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DEForce Racing rookie Kiko Porto leads fog interrupted USF2000 practice – top 11 within a half-second

Posted by  on Thursday, September 3rd 2020     

Kiko Porto on track at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The DEForce Racing rookie led the first practice session in preparation for a triple-header on the IMS Road Course. (Photo Courtesy Of Andersen Promotions)

By Steve Wittich

For the first time in his short Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires career, DEForce Racing rookie Kiko Porto led a practice session. The just-turned 17-year-old turned in a lap at 85.919 seconds.

Jack William Miller (Miller Vinatieri Motorsport), coming off his first podium at Lucas Oil Raceway, continued to build on his momentum, turning the only other sub-86 second lap on his 20th and final lap of the practice.

The rest of the top seven was made up of Cape Motorsports and Pabst Racing drivers, with the order being Reece Gold (Cape Motorsports), Eduardo Barrichello (Pabst Racing), Yuven Sundaramoorthy (Pabst Racing), Michael d’Orlando (Cape Motorsports), and Josh Green (Cape Motorsports).

Current championship leader, Jay Howard Driver Development sophomore Christian Rasmussen could only manage the eighth quickest time.

The top 11 drivers were within 0.5 seconds of Porto, and 19 of the 21 entries were within one second of the top spot.

If they weren’t already awake at 8 am, the denizens of Speedway, Ind. were treated to a buzzing alarm of 21 Elite Engine prepared 2.0L power plants, signifying the start of USF2000 practice.

Not surprisingly, Rasmussen went to the top of the timing screens on the green track, with Pabst Racing’s Matt Round-Garrido and Barrichello, right there with the Dane.

The quickest lap at the 10-minute mark of the lone 30-minute practice session was held by Gold, with a circuit timed at 86.604 seconds. The rest of the top 10 were Round-Garrido, Rasmussen, Porto, Barrichello, Miller, Rasmussen, Nolan Siegel (Jay Howard Driver Development), Sundaramoorthy, Wyatt Brichacek (Jay Howard Driver Development), and Kyle Dupell (Cape Motorsports)

At just past the ten-minute portion of the session, the red flag came out for track conditions as the fog rolled in across the north end of the 2.439-mile, 14-turn road course.

The sun tries to break through the fog covered portions of the 2.439-mile, 14-turn Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course (crappy photo courtesy of Steve Wittich – TSO)

The Indianapolis, Ind. metro area was under a dense fog advisory, so the fog was not wholly unexpected. It feels like we’re on the Monterey Peninsula. The sun was shining brightly, so the delay wasn’t too long.

Just before the red flag came out, Brazilian Porto went to the top of the timing charts with a lap 86.422 seconds.

The session was extended to run the full 30-minutes, and all other sessions are being pushed back by the appropriate amount of time.

When the green flag came back out at 8:45 am, 18-minutes were remaining on the clock.

With 15-minutes remaining in practice, Round-Garrido was the quickest driver with a lap of 86.323 seconds; he was followed by Porto, Miller, Gold, Barrichello, Rasmussen, Siegel, Shields, Sundaramoorthy, and Brichacek.

With ten minutes remaining in the session, Porto turned the first lap under 86 seconds.

d’Orlando, Sundaramoorthy, Barrichello, Gold, and Miller all took shots to supplant the DEForce Racing rookie at the top of the timing screens, but the lap was good enough to win practice.

The 21 drivers and cars turned a total of 393 laps, with nine drivers turning 20 laps and tying for the most laps completed.

Next up for the lowest rung of the Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires is qualifying scheduled for 11 am. However, we are about 30 minutes behind schedule, so expect that to be closer to 11:30 am.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Indy Grand Prix practice results

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER TEAM FAST LAP DIFFERENCE TOTAL LAPS
1 12 Kiko Porto DEForce Racing 1:25.919 –.—- 18
2 40 Jack William Miller Miller Vinatieri Motorsports 1:25.996 0.0770 20
3 3 Reece Gold Cape Motorsports 1:26.141 0.2223 18
4 22 Eduardo Barrichello Pabst Racing 1:26.178 0.2588 20
5 21 Yuven Sundaramoorthy Pabst Racing 1:26.181 0.2619 18
6 4 Michael d’Orlando Cape Motorsports 1:26.223 0.3037 19
7 2 Josh Green Cape Motorsports 1:26.242 0.3233 19
8 6 Christian Rasmussen Jay Howard Driver Development 1:26.308 0.3887 12
9 23 Matt Round-Garrido Pabst Racing 1:26.323 0.4045 17
10 9 Nolan Siegel Jay Howard Driver Development 1:26.347 0.4283 20
11 10 Cameron Shields DEForce Racing 1:26.416 0.4973 18
12 5 Wyatt Brichacek Jay Howard Driver Development 1:26.431 0.5123 20
13 44 Christian Brooks Exclusive Autosport 1:26.446 0.5275 18
14 8 Kyle Dupell Cape Motorsports 1:26.570 0.6511 19
15 16 Josh Pierson Exclusive Autosport 1:26.664 0.7453 19
16 41 Max Kaeser Miller Vinatieri Motorsports 1:26.784 0.8650 20
17 18 Bijoy Garg Jay Howard Driver Development 1:26.889 0.9704 20
18 1 Prescott Campbell Exclusive Autosport 1:26.975 1.0561 18
19 20 Simon Sikes Legacy Autosport 1:27.002 1.0828 20
20 7 Christian Bogle Jay Howard Driver Development 1:27.046 1.1273 20
21 24 Michael Myers Legacy Autosport 1:27.316 1.3976 20

 

*****FYI – things are currently running about 30 minutes behind schedule.*****

The remainder of the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship schedule (all times EDT)

Thursday, September 3, 2020
11am – 11:30am – USF2000 Qualifying #1
2pm – 2:45pm – USF2000 Race #1 (15 laps)

Friday, September 4, 2020
8am – 8:30am – USF2000 Qualifying #2
11am – 11:45am – USF2000 Race #2 (15 laps)
2:45pm – 3:30pm – USF2000 Race #3 (20 laps or 50 minutes)

 

Don’t miss any of the Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires action:

category: 2020 Road To Indy Coverage, Uncategorized

Robert Megennis returns to 2020 Andretti Autosport Indy Lights team

Posted by  on Monday, February 17th 2020     

Robert Megennis returns to 2020 Andretti Autosport Indy Lights team

The 19-year-old enters sophomore Indy Lights season with support from partners SailPoint, Sirius Computer Solutions, Juniper Networks and CyberArk

INDIANAPOLIS  (Feb. 17, 2020) — Andretti Autosport announced today that Robert Megennis will return to pilot the No. 27 entry for the championship-winning team for the 2020 Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires season. As a rookie, the 19-year-old scored his first Indy Lights-career win with the team on the road course at Indianapolis Motor Speedway after starting from the pole position.

The New York-native followed the success in early May by capturing the pole for the series crown jewel, the Freedom 100. Megennis went on to stand on the podium six times and recorded 12 top-five finishes throughout his rookie campaign.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Robert back to the team,” said J-F Thormann, President of Andretti Autosport. “From the moment he climbed in the car, Robert has been determined to fight for results and it has paid off, earning a victory and a handful of podiums last season. He was a strong contender in the Freedom 100 and we’re happy he’ll have another chance to claim that title. We’re really looking forward to watching Robert mature even more in the car and anxious to see what results he can capture in 2020.”

Throughout his career in the Road to Indy ladder system, the veteran driver has scored 15 podiums and collected 52 top-10 finishes. Heading into his fifth year of Road to Indy competition, Megennis has never finished outside of the top six in each championship run he has competed in. Starting his career in 2016, he earned Rookie of the Year honors along with the Hard-Charger award in Cooper Tires USF2000, where he finished the season as the top American driver in sixth. He went on to compete as a sophomore in Cooper Tires USF2000 in 2017 and ran the Indy Pro 2000 Championship in 2018.

“I’m super excited to join Andretti Autosport for another year in Indy Lights. We had a great 2019 season and 2020 will be even better,” said Megennis. “I’m confident that we’re only going to grow and get stronger together as a team. Thanks to everyone at Andretti Autosport, SailPoint, Sirius Computer Solutions, Juniper Networks, CyberArk and my family for giving me this opportunity. Let’s go win some races.”

The No. 27 machine will receive support from a wide portfolio of partners including SailPoint, Sirius Computer Solutions, Juniper Networks and CyberArk.

“Robert’s work ethic and commitment to the sport is nothing short of impressive. We are eager to put our name behind a racer who we believe is the future champion of Indy Lights,”said Juliette Rizkallah, Chief Marketing Officer for SailPoint. “Robert and his team have been an invaluable partner to us and we look forward to extending our partnership in the year ahead.”   


“Sirius is proud to team up with Andretti Autosport and RKM Racing in 2020. This partnership is a great opportunity for us to showcase our focus on technology, innovation and agility,” said Michael Harwood, SVP of Marketing at Sirius.

Veteran Megennis will join rookie teammates Kyle Kirkwood (No. 28 Dallara) and Danial Frost (No. 68 Dallara) as the Indy Lights season kicks off on the streets of downtown St. Petersburg, Florida, for the first doubleheader of the 2020 season March 14-15.

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DANIAL NIELSEN FROST JOINS ANDRETTI AUTOSPORT FOR 2020 INDY LIGHTS CAMPAIGN

Posted by  on Tuesday, February 11th 2020     

By Steve Wittich

INDIANAPOLIS (Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020) –  Andretti Autosport has expanded its roster with the addition of Danial Nielsen Frost for the 2020 Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires season. The 18-year-old from Singapore is slated to slide into the No. 68 machine for the championship team.

“It is with great pleasure that we welcome Danial to our Indy Lights program,” said J-F Thormann, president, Andretti Autosport. “Danial has shown impressive speed and talent across his racing career and we are excited to see what 2020 has in store for him and our Indy Lights team.”

In 2018, Frost made his first start in USF2000 at Road America and finished his first season with five top-10 finishes. Now entering his third year in the Road to Indy ladder system, Frost competed in the 2019 Indy Pro 2000 Championship where he finished fifth in the point standings and captured two wins and six podiums. Starting from pole position, Frost earned his first Indy Pro 2000 victory for the Freedom 90 on Carb Night, the Friday before the Indianapolis 500.

“To be a member of Andretti Autosport is truly an honor. I’m very excited to be driving for a renowned team and I’m looking forward to the 2020 season,” said Frost. “I am very thankful for this opportunity and especially to my sponsor Denjet. Also, I would like to thank my family, friends and fans that are supporting me.”

Frost began his racing career in 2015 with go karts and won the Singapore Karting Championship a year later. Since 2016, Frost has competed in four different Formula 4 Championships and finished third in the Formula Masters Asian Series in 2017.

Frost joins Kyle Kirkwood as the second driver announced to Andretti’s 2020 effort. The duo will strap into their Andretti Autosport machines as the 2020 Indy Lights season kicks off on the streets St. Petersburg, Florida, for the first doubleheader.

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Honda Performance Development (HPD) Establishes F3 Americas Drivers’ Champion Scholarship

Posted by  on Monday, February 3rd 2020     

Honda Performance Development (HPD) Establishes F3 Americas Drivers’ Champion Scholarship 

  • Honda demonstrates commitment to North American open wheel driver development 
  • Scholarship enables F3 America’s Driver’s Champion to race Indy Lights full season
  • F3 America’s champion driver gains unique access to Honda’s winning INDYCAR teams 

Santa Clarita, CA (February 3, 2020) – The  F3 Americas Championship provides talented young racers the opportunity to develop their skills in a state-of-the-art open-wheel chassis powered by the latest version of the iconic Honda Civic® Type-R® power plant. Following in the footsteps of the largest and most successful F4 series in the world, F3 Americas has grown in just two seasons to an average of 12 entries per race at venues such as Circuit Trois-Rivierès, Barber Motorsports Park and the Circuit of the Americas.

Supporting the next generation of racing talent is a fundamental value of Honda Performance Development (HPD), and as a committed partner to the U.S. F4 Championship, the F3 Americas Championship and the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, HPD is proud to expand its support for the F3 Drivers’ Champion.

HPD’s scholarship will enable the F3 Drivers’ Champion to compete in the subsequent year’s Indy Lights full season. This annual HPD scholarship will be used to support the F3 Champion’s chosen Indy Lights team in the following year’s season and will be transferable to any HPD partner team supporting the F3 Drivers’ Champion in the Indy Lights or NTT INDYCAR SERIES.

“The F3 Americas Championship has produced drivers that are ready for the next step of open wheel competition,” said John Whiteman, Manager, HPD Commercial Motorsports. “We are pleased to be able to offer access to Honda’s winning teams and provide a critical contribution toward young driver’s professional racing aspirations.”

The regional F3 championship is sanctioned by SCCA Pro Racing, and features the F3-FIA* spec JS F3 chassis designed and sold by Ligier Automotive in North Carolina, which meets the most advanced global FIA safety specifications, including the first North American application of a race car Halo. The car, running on proven Hankook tires, is powered by a 303-horsepower Honda Performance Development version of the Honda Civic Type-R turbocharged K20C1 motor. This reliable and powerful engine is manufactured in the United States at Honda’s Anna Engine Plant in Ohio, and the engines are shipped to HPD in Santa Clarita, California for racing modifications including installation of a dry sump and other race-specific components. 

The F3 Americas Championship aligns with the global FIA development ladder philosophy of using common components to provide a cost-efficient, reliable, and powerful racing structure as drivers ascend through the levels on their way to U.S. or global racing success.

“Since the beginning, the F4 U.S. Championship and F3 Americas Championship have focused on giving young drivers the tools and track time they need to nurture and demonstrate their abilities,” said Dan Helman, President of SCCA Pro Racing. “Along with the great racing venues, instructional curricula, and veteran racing experience shared with drivers, there’s no question that this increased award will attract talented racers to this modern, competitive racing series.”

The seven-event 2020 F3 Americas Championship Powered by Honda begins April 9 through April 11 at Road Atlanta. Interested drivers can connect with committed racing teams at F3Americas.com. Full details on the HPD Drivers’ Champion award will be available prior to the first event.

*Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile

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Road To Indy at Mid-Ohio – Rasmussen makes first lap pass for the lead in second straight USF2000 victory

Posted by  on Saturday, July 27th 2019     

By Steve Wittich

For the second straight race, Christian Rasmussen made a first lap pass for the lead after starting on the outside of the front row.

Christian Rasmussen celebrates a USF2000 win on the podium at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (Photo Courtesy Of Andersen Promotions)

The Jay Howard Driver Development driver survived a Lap 3 restart, steadily and consistently driving away from an intense battle for second. The 20-year-old crossed the finish line with a healthy 9.5753 second gap over the pole sitter Hunter McElrea.

McElrea, spent 13 laps battling Matthew Round-Garrido for second, finally passing the BN Racing driver with four laps to go. After the race, McElrea was less than pleased with some of the Englishman’s defensive driving maneuvers.

Combine the three extra points earned by that pass with an eighth place finish by championship leader Braden Eves and the Kiwi starts Sunday’s race 13 points closer to the points lead. The margin between first and second is now 28 points.

McElrea’s Pabst Racing teammate Colin Kaminsky was able to get around Round-Garrido at the same time, finishing on the podium for the third time this year.

The call to start the 17 2.0L Elite Engines powering the 17 Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship entries came as scheduled at 4:01 pm. The ambient temperature was 84F, the track temperature was 115F and the humidity was a comfortable 45%.

The front row of McElrea and Rasmussen brought the field to the green flag on the front straight. McElrea got a decent jump, with Rasmussen ducking in behind the Soul Red No. 22. The Dane was able to grab the lead in Turn 4 on the first lap.

The start of the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (Photo Courtesy Of Andersen Promotions)

At the back of the field, the No. 77 of Timmy Pagliuso, went way too deep into Turn 4, spinning and getting stuck in ‘China Beach.’ The yellow flag came out before the first lap was completed.

The running order at the end of first lap was Rasmussen, McElrea, Round-Garrido, Tomaselli, Kaminsky, Yuven Sundaramoorthy, Jak Crawford, Braden Eves, Manuel Sulaiman, Darren Keane, Eduardo Barrichello, Zach Holden, Jack William Miller, Reece Gold, Christian Bogle, Nolan Siegel and Pagliuso.

The green flag came back out to begin Lap 4. Rasmussen jumped out to a big lead. Behind him, Round-Garrido was able to get past McElrea for second with an outside Turn 4 pass.

On Lap 6, Kaminsky made a move on Tomaselli for fourth, immediately putting pressure on his teammate McElrea.

Rasmussen crossed the line 1.8 seconds ahead his former Jay Howard Driver Development teammate Round-Garrido. The Pabst Racing foursome of McElrea, Kaminsky, Tomaselli, and Sundaramoorthy were running nose to tail in third through sixth.

By Lap 8, McElrea was all over the gearbox of Round-Garrido, looking to the outside of the BN Racing driver in Turn 4, but thinking better of it and tucking back in behind him.

The Mazda Road To Indy 200K Scholarship winner faked to the outside again on the next lap, but once again, dropped in behind Round-Garrido.

Out front Rasmussen had built a 3.99 second lead.

Only three seconds covered second place Round-Garrido, to eighth place Eves.

On Lap 11, McElrea looked to inside of Round-Garrido, but once again, was unable to complete the pass.

Rasmussen had a 5.3 second lead with five to go. Behind him, ten cars were running line-astern, proving that the passing at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course isn’t easy.

The JHDD/CSU|One Cure/Lucas Oil sponsored No. 6 in the hands of Rasmussen was turning incredibly consistent laps out front.

With four laps remaining, Round-Garrido made a mistake, falling off the podium to fourth after being passed by McElrea and Kaminsky.

Further back in the field an inter team battle between a trio of Cape Motorsports teammate was underway. Newcomer Crawford was defending against Eves and Keane.

The 14-year-old was able to hold off his older teammate to bring the RE/Max, Am Cap Home Loans home sponsored No. 4 in seventh place.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio Race #1 Unofficial Results

RANK CAR. NO DRIVER TEAM DIFFERENCE
1 6 Christian Rasmussen Jay Howard Driver Development 20 LAPS
2 22 Hunter McElrea Pabst Racing 9.5753
3 23 Colin Kaminsky Pabst Racing 10.7498
4 27 Matt Round-Garrido BN Racing 11.2931
5 24 Bruna Tomaselli Pabst Racing 12.7114
6 21 Yuven Sundaramoorthy Pabst Racing 13.2952
7 4 Jak Crawford Cape Motorsports 13.8461
8 8 Braden Eves Cape Motorsports 14.0798
9 2 Darren Keane Cape Motorsports 14.5044
10 14 Zach Holden Legacy Autosport 15.1382
11 12 Manuel Sulaiman DEForce Racing 15.6301
12 3 Reece Gold Cape Motorsports 27.0755
13 40 Jack William Miller Miller Vinatieri Motorsports 27.4602
14 41 Eduardo Barrichello Miller Vinatieri Motorsports 28.6715
15 7 Christian Bogle Jay Howard Driver Development 29.2901
16 36 Nolan Siegel Newman Wachs Racing 32.1383
17 77 Timmy Pagliuso Legacy Autosport 18 LAPS

Sunday’s final 20-lap or 40-minute Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio race is scheduled to get underway at 11:05 am.

category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, Uncategorized

Road To Indy at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course – Previewing Indy Pro 2000 – Lindh’s consistency leads to championship lead

Posted by  on Thursday, July 25th 2019     

By Steve Wittich

If you aren’t paying attention to the Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires championship yet, this weekend at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course would be a great time to start.

There is currently a quartet of multiple race-winning drivers that are separated by a slim 35 points.

Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires standings with seven races remaining

RANK DRIVER POINTS BACK
1 Rasmus Lindh – R 237
2 Parker Thompson 207 -30
3 Kyle Kirkwood – R 205 -32
4 Danial Frost – R 202 -35
5 Sting Ray Robb 173 -64
6 Nikita Lastochkin 137 -100
7 Phillippe Denes – R 118 -119
8 Kory Enders – R 116 -121
9 Moisés de la Vara 114 -123
10 Jacob Abel – R 106 -131
11 Antonio Serravalle – R 105 -132
12 Ian Rodriguez- R 93 -144
13 Charles Finelli 76 -161
14 Jacob Loomis – R 48 -189
15 Damiano Fioravanti – R 22 -215
16 Parker Locke – R 20 -217

Current points leader Lindh has been the most consistent of the foursome, building a 30 point lead over Parker Thompson. The Juncos Racing rookie does not outright lead the series in victories, poles, or laps led. However, the Swedish driver does lead all drivers with seven podiums and has not finished worse than fourth all season. So far, a master class in being consistent.

Current Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires points leader Rasmus Lindh (Photo Courtesy Of Andersen Promotions)

“Of course winning is always the objective, but this is a long season that often rewards consistency,” said championship contender Parker Thompson. “After winning the first two races in St. Petersburg, I’ve been reminded often how important that consistency is. With Abel Motorsports, we’ve made a lot of headway this year. One single performance isn’t going to earn us the title. If our group can continue in the direction that we’ve been headed over the last couple of weekends though, then I’m very excited about our chances.”

Lindh made three USF2000 starts at the central Ohio circuit last year, grabbing one podium. He was the second quickest driver at the recent Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course open test.

A scant five points separate Thompson, Kyle Kirkwood, and Danial Frost with three events remaining on the calendar.

Thompson has one win, four podiums and eight top-fives in ten Road To Indy races on the 2.258-mile, 13-Turn Mid-Ohio Road Course. The Canadian has finished on the podium the last four times the series has been on track but is looking for his first win since a pair of trips to victory lane in the season-opening race weekend.

Kirkwood has climbed to the top step of the podium in his three previous Road To Indy starts at ‘Mid-O.” The 20-year-old also has three F3 Americas Championship Powered By Honda and two F4 United States Championship Powered By Honda on the historic road course.

Kirkwood is the hottest driver over the past five races, winning three times and scoring 137 points going back to the race in May at the 0.686-mile Lucas Oil Raceway Oval.

Indy Pro 2000 points scored over the past five races.

RANK DRIVER POINTS
1 Kyle Kirkwood – R 137
2 Rasmus Lindh – R 128
3 Danial Frost – R 117
4 Parker Thompson 109
5 Sting Ray Robb 90
6 Ian Rodriguez- R 77
7 Nikita Lastochkin 73
8 Kory Enders – R 73
9 Phillippe Denes – R 70
10 Moisés de la Vara 61
11 Antonio Serravalle – R 59
12 Jacob Abel – R 55
13 Charles Finelli 45
14 Jacob Loomis – R 28

Other storylines to follow this weekend

Jacob Abel, who is foregoing an F3 Americas Championship Powered By Honda weekend at Virginia International Raceway, has made five USF2000 series starts at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. He had a trio of solid 11th place finishes last year. The 18-year-old finished the recent open test with the sixth quickest time, only three-tenths off his more experienced Abel Motorsports teammate Parker Thompson.

The Louisville, Kentucky driver is due for a breakout weekend, and with his past Road To Indy experience at the 2.258-mile, 13-Turn Mid-Ohio Road Course, this could be the weekend.

Will testing results carry over?

Exclusive Autosport rookie Danial Frost led the combined timesheet during a two-day series open test at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course a few weeks ago. Frost led the way with a lap of 76.2167. His championship rivals were all within a three-tenths of the 17-year-old. Rasmus Lindh (twice), Parker Thompson (twice) and Kyle Kirkwood joined Frost as drivers that led one of the six sessions on the 2.258-mile, 13-Turn Mid-Ohio Road Course.

Debut

A new team, Turn 3 Motorsport along with driver Antoine Comeau will both be making their series debut this weekend at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Comeau and Turn 3 Motorsports will be contesting the remainder of the Indy Pro 2000 rounds this year, in preparation for a full-season campaign in 2020.

Comeau, a Canadian with an impressive resume developed racing Radicals, has completed an extensive testing program in the team’s No. 3 PM-18 to prepare for this new adventure.

Experienced Road To Indy racer and engineer Peter Dempsey leads Turn 3 Motorsport’s effort into Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires.

The Irishman won ten times in two seasons of Indy Pro 2000 action, before spending parts of three seasons in Indy Lights. Dempsey, who lives in the Chicago, Ill. area has also spent time as a race engineer with Juncos Racing and DEForce Racing.

“It’s great to be back to being a part of the Road to Indy ladder,” said Team Owner Peter Dempsey. “Antoine (Comeau) has been working really hard over the past year to adapt to the Indy Pro 2000 car. We had a very successful test here at Mid-Ohio a few weeks ago, and I’m really looking forward to using that as a platform to keep improving throughout the weekend.”

“Antoine has done a fantastic job in the Radical Cup this year,” continued Dempsey. “Joining the Indy Pro 2000 series presents a new challenge for him. We are looking to build on this weekend and finish out the rest of the 2019 season to compete in a full season campaign in 2020.”

Some Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course history

The middle rung of the Road To Indy, the Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires Series will contest a Saturday/Sunday doubleheader on the 2.258-mile, 13-Turn Mid-Ohio Road Course. It will mark the 18th and 19th races at “Mid-O” for the series.

Indy Pro 2000 winners at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course

YEAR DRIVER TEAM
2018 Race #2 Rinus VeeKay Juncos Racing
2018 Race #1 Rinus VeeKay Juncos Racing
2017 Race #3 Anthony Martin Cape Motorsports
2017 Race #2 Victor Franzoni Juncos Racing
2017 Race #1 Anthony Martin Cape Motorsports
2016 Race #2 Nico Jamin Cape Motorsports
2016 Race #1 Nico Jamin Cape Motorsports
2015 Race #2 Neil Alberico Cape Motorsports
2015 Race #1 Santi Urrutia Team Pelfrey
2014 Race #2 Garett Grist Andretti Autosport
2014 Race #1 Nicolas Costa Team Pelfrey
2013 Race #2 Matthew Brabham Andretti Autosport
2013 Race #1 Matthew Brabham Andretti Autosport
2006 Ryan Justice Northwest Autosport
2005 Rafa Matos Ocean Tomo Racing
2004 Michael McDowell Star Race Cars
2002 Guy Cosmo Racers Edge Motorsports

Juncos Racing is the only team active team that has won at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Drivers representing the Speedway, Ind. team have three race wins, including two by Rinus van Kalmthout (VeeKay) last year.

The team also has four poles at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, leading all teams. The only other active team with a pole win is BN Racing.

The Ricardo Juncos led team also has more podiums at ‘Mid-O’ than any other team. Timothy Buret, Diego Ferreira, Victor Franzoni, Robert Megennis, Will Owen, and VeeKay have combined for 13 podiums.

The pole-sitter has won 13 of 17 races. The furthest back a winner has started was fourth (Santi Urrutia in 2015). The average starting position of the winner is 1.8.

The only time the pole-sitter has failed to finish a race was in Race #2 last year, when David Malukas suffered a mechanical feature. The average finishing position of the pole-sitter is 2.8.

The previous 17 races have occurred over ten seasons, and the eventual series champion has won at least one race at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in six of those years.

Race weekend basics

Race name: Cooper Tires Indy Pro 2000 Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio

Race #1 length: 25 laps or 40 minutes
Race #2 length: 25 laps or 50 minutes

Qualifying Record:70.9428 seconds by Santi Urrutia in 2016
Race Record: 71.5804 seconds by Jack Harvey in 2015

Each entry can utilize three new sets of Cooper Tire slicks as well as one set of used/scuffed tires from the race weekend in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Drivers failing to slow at least 15% in a timing sector with a local yellow will be subject to a two-place grid spot penalty.

Drivers who fail to heed the checkered flag at the end of a session will receive a two-grid spot penalty.

To avoid a red flag and penalty (see below) during qualifying, you must park your disabled vehicle in a safe area (determined by the race director)

Causing one red flag during a session will result in a driver losing their fastest lap.

Causing a second red flag during the same session will wipe out all of drivers laps, and they will be parked for the remainder of the session

Driver points are distributed as follows: 30 – 25 – 22 – 19 – 17 – 15 -14 – 13 – 12 – 11 – 10 – 9 – 8 – 7 – 6 – 5 – 4 – 3 – 2 – 1 – an additional one point will be awarded to the pole sitter, to the driver who leads the most laps, and to the driver who turns the quickest race lap.

Watch last year’s races.

Race #1

Race #2

 

Don’t miss any of the Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires action

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USF2000 at Road America – 2019 – Kaminsky grabs second straight pole – top three within three-hundredths

Posted by  on Friday, June 21st 2019     

For the second straight Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship race, Pabst Racing veteran Colin Kaminsky will start on pole, but, it wasn’t by very much. A pair of drivers, Baron and McElrea, were both within three-hundredths of the Homer Glen, Ill. native.

The 18 USF2000 drivers entered for the Cooper Tires Grand Prix of Road America Powered by Elite Engines were the first of three straight Road To Indy Presented by Cooper Tires qualifying sessions on Friday afternoon.

The Cape Motorsports trio of Braden Eves, Reece Gold, and Darren Keane, along with Pabst Racing’s Hunter McElrea and Colin Kaminsky were the last five drivers to take to the iconic circuit.

Veteran Alexandre Baron was the early leader and was the only driver in the 130-second range.

McElrea, on his second lap of the session, went to provisional pole.

At the half-way point of the 20-minute session, the quickest driver with a lap at 130.2975 seconds was rookie McElrea. Kaminsky, Christian Rasmussen (Jay Howard Driver Development), Baron, Matthew Round-Garrido (BN Racing), Cameron Shields (Newman Wachs Racing), Jak Crawford (DEForce Racing), Braden Eves Cape Motorsports), Eduardo Barrichello (Miller Vinatieri Motorsports) and Darren Keane (Cape Motorsports).

McElrea went quicker on his third lap, but his lap was bested by teammate Kaminsky, as well as Baron.

Baron was able to quicker on his fourth lap but missed grabbing the provisional pole by two-hundredths of a second. Kaminsky was another hundredth back.

With five minutes remaining, championship leader Eves came to pit road, having turned only the 10th quickest lap at that point in the session. The Cape Motorsports crew made a quick adjustment, and the No. 8 was able to complete one lap at speed, moving from 11th to eighth.

The only other driver to go quicker on their final lap was Shields, who moved up to sixth.

Unlike the shorter road courses that we visit, drivers and team did not have the time to come to pit road for adjustments and then get their Cooper Tires up to peak operating temperature.

Cooper Tires Grand Prix of Road America Powered by Elite Engines USF2000 Unofficial Race #1 Qualifying Results.

RANK CAR NO DRIVER TEAM QUICK LAP DIFFERENCE TOTAL LAPS
1 23 Colin Kaminsky Pabst Racing 2:10.268 –.—- 8
2 14 Alex Baron Legacy Autosport 2:10.292 0.0247 7
3 22 Hunter McElrea Pabst Racing 2:10.298 0.0300 8
4 2 Darren Keane Cape Motorsports 2:10.686 0.4185 8
5 12 Manuel Sulaiman DEForce Racing 2:10.774 0.5063 8
6 73 Cameron Shields Newman Wachs Racing 2:10.854 0.5863 8
7 6 Christian Rasmussen Jay Howard Driver Development 2:10.860 0.5926 7
8 8 Braden Eves Cape Motorsports 2:10.882 0.6142 7
9 41 Eduardo Barrichello Miller Vinatieri Motorsports 2:11.007 0.7391 8
10 21 Yuven Sundaramoorthy Pabst Racing 2:11.029 0.7611 6
11 24 Bruna Tomaselli Pabst Racing 2:11.111 0.8436 8
12 52 Jak Crawford DEForce Racing 2:11.198 0.9306 8
13 27 Matt Round-Garrido BN Racing 2:11.245 0.9777 8
14 36 Nolan Siegel Newman Wachs Racing 2:11.613 1.3453 8
15 3 Reece Gold Cape Motorsports 2:11.739 1.4712 8
16 40 Jack William Miller Miller Vinatieri Motorsports 2:12.223 1.9552 8
17 28 Anthony Famularo BN Racing 2:13.578 3.3101 8
18 7 Christian Bogle Jay Howard Driver Development 2:13.968 3.7001 8

Saturday’s USF2000 race gets the green flag at noon on Saturday, but first up they will qualifying tomorrow morning again at 8 am.

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Road To Indy on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course – Eves makes it four in a row to extend his USF2000 championship lead

Posted by  on Saturday, May 11th 2019     

By Steve Wittich

Braden Eves was able to survive three restarts and a quick teammate to start his rookie Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship campaign with four straight wins.

Only two other drivers in USF2000 history have won the first four races of the season. Jay Howard won the first six races to start the 2005 season and the next year, J.R. Hildebrand won the first seven races of the season. Both drivers went on to win the championship.

The 20-year-old scored 65 of a possible 66 points, only missing out on the point for the quickest race lap in Friday’s race, to grow his championship lead from 15 to 33 points

Braden Eves navigates the “esses” on the 2.439-mile, 14-turn road course on the way to his second win at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Photo Courtesy Of Andersen Promotions)

“With Darren behind me at the start, I was able to give him a little more of a draft because he’s further behind in the championship, but that was about it – we’re teammates off track, and we help each other to get better, but it’s all on when we’re racing,” said the 20-year old. “I focused on what I needed to do and keeping him behind me. But it still hasn’t set in, my start to the season, especially since Darren has been right with me all through testing. Everyone at Cape Motorsports is working super hard, and they’re very good at what they do, and everything has worked in my favor so far. It was so cool to see all the fans out there today – it really puts it all in perspective on the cool down lap, when everyone is waving at you. It’s a great feeling.”

Darren Keane finally got a result that matched his pace. The veteran from Deerfield Beach, Fla. had the quickest lap of the race twice, and the second and third fastest in his other two starts.

“I finally figured out how to go for it on that last restart,” said Keane. “I had been a little conservative earlier in the race because Hunter was so close; I didn’t want to make a mistake. The car was different from yesterday and it took a while to figure out how to make it go fast. Now I know what to do when I’m in that position the next time. But I have been pretty mellow since everything that happened at St. Pete, and that’s why I think I handled what happened yesterday so well. When something bad happens, I just focus on what’s next, working on my mindset. It allows me to filter the bad stuff a lot easier, and while I’m super happy now, I know that I can do better, and I can build from this. Points make prizes, and I took some good points this weekend.”

$200K Mazda Road to Indy Shootout winner Hunter McElrea extended his podium streak to four to start his rookie season. Typically, that would result in leading the title hunt, but the American-born Kiwi’s impressive start has been muted by Eves equally scintillating start to the season.

“We’re only four races into a long championship, and we’ve had a pretty good start, aside from Braden winning all four races. I learned from yesterday; it was a race I should have won, but that’s in the past. It was a solid race today and good points, so we’re focusing on the long run. It’s very easy to look at something with a smaller mind like I did yesterday, but I am on the podium at Indianapolis. I’ve watched races from here ever since I can remember so this is a dream come true. Thanks to Mazda Motorsports for giving me the opportunity, Pabst Racing and all my supporters at home.”

Eves trip to victory lane was the ninth in 12 Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course races for brothers Nicholas and Dominic Cape. The St. Petersburg, Fla. based team now has 17 podiums at this event, ten more than their closest rival Pabst Racing.

The first of three Road To Indy races on the final day of the INDYCAR Grand Prix got the green flag at 9:15 am. The sun was shining, but the temperature was struggling to reach 50F.

The Cape Motorsports duo on the front row immediately lined up nose-to-tail and held the position through the treacherous Turn 1. Behind them, the other 19 drivers were able to get through Turn 1 cleanly.

The running order at the end of the first lap was Eves, Keane, McElrea, Crawford, Shields, Baron, Kaminsky, Dickerson, Miller, Barrichello, Famularo, Sundaramoorthy, Rasmussen, Gold, Bogle, Round-Garrido, Siegel, Tomaselli, and Cabrerra.

Zach Holden who was slotted to start sixth was not able to take the green flag due to a mechanical issue, and Manuel Cabrera, who started ninth was immediately off the pace and was forced to retire after seven laps with a mechanical issue.

The biggest mover on the first lap was Legacy Autosport veteran Baron who ended the first lap seventh after starting 12th.

Sulaiman’s run of reliable results began to unravel when he fell from fourth to eighth on Lap 2 after experiencing problems shifting. Things would only get worse from there for the DEForce Racing rookie.

Eves gapped Keane by 1.5 seconds as the pair of Cape Motorsports drivers started the third lap of the race. Keane had McElrea right under his rear wing.

Behind the front runners, Dickerson, Sulaiman and Miller were engaged in a good battle for seventh, that ended when the bright red No. 40 of Miller and the metallic blue No. 12 of Sulaiman fell down the running order to 18th and 19th respectively.

The first caution of the 20-lap race came out as the leader crossed the line to start Lap 6. Jay Howard Driver Development driver Matthew Round-Garrido had an incident in Turn 7. The AMR INDYCAR Safety Team got him restarted, and he came to pits where the Jay Howard Driver Development crew got him back on track.

The top ten when the yellow-flag came out were Eves, Keane, McElrea, Crawford, Shields, Barron, Dickerson, Kaminsky and Barrichello.

The green flag came out on Lap 7 and Eves was able to hold his lead over his teammate.

Eves turned the quickest lap of the race to that point on Lap 8 and held a 1.2 second lead over his teammate. McElrea was pressuring Keane, with a Crawford a safe distance behind them in fourth.

The driver on the move was a late addition to the field Dickerson who had moved to fifth.

On Lap 11, McElrea was able to get around Keane for second place.

The second yellow of the race came out soon after for an incident involving Miller who retired from the race.

The top 10 at that point were: Eves, McElrea, Keane, Crawford, Dickerson, Baron, Shields, Barrichello, Rasmussen and Famularo.

The green flag came out to start lap 13. On the restart Keane was able to get past McElrea to retake 2nd, Baron went by his Legacy Autosport teammate Dickerson for 5th and Rasmussen up to 7th

The caution flag came out for the third time on Lap 14 when Sulaiman spun in Turn 1 and was forced to retire due to contact. The Mexican driver was assessed an avoidable contact penalty for an incident with

At the same time, Shields fell down the running order, ending the race in 16th.

The top 10 when the field came back across the yard of bricks was Eves, Keane, McElrea, Crawford, Baron, Dickerson, Rasmussen, Barrichello, Famularo, and Kaminsky.

Keane looked to the outside of Eves on the long run down to Turn 1 on the Lap 18 restart but was not able to make a move.

Barrichello got the best restart, getting by three drivers to move into the top five, the rookies best result of the season.

Eduardo Barrichello makes the 90-degree right into Turn 1 on the way to his career USF2000 finish. (Photo Courtesy Of Andersen Promotions)

Eves lead over Keane at the white flag was 0.7 seconds. Keane had his hands full defending again from McElrea, but was able to hold him off to claim the middle step of the podium.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Grand Prix of Indianapolis Race #2 Results

RANK

CAR NO.

DRIVER

TEAM

GAP

1

8

Braden Eves

Cape Motorsports

20 LAPS

2

2

Darren Keane

Cape Motorsports

0.5455

3

22

Hunter McElrea

Pabst Racing

0.8253

4

52

Jak Crawford

DEForce Racing

1.6128

5

41

Eduardo Barrichello

Miller Vinatieri Motorsports

2.6663

6

14

Alex Baron

Legacy Autosport

3.7259

7

77

Dakota Dickerson

Legacy Autosport

4.1714

8

6

Christian Rasmussen

Jay Howard Driver Development

4.9963

9

28

Anthony Famularo

BN Racing

5.3663

10

23

Colin Kaminsky

Pabst Racing

5.7823

11

24

Bruna Tomaselli

Pabst Racing

6.7514

12

3

Reece Gold

Cape Motorsports

7.4462

13

21

Yuven Sundaramoorthy

Pabst Racing

7.5940

14

36

Nolan Siegel

Newman Wachs Racing

8.8770

15

7

Christian Bogle

Jay Howard Driver Development

15.9421

16

73

Cameron Shields

Newman Wachs Racing

-1 LAP

17

5

Matt Round-Garrido

Jay Howard Driver Development

– 2 LAPS

18

12

Manuel Sulaiman

DEForce Racing

– 6 LAPS

19

40

Jack William Miller

Miller Vinatieri Motorsports

-10 LAPS

20

90

Manuel Cabrera

Exclusive Autosport

– 13 LAPS

21

27

Zach Holden

BN Racing

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ANTONIO SERRAVALLE AND PSERRA RACING JOIN FORCES AGAIN FOR INDY PRO 2000 EFFORT

Posted by  on Thursday, February 28th 2019     
ANTONIO SERRAVALLE AND PSERRA RACING JOIN FORCES AGAIN FOR
INDY PRO 2000 EFFORT
“Canadian reaffirms Road to Indy efforts in 2019”
February 28, 2019 – Hailing from Unionville, Ontario, Canada, 16-year-old Antonio Serravalle is another confirmed driver in the 2019 Road to Indy program. Piloting a Pserra Racing entry in the Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires, Serravalle joins the series as part of a father and son team, in conjunction with Jay Howard’s Driver Development (JHDD) program.

“The PM-18 car is an amazing car. It’s fast, and I really enjoyed the whole program in 2018 as the series is top notch and very professional,” explained Serravalle. “2018 was a year of learning new tracks and absorbing all that I could from engineers and team members. The car was unexpectedly fast, but I took it all in stride and worked on gaining as much knowledge as possible. I’m very excited about joining the 2019 grid with Pserra Racing and Jay Howard Driver Development. I’ve raced with Pserra Racing all my life on and off, and together we have had a lot of success.”

Competing in a partial Indy Pro 2000 campaign in 2018, Serravalle made the jump from karts to cars, skipping the first rung of the Road to Indy ladder, the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship. As a top contender in the shifter kart ranks around the world, Serravalle garnered race wins and championships in Canada, the United States and in Europe, and is one of only a handful of North American drivers that have claimed victory at the highest level on the world karting scene. Having never competed in a formula car before the 2018 season, Serravalle managed to secure multiple top-ten finishes, including an impressive eighth place result during his first oval event in May.

Pserra Racing is owned by Peter Serravalle, father of the young Antonio, and he will manage the engine and transmission side of the program. Daniel Mitchell will oversee the engineering of Antonio at each and every event weekend, while Jay Howard and his operation will provide paddock space, coaching, and other team services.

Serravalle continued “Jay Howard is a great mentor and driving coach who will help steer me in the right direction. His development program is second to none, and Jay has had a lot of personal success in the Road to Indy program. Having come from the professional level of karting to a pro in the IndyCar Series, Jay knows what to teach the young drivers both on and off the track and uses his experience to provide knowledge for the future champions of the sport.”

“This is a big step for the team but I treat it like a corporate business, with a lot drive and passion on a personal level,” explained Peter Serravalle. “My motive has always been that if you put the right staff together and work hard, success will come. We have a great engineer in Daniel Mitchell, who I was very impressed with the first time I saw him at work. He is very in tune with the driver and main focus is to get the most accurate feedback possible. Our mechanics have a ton of passion to win and believe in the driver, which make things run very smooth. They have a wealth of experience and knowledge in the Tatuus chassis and thousands of hours of work experience collected in Europe and North America.”

“My goals are clear,” added Antonio. “I want to win races! I know I can be the best and I have a few things on my side including my age level of experience, my mechanical knowledge, and a great team. I have been racing since I was eight years old in North America and Europe against some of the best drivers in the world. I’m positive I can be a top contender in the 2019 Indy Pro Series as I work towards my goal.”

Antonio Serravalle and Pserra Racing would like to thank Tycoon Capital Limited, Scuderia Ferrari Club of Toronto, Cos Shore Inc. -Medi- Scan, Ferrari & Associates, and Camptech II Circuits for all of their support in the past, present and future.

For information on press releases or other media services offered by Race Tech Development, please contact Mike Maurini via e-mail at Info@RaceTechDevelopment.com or 317.270.8723. Race Tech Development can also be found on Twitter at @RTDMediaAndMGMT as well as Facebook at their Race Tech Development Fan Page.

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Juncos Racing expands to a pair of 2019 Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires entries with the addition of Sting Ray Robb

Posted by  on Wednesday, February 20th 2019     

Indianapolis, Ind. – Juncos Racing is pleased to announce today that Sting Ray Robb has joined the team for the 2019 Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires.

Sting Ray is the second driver announced by Juncos to the reigning 2018 Indy Pro 2000 (former Pro Mazda) champions line-up.

Sting Ray Robb, a young 17-year old from Payette, Idaho, joins Juncos Racing after collecting one podium, four Top-5’s and recording the fastest lap at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg during the 2018 Indy Pro 2000 season.

“I am excited about the 2019 season as I return to the Road to Indy with the series dominator, Juncos Racing.” Sting Ray stated.  “Juncos has proven to be the best in the industry and will, I’m sure, be challenging me to sharpen and hone my race craft to even higher levels.  I am blessed to have the opportunity to be racing amongst this very deep and talented pool of competitors.  I plan to be extremely demanding of myself as I learn from this team and we progress together throughout the season.  I am confident that as a driver for their awesome team, we will see success at many levels.  I stand amazed at how I have seen God work in every aspect of my life.  I’ll keep Him number one in my life and I’ll drive that #2 car to all my God-given ability. Let’s go racing – Godspeed!”

Sting Ray made his first appearance with Juncos Racing at the 2017 Chris Griffis Memorial Test and just completed a very successful test session with Juncos this week in Sebring, Florida.

Team Owner Ricardo Juncos said, “We are thrilled to add another great talent to our Indy Pro 2000 line-up.  Sting Ray (Robb) showed a lot of potential in his first test with our team back in 2017. This past year he had great consistency on track and we are looking to carry that momentum into this season. I would like to thank Sting Ray, his family, and supporters for the opportunity to add him to our strong Indy Pro 2000 line-up.”

Source: Team PR

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