Archives for Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tire – TSO

Rebuilding Indy Lights – Part 1 of 3 – A more reliable power plant, decreased costs, more prize money and new teams

Posted by  on Thursday, August 2nd 2018     

By Steve Wittich

Despite having some terrific on-track racing this season, the seven cars participating in most Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires events this season is not a sustainable model for the long-term health of that series and the Verizon IndyCar Series. Something needs to be done to improve the health of the series, and the announcement of a five-year plan by INDYCAR and Andersen Promotions will play a significant role in shoring up the series that helped train 27 of the 39 drivers that have made appearances in the Verizon IndyCar Series this season.

“The announcement that just came out today is something I’ve been working on with Jason Penix (Director of Development Series) and Jay Frye ( INDYCAR President of Competition and Operations) for more than three months to address some of the concerns I’ve had,” explained Andersen Promotions Owner and CEO Dan Andersen to TSO Ladder. “I worked on all of the cost-cutting ideas on my own, and got Dallara, AER, Cooper and all of the other partners to ante up and drop the costs significantly, especially for new teams coming in.

“IndyCar’s part was to do the licensing and testing changes that would encourage drivers to come to Indy Lights and IndyCar teams to also join Indy Lights.”

The plan has been well received among current Indy Lights competitors with JF Thorman, President, Andretti Autosport telling us:

“We have been competing in Indy Lights and the Road to Indy for many years and truly feel it is one of the best driver development system in motorsport, and vital to the future success of the IndyCar Series. We’re very encouraged by the five-year planned rolled out by Andersen Promotions and INDYCAR, and applaud all involved for their efforts and commitment to the see the program once again grow. The Road to Indy has helped develop some of the top drivers in the IndyCar Series, and we’re happy to see a renewed focus on a program that, we believe, will continue to bring diverse talent to American open-wheel racing.”

Backing up a little before getting into yesterday’s announcement, the first thing done to strengthen the top step of the American open-wheel ladder was to ensure that some issues with the Mazda MZR-R turbocharged 2-liter four-cylinder power plant have been rectified.

With zero loss of track time to any engine-related technical matter and zero “down-on-power” reports filed in 2018, the constant off-the-record complaints from participants have entirely disappeared through the first 14 races of the 2018 season.

“From the engine spec when this project started we’ve upgraded the turbos (which are now watercooled), wastegate, boost box and alternator,” explained AER’s Indy Lights Program Manager, Will Pedley. “These upgrades were necessary to ensure that every engine would not only provide equal performance to all the other engines, but equal performance through the entire 5,000-mile rebuild interval. The upgraded components are all more expensive than the ones they replaced, but we’ve tried to absorb as much of the incremental cost as possible.”

With that issue sorted, the next question to tackle was reducing budgets. Over the first four season of IL-15 competition, run-costs have risen to the point that to do a season adequately required a budget of just over seven-figures. That’s over 40% more then what a season with the previous generation Indy Lights machinery required.

The first step in lowering costs came when Andersen informed the teams that the current Indy Lights tub would be utilized for three more seasons, allowing teams to save budget by spreading the depreciation over a more extended time period.

The next step that Andersen has been working on has been to lower the costs from primary partners AER, Cooper Tire, Dallara, Motegi Wheels and other partners, which has been accomplished. The cost of an engine lease from AER, each set of Cooper Tires, spare parts from Dallara and new Motegi Wheels has been lowered for the existing teams.

Decreased costs of Cooper Tire rubber and Motegi Wheels are part of reducing the Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires budget (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

Something else new starting next year will be a more significant discount for teams running three or more cars.

The final step to lowering budgets has been to change the number of days the teams are allowed to test.

This year, there nine days of series open tests, two days of in-season testing, and unrestricted off-season testing from the end of the last race through February 14, with a blackout period between December 15 to January 15.

Next year there will be five days of series open testing (also one rookie oval day) and two days of in-season testing. The most significant change comes with reduced off-season testing opportunities.

There will be a testing blackout from the final race of the season at Portland International Raceway on Labor Day weekend through the Chris Griffis Memorial Test at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course on September 22-23. From that point, unrestricted open testing is allowed until December 15. A testing blackout is enforced for the next month, and after January 15, testing is limited to the series open tests and two allotted test days. Test evaluations for new drivers or tests with Pro Mazda and USF2000 drivers are not included.

The team owners TSO Ladder have talked with, believe these cost reducing efforts will lower budgets from seven figures to six figures. That moves the costs for a prospective buyer below an important psychological barrier.

To go along with the lowered budgets is increased scholarship and prize money.

The winner will now receive a scholarship worth $1.1 million, an increase of 10%.

Thanks to increased contributions by INDYCAR, prize money available during the race weekends will also increase by $100,000 over the course of the season. For instance, winning the Freedom 100 will now pay $50,000 instead of $40,000.

Colton Herta takes the checkered flag just ahead of Patricio O’Ward at the Freedom 100. Increased prize money is part of a five-year plan to stabilize the Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires series

Prize money has not only been increased, but it has been reconstituted as well. Previously, the top five in each race received prize money, and now only the podium finishers will be rewarded. That increases the winner’s share of the prize money by 50%.

End of season awards will also be top-heavy, with only the top three teams receiving a check at the season-ending banquet.

With only three teams running the full season in 2018, attracting new teams to Indy Lights is also essential. To address this Andersen has put together a package of even lower costs and free testing to attract new teams to the series.

Andersen told TSO Ladder:

“The deal we have going for new teams to come in is fantastic. They can get a car at a bigger discount. They can get two free test days at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, which includes six sets of tires and 1,500 engine miles. That allows them to go testing right away in the fourth quarter of this year with a big saving in money. They can hit the ground running. I designed that plan so a team can come in and catch up. I took a little heat from some of my existing teams that said what about us. I’ll do a lot to take care of you too. If you expand from two cars to three cars, I’ll help you out too.”

Ed note: the 1,500 engine miles is a $30,000 value, six sets of tires are almost $7,000, and that doesn’t include the saving on track rental.

While no announcements have been made, the likelihood of new teams joining Indy Lights would not shock TSO Ladder. We know of two teams considering returning to the series, four MRTI teams possibly looking to move up, and one Verizon IndyCar Series considering a move to Indy Lights.

The final part of attracting new drivers to the series is preaching the gospel of the Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires worldwide. To that end, Andersen will be bringing on a recruiter to help teams connect with drivers around the world.

That brings us to the end of Part 1 of our series on rebuilding the Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires series. Part 2 will cover the revised INDYCAR driver licensing guidelines and the expansion of the Verizon IndyCar Series testing program, and Part 3 will cover losing and replacing Mazda as an entitlement sponsor.

Much thanks to Dan Andersen for taking the time to go over his side of the plan in more detail.

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Mazda ending its support for the Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires after a nine-year partnership – this year’s winners will still be awarded their scholarships

Posted by  on Tuesday, July 31st 2018     

By Steve Wittich

After eight seasons of support, Mazda will no longer be participating in the Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires after the 2018 season comes to a close at Portland International Raceway on Labor Day Weekend. The Irvine, Calif. company has decided to refocus its resources on other motorsports initiatives, bringing to an end a successful program that began nine years ago.

“On behalf of Mazda, I’d like to thank Andersen Promotions and everyone involved with the Road to Indy for a wonderful nine years, but the time has come for Mazda to focus our resources into other areas of our motorsports footprint,” explained John Doonan, Director, Mazda Motorsports. “We have truly enjoyed our role in developing young racers into Indy 500 hopefuls, and we look forward to continuing our relationship with Andersen Promotions through the Battery Tender Global MX-5 Cup. The 2018 USF2000, Pro Mazda and Indy Lights champions will receive Mazda Advancement Scholarships for the 2019 season and the annual $200,000 Mazda Road to Indy Global shootout will also be held in December of this season. Motorsports is at the core of Mazda’s DNA and the company remains committed to its variety of motorsports programs in the coming years including our grassroots club racing initiatives, the Battery Tender Global MX-5 Cup presented by BFGoodrich, the Mazda Road to 24, and Mazda Team Joest.”

For the past eight racing seasons, the Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires has provided young drivers hope and an opportunity to move to the next level of American open-wheel racing with over $12 million of advancement scholarships being awarded to 20+ drivers. That announcement was made on December 9, 2010.

The Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires was born on December 9, 2010 (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

The Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda, Pro Mazda Presented By Cooper Tire and Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires will all receive their scholarships to compete in 2019. As well, the annual $200,000 Mazda Road to Indy Global shootout will be held this December, and that driver will be the final Mazda sponsored driver on the Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires.

“We would like to thank Mazda for nine tremendous years in supporting and headlining the Mazda Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires,” said Dan Andersen, Owner, and CEO of Anderson Promotions reacting to the news. “They have been a great partner, and their scholarships have helped so many drivers achieve their dream of progressing to the Verizon IndyCar Series. Mazda has been a key player in establishing and helping to grow our driver development system into the unparalleled program it is today. They remain with us through the end of this season and will once again be awarding each of our series’ champions a scholarship to move up to the next step in 2019 as well as the winner of the USF2000 $200K Scholarship Shootout in December.

“As their marketing objectives pursue new horizons, we at Andersen Promotions are committed to maintaining the outstanding ladder structure we have in place for 2019 and beyond. We are currently in discussions with several potential companies as we actively pursue a new partner.”

Cooper Tire, who has been a part of the Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires since the initial announcement remains committed to the Road To Indy program.

“Mazda has been a great supporter of the Road to Indy and integral in the development of this program as the only true path to IndyCar,” said Chris Pantani, Director of Motorsports for Cooper Tire. “Their contribution will have lasting positive effect on the series and drivers who have participated in the program. Cooper is looking forward to a successful culmination of the 2018 race season and an exciting 2019 season as we continue to work in concert with Andersen Promotions as the presenting sponsor for the Road to Indy program, developing the next generation of open-wheel talent for IndyCar.”

INDYCAR, who has been the sanctioning body for the Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires provided the following statement:

The Road to Indy program has staged great racing over the years while developing teams and drivers for the Verizon IndyCar Series, and that will continue with plans soon to be announced. Mazda has been a transformative partner, and INDYCAR is appreciative of its many contributions.

Andersen Promotions will remain partnered with Mazda for the Battery Tender Global MX-5 Cup, which the Palmetto, Fla. based organization has been operating for the past two seasons.

TSO Ladder will have more reaction to this news as the day goes on, but this is VERY big news.

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MRTI Update #15 from Mid-Ohio – O’Ward leads a Andretti Autosport sweep for the second straight day

Posted by  on Sunday, July 29th 2018     

By Patrick Stephan

The Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires race #2 got started with the track temp at 101, the air temp at 75 and 60% humidity. We were seeing mostly cloudy skies for this event, though the sun had been out until just before the green flag flew.

The seven-car field came down to the start/finish line, and Pato O’Ward quickly got the jump on fellow front row starter Aaron Telitz. Unfortunately, Telitz wasn’t able to match Ward on the first lap, and he would soon be in the sights of third place starting Colton Herta.

Further back we had a tight battle for fifth as Dalton Kellett tried to pick up the spot from Victor Franzoni. They would battle side by side through Turns 4, 5, 6, but Franzoni would eventually get that spot.

Up front, Aaron Telitz would lose both the 2nd and 3rd spots on the Lap 2. Colton Herta went around the outside of Telitz in Turn 2 (the keyhole), and he would bring 5th starting Santi Urrutia along with him later in the lap.

Kellett would lose the 6th spot to Ryan Norman on Lap 3.

O’Ward was at the point stretching his lead to over 2 seconds by the end of the first lap, and it was up to 2.8 seconds on Lap 10.

We would then get a yellow as Telitz, and Franzoni get together through the esses (Turns 4 and 5). Franzoni was on the outside of Turn 4, giving him the inside line to Turn 5. But, Franzoni would drop a wheel into the dirt on that short “straight” connecting the turns. When they got to the left-handed Turn 5, Franzoni slid just a little, and with Telitz on the outside, they make contact.

Franzoni’s right front just clipped Telitz left rear and sent the Wisconsin driver spinning and then stalling at Turn 5.

The AMR INDYCAR Safety Team got Telitz pointed the right direction, and he would rejoin the field, and we would go back to green at the end of Lap 12.

Lap 13 and we would see Franzoni coming to the pits to serve a drive-through penalty for avoidable contact, dropping him to 7th.

Herta wasn’t able to quickly jump on O’Ward after the restart, but on Lap 15, the lead just 0.6111. O’Ward wasn’t able to put a big gap on Herta at this stage of the race.

The order on Lap 17 is O’Ward by 0.6020, then Herta, Urrutia, Norman, Kellett, Franzoni, and Telitz.

On Lap 18, Herta takes the fight to O’Ward, and he tries the outside and inside as he uses the push to pass to take the lead going down to Turn 4. O’Ward won’t give away the spot though and fights back, keeping the lead.

Further back, we have Norman all over Urrutia as he tries to make a move for the third spot, but can’t quite get it done. He would finally get the final podium position on Lap 20.

The battle for the lead has only slightly subsided as Herta can at times close to a couple of car lengths into Turn 4, but can’t yet take the top spot.

Lap 23 and O’Ward leads by 0.6961, but Herta is down to just three push to pass activations remaining.

O’Ward stretches his lead on lap 24 to 1.1197, but Herta hits the button again and closes the gap down to 0.8961 on Lap 25, and then to 0.6652 on Lap 26.

Herta would then use his last push to pass on Lap 27, but can’t make a move to the lead, and he drops back to 1.4489 seconds behind O’Ward when they get back to the timing line. The next time by, O’Ward starts increasing the gap over 2.0 seconds. Lap 29 and the lead is 2.7361.

Pato O’Ward will take the checkered flag 4.3680 seconds ahead of Herta, with Ryan Norman getting the final podium spot a further 6..4 seconds back.

O’Wards fourth win in the last five races is his sixth victory of the 2018 season and jumps him out to a 32 point lead over Herta with three laps remaining (Gateway, and a doubleheader at Portland).

—–

P No Name Laps Diff Status Team Points
1 27 Patricio O’Ward 30 Active Andretti 395
2 98 Colton Herta 30 4.3680 Active Andretti 363
3 48 Ryan Norman 30 10.8640 Active Andretti 269
4 5 Santi Urrutia 30 15.7157 Active Belardi 325
5 28 Dalton Kellett 30 20.1273 Active Andretti 250
6 23 Victor Franzoni 30 24.8635 Active Juncos 279
7 9 Aaron Telitz 29 – 1 Lap Active Belardi 250
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Harding Racing to test at Portland International Raceway on August 3rd with Indy Lights driver(s).

Posted by  on Sunday, July 29th 2018     

By Steve Wittich

On Friday, Aug. 3, 2018, Harding Racing will be testing (an) Indy Light(s) drivers at Portland International Raceway.

“It’s a continuation of the plan we announced earlier when we recognized where we were with this season and getting some driver evaluations in,” explained Harding Racing President Brian Barnhart to TSO Ladder. “Conor (Daly) has done a nice job for us in Toronto and so far this weekend here at Mid-Ohio.”

“Even back then we announced that we’d like to take a look at some of the top talents in Indy Lights and we’re going to take the opportunity to do so. We changed our test from St. Louis (Gateway Motorsports Park) to go out to Portland (International Raceway) to do it.

“Logistically it’s challenging, but it’s probably the appropriate race track to give those guys the first chance of getting in a race car. So, we’re looking forward to doing exactly what we said. We’re going to explore the young, aggressive good talent that’s out there and also continue to find a good mix with some experienced drivers before the season is over.”

Barnhart would not share with TSO Ladder who would be in the car but intimated it would likely be more than one driver and they would come from the top of the Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires points standings. TSO Ladder did enquire with those drivers, but none of them would spill the beans, but it’s not too hard to figure out that Patricio O’Ward, Colton Herta, and Santi Urrutia would be the likely candidates.

Rule 6.6.7 in the INDYCAR Rule Book covers Indy Lights driver tests and states that a full season entrant is afforded an extra day of testing to test current Indy Lights series driver(s).

Some version of this rule has been in place since 2014 and current Verizon IndyCar Series drivers Ed Jones, Jack Harvey, Spencer Pigot, Zach Veach, Matheus Leist and Zachary Claman DeMelo all got their first taste of the final step on the Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires ladder because of that provision in the rule book.

When TSO Ladder asked Barnhart if it is essential for IndyCar teams to support the MRTI he told us:

“I really think it is. You look at the job that Dan Andersen has done with the Mazda Road To Indy program all the way through (US)F2000, Pro Mazda, and Indy Lights and what IndyCar is doing to provide that platform. And, the teams that are supporting it. When you look at IndyCar teams like Schmidt (Peterson Motorsports) and Andretti (Autosport) and what they have done for that over the years. Tremendous props to them for doing so.

“Because of my previous experience I see the value in that as well. Hopefully, Harding Racing can get to a point in the years down the road when we are emulating what Sam and Michael have done with their support for the (Mazda) Road To Indy program.”

Joining the Harding Racing test program at the 1.97-mile, 12-turn Portland International Raceway road course will be Andretti Autosport and Zach Veach, who are utilizing one of their two in-season rookie test days.

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Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tire – TSO – MRTI Update #12 from Mid-Ohio – O’Ward holds off teammates and increases his championship points lead

Posted by  on Saturday, July 28th 2018     

By Steve Wittich

Patricio O’Ward utilized a good start and withstood pressure from a pair of Andretti Autosport/Andretti Steinbrenner Racing teammates to collect his sixth win of the season. It was the third win in four races for the Monterey, Mexico native, who has jumped out to a 25 point lead over his nearest rival, Colton Herta.

“We’ve carried some good momentum since Iowa and I’m trying to make it better and better each weekend,” explained the 19-year-old. “It’s just tough to keep people behind you when they can engage the push-to-pass, so it’s nice to get more than a second-and-a-half gap, then stretch it out from there. It was a good race. I had pressure from behind the whole way, so to get the win means a lot. There are four more races still to go but these wins definitely help. It was hard after the yellow because the track was like ice, but I did a good job managing the gap to Colton to the checkered. You don’t want to get passed, especially late in the race, so I need to keep doing what I’m doing. The goal is to win every race.”

Herta, who is recovering from a non-displaced fracture at the base of his left thumb, finished second but has been outscored 155-118 in the last five races.

Dalton Kellett completed the trifecta of Andretti drivers on the podium by scoring his second podium of the season.

“I had a good start and was battling with Santi and Aaron, but I had contact with Santi early and got shuffled back,” said the Canadian. “Once I settled into a rhythm, I gained a free spot when Aaron spun out and Santi came in. I took advantage of the pass Colton made on Ryan to get into third, so it’s nice to get back on the podium. But the track changed so much today, especially after all the IndyCar rubber went down and with the higher temperatures this afternoon. It got challenging when Victor was burning all his push-to-pass trying to get by me. We’re lucky that we had the pace to be quicker.”

O’Ward and Norman brought the field to the green flag on the front straight after a pair of pace laps. (Of note – the reigning Indy Lights champion Kyle Kaiser is driving the Soul Red Mazda 3 pace car.)

Pole sitter O’Ward arrived at the ultra-quick lefthand Turn 1. Norman, Herta, and Telitz were single file going into Keyhole, but behind them, Urrutia, Kellett, and Franzoni entered the 180-degree corner three-wide. At the exit of the corner, Kellett and Urrutia made light Cooper Tire to Cooper Tire contact creating a small puff of smoke.

At the end of the first lap, the O’Ward had a one second lead over Norman. Behind the front two, the running order was Herta, Telitz, Urrutia, Kellett, and Franzoni.

On the sixth lap, Franzoni had an off-track excursion in “Madness,” falling five seconds behind Kellett.

On Lap 7, Herta is making inroads on Norman.

Patricio O’Ward leads his Andretti Autosport teammates Ryan Norman and Colton Herta though The KeyHole at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

Right behind the three Andretti Autosport drivers up front, Urrutia made a late braking maneuver into Turn 4. The Uruguayan locked up the brakes on the No. 5, missed the apex of the right-hander, but was able to complete the pass around his Belardi Auto Racing teammate.

At the one-third point of the 30-lap race, O’Ward held a slight 1.1 second lead over his teammate Norman. Herta had settled in just behind Norman as the three Andretti Autosport teammates had gapped the Belardi Auto Racing by over 6 seconds.

At the halfway point of the race, Norman had cut the lead to under one second, with Herta another second behind Norman. Further back, Telitz was putting pressure on Urrutia, but the pressure ended on Lap 16.

The Rice Lake Weighing sponsored No. 9 of Telitz hit the bump at the apex of Turn 12, spinning to the inside of the corner. The 26-year-old was able to keep the turbocharged Mazda 2.0 liter engine fired.

Two laps later, Telitz caught the curb at the entry of Turn 9 and spun through the gravel, high siding his car. The AMR INDYCAR Safety Team restarted Telitz’s Mazda engine, but he fell a lap behind.

Belardi Auto Racing and Urrutia rolled the dice to put on a fresher set of Cooper Tires. Team owner Brian Belardi told the ADVANCE Auto Parts INDYCAR Radio Network that they had seven laps on them.

The race restarted with nine laps to go. O’Ward got a great jump up front, and behind him, Ryan Norman got a poor start. That allowed Herta to get by him.

Norman’s teammate Kellett and Franzoni were also able to make around the Ohio native on the lap after the restart.

On Lap 22, Urrutia made an outside move on Norman into Turn 4. The No. 48 Journey sponsored car caught the inside curb and clattered into Urrutia. The No. 5 caught air and both drivers ended up in the grass. Both drivers were able to keep going but Norman was issued a drive-thru penalty for avoidable contact.

With five laps remaining, O’Ward’s lead over Herta was 1.2 seconds. On the next lap, the lead had been cut to 0.6 seconds, but the second generation only had four push-to-pass activations left. Herta turned the quickest lap of the race as he took the white flag, but was only able to put token pressure on O’Ward during the final circuit of the 2.258-Mile, 13-Turn Road Course.

After the race Herta told us that he wishes he could have seen the future and more specifically the safety car period, explaining to us that he used too many push-to-pass activations trying to pass Norman earlier in the race and that he didn’t have enough left to attack O’Ward. He also acknowledged that he was fortunate that the safety car came out.

Behind the leading twosome, their teammate Kellett was facing pressure from Franzoni but was able to hold off the Brazilian to nab the final step of the podium.

The win was O’Ward’s 13th career Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires trip to victory and boosted his career MRTI podium total to 22. Ten of those have come in Indy Lights.

Herta’s trip to the podium was the 17th in 29 Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires races.

Kellett’s podium was his fifth in Indy Lights and seventh in the MRTI. It’s the 24-year-olds first on a street or road course.

Cooper Tires Mid-Ohio Grand Prix Powered by Mazda Race #1 Unofficial Results

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER TEAM DIFFERENCE
1 27 Patricio O’Ward Andretti Autosport 30 LAPS
2 98 Colton Herta Andretti Steinbrenner Racing 0.6361
3 28 Dalton Kellett Andretti Autosport 11.8170
4 23 Victor Franzoni Juncos Racing 12.5038
5 48 Ryan Norman Andretti Autosport 36.0341
6 5 Santi Urrutia Belardi Auto Racing 56.1149
7 9 Aaron Telitz Belardi Auto Racing -2 LAPS
category: Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tire - TSO
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MRTI Update #9 from Mid-Ohio – Saturday – O’Ward grabs 8th pole of the season by one-hundredth of a second – ties Bryan Herta, Bell, Mederios and Jones for season record.

Posted by  on Saturday, July 28th 2018     

By Steve Wittich

For the second straight Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires qualifying session, the field was covered by less than a second. It was still the same driver, Patricio O’Ward, on top, but today, he wasn’t nearly as dominant.

Aaron Telitz (2nd) and Colton Herta (3rd) were both within three-hundredths of a second of the Andretti Autosport rookie.

It is O’Wards eighth pole of the season, tying him with Bryan Herta, Townsend Bell, Thiago Mederios, and Ed Jones for the most poles in an Indy Lights season.

The Mexican driver now has 13 career Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires poles.

The second 25-minute Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires qualifying session that will set the grid for Sunday afternoon’s “feature” race began at 9:20 AM. The ambient temperature was 64F, and the track temperature was 78F.

Santi Urrutia was the first driver to grab a provisional pole and with ten minutes remaining in the session was still on top of the timing screens with a lap of 71.652 seconds. That was 0.3374 seconds better than Race #1 polesitter and points leader Patricio O’Ward.

With eight minutes remaining times started to fall with Norman, Telitz, and Kellett all improving their lap times.

With just over five minutes left in the session, O’Ward went back to the provisional pole spot. First Franzoni and then Herta moved to the outside of the front row.

O’Ward’s lap of 61.159 seconds came under assault with Herta turning a lap that was only three-hundredths slower, which held onto the outside of the front row for a few seconds before Telitz turned a lap that was just one-hundredth behind Telitz.

Cooper Tires Mid-Ohio Grand Prix Powered by Mazda Unofficial Qualifying Results #2

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER QUICK LAP TEAM DIFFERENCE
1 27 Patricio O’Ward 1:11.159 Andretti Autosport –.—-
2 9 Aaron Telitz 1:11.176 Belardi Auto Racing 0.0166
3 98 Colton Herta 1:11.198 Andretti Steinbrenner Racing 0.0385
4 23 Victor Franzoni 1:11.551 Juncos Racing 0.3918
5 5 Santi Urrutia 1:11.556 Belardi Auto Racing 0.3974
6 28 Dalton Kellett 1:11.946 Andretti Autosport 0.7868
7 48 Ryan Norman 1:11.973 Andretti Autosport 0.8136

The first Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires race of the weekend rolls off at 3:05 PM this afternoon.

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MRTI Update #5 from Mid-Ohio – Friday – O’Ward dominates on the way to his 7th pole of the 2018 Indy Lights season

Posted by  on Friday, July 27th 2018     

By Steve Wittich

All seven Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires drivers were within one second of the pole, but Patricio O’Ward still dominated on the way to his seventh pole of the 2018 season. It’s the 12th pole in his Mazda Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires career.

“I was really trying to break the track record here, honestly, but I’m happy we’re starting from pole for Race 1,” said O’Ward. “I made a couple mistakes during the session that had I not made, I could’ve gotten closer to breaking it. I’m not sure if I would’ve been faster, but there were just a few extra ones that I wanted to get but it wasn’t quite enough. The car felt great and I’m really happy with the No. 27 Mazda.”

Ohio born Ryan Norman had the best qualifying effort of his Indy Lights career and will start beside his teammate on the front row.

Colton Herta will start behind O’Ward and will be joined on the second row by Belardi Auto Racing veteran Aaron Telitz.

Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires qualifying for Saturday’s race #1 began with increasing clouds and an ambient temperature of 74F and a track temperature of 100F.

The first ten minutes of the session had the driving utilizing used Cooper Tire rubber.

But, with 15 minutes left in the session drivers started to make their way to pit road for adjustments and new sticker Cooper Tire rubber.

At the halfway point of the session, O’Ward held the provisional pole with a lap of 71.9777 seconds, which was a full six-tenths of a second ahead of Colton Herta. The remainder of the order was Telitz, Kellett, Urrutia, Norman, and Franzoni.

With 12 minutes remaining, the No. 9 bright Belardi red machine of Telitz reported making contact with Kellett and spun off track in Turn 6. The Wisconsin driver was able to bring the car back to pit road, put on fresh Cooper Tires change the front wing and head back onto the 2.258-Mile, 13-Turn Road Course to attempt to defend his third spot.

With seven minutes remaining the tires started to come up to temperature and lap times began to drop.

With five minutes left in the session, O’Ward was six-tenths of a second ahead of Herta.

Both of the championship contenders continued to get faster over the next three laps, but Herta could get no closer to O’Ward than 0.5 seconds.

Norman moved to second on his penultimate lap and was able to go even quicker on his last lap.

Cooper Tires Mid-Ohio Grand Prix Powered by Mazda Unofficial Qualifying #1 Results

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER QUICK LAP GAP
1 27 Patricio O’Ward 1:11.312 –.—-
2 48 Ryan Norman 1:11.735 0.4232
3 98 Colton Herta 1:11.822 0.5101
4 9 Aaron Telitz 1:11.838 0.5258
5 5 Santi Urrutia 1:12.112 0.8004
6 28 Dalton Kellett 1:12.295 0.9835
7 23 Victor Franzoni 1:12.380 1.0685

These drivers will back on track on Saturday at 9:20 AM for another qualifying session.

The Indy Lights race will air on NBCSN Tuesday (July 31, 2018) at 6 PM.

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MRTI Update #2 from Mid-Ohio – Friday – Herta and Andretti Autosport lead the way in the lone Indy Lights practice

Posted by  on Friday, July 27th 2018     

By Steve Wittich

Colton Herta used the lone Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires practice session to get comfortable with the brace he’s wearing to stabilize the non-displaced fracture at the base of his left thumb that he suffered after hitting the tire barrier during qualifying in Toronto.

The fix clearly worked; the Andretti Steinbrenner Racing driver turned the quickest lap of the 40-minute session at 72.533 seconds.

That was only seven-hundredths ahead of his teammate and championship leader Patricio O’Ward. Herta and O’Wards other teammates Ryan Norman and Dalton Kellett were both within four-tenths of Herta. O’Ward, Norman, and Kellett were the only drivers to test during an open test last week on the 2.258-Mile, 13-Turn Road Course.

We’re not reading too much into the times as teams were on various tire strategies.

The second generation driver had his injury looked at by specialists in Indianapolis, Ind. and opted to forego surgery. The 18-year-old did skip last week’s test to rest his injury.

The seven drivers completed 309.346 miles (137 laps). Drivers completed between 17 and 22 laps during the 40-minute session.

The Indy Lights drivers are back on track for a qualifying session at 1:20 PM.

The Indy Lights race will air on NBCSN Tuesday (July 31, 2018) at 6 PM.

Cooper Tires Mid-Ohio Grand Prix Powered by Mazda Practice #1 Results

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER QUICK LAP GAP TOTAL LAPS
1 98 Colton Herta 1:12.533 –.—- 17
2 27 Patricio O’Ward 1:12.610 0.0766 20
3 48 Ryan Norman 1:12.802 0.2693 22
4 28 Dalton Kellett 1:12.918 0.3847 22
5 23 Victor Franzoni 1:13.055 0.5214 22
6 9 Aaron Telitz 1:13.321 0.7882 17
7 5 Santi Urrutia 1:13.932 1.3988 17
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MRTI Update #13 – Sunday – Urrutia dominates the second Indy Lights race in Toronto

Posted by  on Sunday, July 15th 2018     

By Steve Wittich

For the second time this year, and eighth time in his Indy Lights career Santi Urrutia ended up on the top step of the podium.

“We’ve been struggling, so I’m very happy to get this win, especially for the Belardi guys who have worked so hard,” said the two-time Indy Lights vice-champion. “It was super physical today. Pato was quicker than me early but once the grip came in, I was quicker. I’m happy, we needed this. It’s been frustrating lately and it’s been tough to be behind the Andretti cars but we never give up. The engineers and mechanics did a great job to give me the best car today. I made some mistakes early and nearly hit the wall in Turn Five late in the race to let Pato catch up but, other than that, there was no pressure.”

Belardi Auto Racing team owner Brian Belardi looks on as a throng of Uruguayan fans celebrates Santi Urrutia’s Race #2 Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires win in Toronto (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

He was followed across the finish line by Patricio O’Ward and his Belardi Auto Racing teammate Aaron Telitz.

Urrutia’s win was the fourth time that a Belardi Auto Racing driver traveled to victory lane at Exhibition Place, tying them with Juncos Racing and Brian Stewart/Landford Racing.

Colton Herta was once again cleared to race after this morning’s T11 impact at the end of qualifying for Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires race #2.

But, Herta sat on pit lane after the field pulled away, which was reportedly an intentional move to keep him out of the potential first lap carnage. He would depart pit lane after the field went by for a start.

When the green flag waved, pole sitter Santi Urritia got out to a clean start and led the field cleanly through Turn 1. They also stayed pretty clean through Turn 3 and everyone filed in, making the order at the end of the first lap Urrutia, O’Ward, Telitz, Norman, Kellett, Franzoni, and Herta.

Herta would bring the car back to pit lane after turning a single lap.

By Lap 3, Urrutia was slowly getting away from O’Ward, leading now by 0.7987 seconds.

After the race, the three podium finishers said that the track was like ice during the first five laps.

“That was the most physical weekend I think we’ll have this season,” explained O’Ward. “It tested your mental and physical ability. I have never felt this track so slippery. The first four or five laps, it was like ice. Santi was all over the place and I knew Aaron was struggling. You could see the rubber on the track but there was no grip. But as the tires came in, the grip got better.”

Victor Franzoni brought his machine to pit lane after two laps slotting him in the 6th position for now.

“I’m having the worst weekend of my life, I think,” said the emotional Brazilian to the ADVANCE Auto Parts Yesterday I had a crash and I couldn’t crash this year. I didn’t have the money to pay the crash damage yesterday, Today in the qualifying I tried to push, but I was just thinking about crashing again and if I crash again I am going to be broke for the rest of my life, I don’t have the money to pay for the crash so I stopped it in the qualy. Same thing in the race. I tried it again. I’m not feeling good in the car. My mind is not good for the weekend. My best option was for me to stop. I’ll keep racing. I’ll keep going for the week and for the year, but we need to find some money. This was a difficult situation. We knew what to expect for the year, but it was not happening and this time, unfortunately, I had the crash. It is what it is, life sometimes life is not good for us, I had my weekend.

“It’s difficult because I wanted to be racing. I knew even starting from last I could race. But at the same time, I can break my life and I would be owing Rick and the team for the rest of my life. And sometimes you need to be smart. If I was extremely fast and I was with a really good mind I would keep racing. But I wasn’t feeling well and I was thinking about the crash and I couldn’t focus on the right thing. And I stopped!”

He finished up that emotional interview with Dave Furst with comments on how this is how racing and life both work. One day business is good and another it’s not. And today “my business is down,”

He did say he would be at Mid-Ohio and racing again, but he is still looking for money for this year and to go to IndyCar next year, but this was just the best decision for today.

On the track, the front three stayed reasonably close together with Urrutia having a 2.1 second lead over O’Ward and Telitz was closely in third. Ryan Norman was further back, 13.9 seconds off the lead with Dalton Kellett 42 seconds further behind as the last car on the track in fifth place.

Colton Herta got back in the car and made a couple more laps to pass Franzoni and pick up 6th place. That will score him additional points, which may be huge as the season winds down.

Bryan Herta told Jake Query that he decided not to let Colton run hard in the race today and just to park the car. They will get him to the best doctors after this weekend and get that thumb working. He couldn’t hold the steering wheel on the track.

Colton Herta before the start of the second Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires race in Toronto with the brace for a fractured thumb visible on his left hand (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

The lead stayed steady on the track, with Urrutia 2.4 seconds up on Lap 27. O’Ward was a little busier with Telitz for most of the race, but on Lap 28 we started to see O’Ward start getting closer as the lead was down to just 1.4 seconds. Perhaps a mistake we didn’t see cost Urrutia that second, but he would open his lead back up to 1.6 seconds on Lap 29.

Lap 32 and the lead is back to 2.4 seconds again, and Telitz is slipping to 2.1 behind O’Ward for second place.

At the white flag, Urrutia was 2.65 ahead and would take the checkered flag a comfy 1.2708 seconds ahead of O’Ward, Telitz, Norman, Kellett, Herta, and Franzoni.

With this finish, Herta now trails O’Ward by 18 points as the series heads to Mid-Ohio in a little less than two weeks.

P No Name Points
1 27 Patricio O’Ward 331
2 98 Colton Herta 313
3 5 Santi Urrutia 291
4 23 Victor Franzoni 245
5 48 Ryan Norman 230
6 9 Aaron Telitz 222
7 28 Dalton Kellett 211

Race #2 Results:

P No Name Laps Diff Team
1 5 Santi Urrutia 35 Belardi Auto Racing
2 27 Patricio O’Ward 35 1.2708 Andretti Autosport
3 9 Aaron Telitz 35 2.1283 Belardi Auto Racing
4 48 Ryan Norman 35 16.1916 Andretti Autosport
5 28 Dalton Kellett 35 66.0199 Andretti Autosport
6 98 Colton Herta 4 21 Andretti Steinbrenner Racing
7 23 Victor Franzoni 3 22 Juncos Racing

The Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires series is back on track for testing at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course for testing next week in preparation for their race weekend on the 1.786-mile, 11-turn Exhibition Place street circuit on July 27th – 29th.

Don’t miss any of the action:

category: Indy Lights News/Results

MRTI Update #10 – Sunday – Herta crashes, Franzoni has worries. Urrutia snags the pole in a heated Indy Lights qualifying

Posted by  on Sunday, July 15th 2018     

By Steve Wittich

Colton Herta, Patricio O’Ward, and Colton Herta improved the quickest lap a total of seven times in the final five minutes of qualifying, but in the end, it was Urrutia who will start this afternoon’s race on pole.

It’s the first time that Urrutia will start on the pole this year, and is his fifth career Indy Lights inside front row start.

Urrutia’s lap at 63.971 was one-tenth of a second ahead of O’Ward. Herta was only five-hundredths behind his teammate.

Herta will start third, but on his final lap, the second-generation driver clouted the wall with the left side of his No. 98 Andretti Steinbrenner Racing race car in Turn 9. The left front of the car has significant damage.

Herta was checked, released and cleared to drive by INDYCAR medical.

The first track activity, after a one-hour session of two-seater/event car rides, on the final day of the Honda Indy Toronto was a half-hour Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires qualifying session.

The sun was attempting to poke through the haze, and the air temperature was already a sticky 78F, with the track temperature at 93F.

Six of the drivers immediately took to the 1.786-mile, 11-turn Exhibition Place street circuit on scuffed tires to get a feel for track conditions. Cars started to come to pit road, and at the half-way point of the session, everybody was on pit road. The Soul Red No. 23 of Victor Franzoni was the only car that sat out the first half of the session.

Santi Urrutia was the quickest driver at the half-way point of the session with a lap time of 64.6353. Race #1 winner O’Ward was only four-hundredths back.

Franzoni was the first car on track during the second half of the 30-minute session, but the Brazilian told the team on the radio that he didn’t want to be on track.

Unfortunately, the prize for winning the Pro Mazda Presented By Cooper Tire championship is only enough to pay for close to 70% of a full Indy Lights budget, not including any crash damage. With a big hit against the concrete wall in Turn 5 during yesterday’s race, Franzoni is facing enormous pressure regarding the budget.

With eight minutes remaining, Dalton Kellett used the Turn 8 run-off but was able to keep the No. 28 running and the track remained green.

It took three or four laps for the Cooper Tires to find the optimal operating range and with seven minutes left Urrutia was the first driver to go quicker and improve his provisional pole time.

Cooper Tires Indy Lights Grand Prix of Toronto Presented by Allied Building Products Unofficial Qualifying Results For Race #2

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER QUICK LAP DIFFERENCE
1 5 Santi Urrutia 1:03.971 –.—-
2 27 Patricio O’Ward 1:04.103 0.1316
3 98 Colton Herta 1:04.159 0.1880
4 9 Aaron Telitz 1:04.579 0.6078
5 48 Ryan Norman 1:04.931 0.9600
6 28 Dalton Kellett 1:05.240 1.2688
7 23 Victor Franzoni 1:06.338 2.3665
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