ArmsUp Motorsports) is withdrawn as he is racing in a European Le Mans Series event this weekend in an LMP3 car for Eurointernational.
Incidentally, Hanratty is in the same field as past MRTI IMS road course winners Sean Rayhall (2015, 8Star Motorsports, Indy Lights) and Will Owen (2014, Pabst Racing, USF2000), both of whom won the ELMS opener in Silverstone in the LMP3 and LMP2 classes with Zak Brown and Richard Dean’s United Autosports team.
The USF2000 field drops by one to 23 following several changes from Barber. Newman Wachs, as noted, is at only one car with Dakota Dickerson. Neither Andre Castro nor Flinn Lazier is here. Callan O’Keefe replaces Toby Sowery at Team BENIK. Colin Kaminsky’s car continues under the John Cummiskey Racing banner, after initially being entered as Kaminsky Racing; Bayley Mickler, the Australian driver, is not here this weekend. Exclusive Autosport expands to a fourth car with Canadian Jayson Clunie, while BN Racing makes its first start of 2017 with Chicago native David Malukas.
