Archives for Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda – TSO

MRTI “Soul Red Finale” at Watkins Glen International – Saturday – my travel notes and today’s schedule

Posted by  on Saturday, September 2nd 2017     

By Steve Wittich

Good morning from a chilly Watkins Glen International – my car had a number three as the beginning number of the temperature – where the first Mazda Road To Indy presented by Cooper Tire champion of the 2107 season will be crowned this afternoon.

We’ll get into the MRTI coverage with our next update, but wanted to update you with my travel adventures.

My journey, like it always does, started in Carmel, Ind., and similar to all but two of my trips, it involved windshield time, instead of a flight. I will miss only three IndyCar events this year – Long Beach, Phoenix, and Texas – and the only events I have flown to are St. Petersburg, and to the finale at Sonoma Raceway. That means I’ve driven to: Barber, Indy (duh), Detroit, Road America, Toronto, Mid-Ohio, Pocono, Gateway, and Watkins Glen.

My normal travel partner is my wife’s trusty Honda Fit, aka Roxy, who has now travelled to at least 60 races in the last five years. Roxy was fully prepared to be put into service one last time for the trip to “The Glen,” but our good friends at Mazda made me an offer I couldn’t refuse.

My Soul Red travel partner (Photo – Steve Wittich)

My road trip partner this weekend is a brand new Soul Red Mazda CX-5. The color is fitting since this weekend is the Mazda Road To Indy presented by Cooper Tire’s “Soul Red Finale.” I’ll have a full review of the mid-size crossover at a later date, but I’m awfully impressed with the sporty ride so far.

On Wednesday afternoon/evening I drove to Erie, Pa, before completing the drive to Watkins Glen International on Thursday morning. I’m staying west of the track in Bath, N.Y., which equates to a scenic 35-minute drive through the Finger Lakes region to get to the 11-Turn, 3.4 mile road course.

On Thursday night, a colleague and I made the pilgrimage to Seneca Lodge for a pint of beer in the historic Tavern Room, and dinner in dining room. Traditionally, the food at Seneca Lodge isn’t great, and isn’t bad, and that was the same this year.  But, you don’t go to Seneca Lodge for the food, you go to soak in the history of all the legendary racing names that have celebrated at the 69 year old watering hole, and that we did.

The Tavern Room at Seneca Lodge is a must visit for any racing fan. (Photo – Steve Wittich)

On Friday night, I joined with three other friends at Jerlando’s Ristorante and Pizza Company on Franklin Street in the heart of the village of Watkins Glen. If you are in the mood for massive servings of traditional Italian dishes, this is the place to visit. It’s also the place to be if you want to see some racing celebrities. Four-time winner at “The Glen,” Scott Dixon sat a few table away from us, and many other table were filled with familiar names from the paddock.

I had the Veal Parmigiana, which was melt in your mouth good. I also hear that the Pasta Carbonara is out of this world.

All right, USF2000 qualifying begins in 10 minutes. We’ll be back with those results in half-an-hour.

Saturday’s “Soul Red Finale” MRTI Schedule

TIME EVENT
7am Gates Open
8am – 8:30am USF2000 Qualifying
8:45am – 9:15am Indy Lights Practice #2
11:30am – 12:15pm Pro Mazda Race #1
1:15pm – 2pm USF2000 Race
2:15pm – 2:45pm Indy Lights Qualifying
5:30pm – 5:50pm Pro Mazda Qualifying #2

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category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, Indy Lights News/Results, Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tire - TSO, Pro Mazda News/Results, Pro Mazda presented by Cooper Tire - TSO, USF2000 News/Results

“Soul Red Finale” at Watkins Glen International – USF2000 practice #2

Posted by  on Friday, September 1st 2017     

By Steve Wititch

The final official USF2000 practice session of the 2017 season was led by Calvin Ming. The native of Guyana turned a lap at 106.685 seconds – that equates to an average of 113.718mph over the course of the 3.4-mile, 11 Turn Watkins Glen International road course.

Calvin Ming, a Pabst Racing rookie led his second Cooper Tires USF2000 Powered by Mazda session of the year at Watkins Glen International ((Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

DE Force Racing driver Kory Enders was just under three-tenths of a second behind Ming, with championship leader Oliver Askew another three-tenths back.

Kaylen Frederick (Pabst Racing), David Malukas (BN Racing), Andres Gutierrez (DE Force Racing), Phillipe Denes (Team Pelfrey) and Niall Murray (Newman Wachs Racing) were all within one second of Ming.

The second USF2000 practice session for the season ending Mazda USF2000 Watkins Glen Grand Prix Presented by Cooper Tires race got underway under partly sunny skies at 1pm, and the entire session was run under green flag conditions.

At the half-way point of the session, it was a lap of 107.411 seconds by Pabst Racing rookie Ming that topped the half-hour session.  The remainder of the top 10 were: David Malukas, Kory Enders, Darren Keane, Oliver Askew, Naill Murray, Andres Gutierrez, Kaylen Frederick, Phillipe Denes, and Lucas Kohl.

Impressively, the Newman Wachs Racing team were able to get the No. 36 Mazda powered Tatuus of Darren Keane repaired and 17 year-old was able to turn the 9th quickest lap of the session.

Rinus VeeKay, who is trailing Askew by 13 points heading into the “Soul Red Finale,” only turned three laps.

Pabst Racing team owner Augie Pabst told us that they were holding back two sets of sticker Cooper Tires tires to allow themselves some options come qualifying and race day. If VeeKay, who was the quickest in the morning practice, and in recent testing at Watkins Glen International, is on provisional pole, they will save a fresh set of tires for the race. If their qualifying isn’t where it needs to be, they will have a second set of tires to try and improve Veejay’s starting position.

Rinus VeeKay did not turn any laps at speed during the second Cooper Tires USF2000 Powered by Mazda session at Watkins Glen International – the team elected to save a set of sticker Cooper Tires for Saturday’s qualifying and race. (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

Mazda USF2000 Watkins Glen Grand Prix Presented by Cooper Tires practice # results

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER QUICK LAP DIFFERENCE LAPS TURNED
1 22 Calvin Ming 1:46.685 –.—- 10
2 11 Kory Enders 1:46.975 0.2905 15
3 3 Oliver Askew 1:46.982 0.2969 14
4 81 Kaylen Frederick 1:47.337 0.6517 10
5 79 David Malukas 1:47.495 0.8100 3
6 10 Andres Gutierrez 1:47.606 0.9206 14
7 82 Phillippe Denes 1:47.638 0.9528 11
8 37 Niall Murray 1:47.686 1.0011 5
9 36 Darren Keane 1:47.840 1.1550 5
10 4 Alex Baron 1:47.841 1.1562 12
11 23 Lucas Kohl 1:47.878 1.1930 14
12 7 Devin Wojcik 1:47.933 1.2481 14
13 90 Parker Thompson 1:48.229 1.5443 15
14 72 Zach Holden 1:48.368 1.6826 16
15 80 Robert Megennis 1:48.636 1.9509 5
16 31 Callan O’Keeffe 1:48.754 2.0687 13
17 97 Bruna Tomaselli 1:48.950 2.2650 14
18 92 Dev Gore 1:49.842 3.1569 16
19 93 Jayson Clunie 1:51.830 5.1447 15
20 21 Rinus VeeKay 2:07.119 20.4338 3

The USF2000 drivers and teams are back on track bright and early for qualifying tomorrow (Saturday, September 3) morning at 8am.

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“Soul Red Finale” at Watkins Glen International – USF2000 practice #1

Posted by  on Friday, September 1st 2017     

By Steve Wittich

Rinus VeeKay, who needs to score maximum points in the lone Mazda USF2000 Watkins Glen Grand Prix Presented by Cooper Tires in order to catch Oliver Askew in the chase for the $400,000 Mazda Advancement Scholarship, started the weekend off on the right foot.

The 16 year-old, who also led recent testing at the 3.4-mile, 11-Turn natural terrain road course, turned the quickest lap of the 30-minute session at 107.034 seconds. That was almost eight-tenths of a second quicker than David Malukas, and 1.4 seconds ahead of championship leader Oliver Askew.

The lone red flag came out near the halfway point of the session when Newman Wachs Racing rookie Darren Keane made heavy contact between Turn 1 and Turn 2 on his out lap. The No. 36 sustained heavy front and rear right-side damage, and the Mundelein, Ill. team will have a lot of work to do to get the car ready

With the majority of the field testing, only 14 of the 20 entered drivers turned laps as the entire field turned 155 laps.

Complete time sheet for the Mazda USF2000 Watkins Glen Grand Prix Presented by Cooper Tires practice #1

RANK NUMBER DRIVER QUICK LAP DIFFERENCE TOTAL LAPS
1 21 Rinus VeeKay 1:47.034 –.—- 9
2 79 David Malukas 1:47.823 0.7886 8
3 3 Oliver Askew 1:48.442 1.4080 12
4 22 Calvin Ming 1:48.456 1.4223 12
5 10 Andres Gutierrez 1:48.736 1.7019 11
6 72 Zach Holden 1:48.799 1.7648 11
7 23 Lucas Kohl 1:49.097 2.0626 12
8 11 Kory Enders 1:49.141 2.1064 12
9 80 Robert Megennis 1:49.229 2.1950 12
10 82 Phillippe Denes 1:49.437 2.4025 12
11 90 Parker Thompson 1:49.680 2.6456 11
12 93 Jayson Clunie 1:52.509 5.4753 12
13 92 Dev Gore 1:52.519 5.4854 11
14 97 Bruna Tomaselli 1:53.475 6.4413 10

USF2000 is back on track for another 30 minute practice session at 1pm.

 

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“Soul Red Finale” at Watkins Glen International – USF2000 preview

Posted by  on Thursday, August 31st 2017     

By Steve Wittich

For the first time since Matthew Brabham won the title 2012, it will be a freshman USF2000 pilot that will walk away with the Mazda Motorsports Advancement Scholarship valued at almost $400,000, and a chance to move up to the Pro Mazda presented by Cooper Tire Championship.

After 13 races, Oliver Askew has been exactly one point per race better than Rinus VeeKay. The 20 year-old carries that bakers dozen point lead into the Mazda USF2000 Watkins Glen Grand Prix Presented by Cooper Tires, the final race of the year.

If Askew, who has been outscored by VeeKay by 31 points in the second half of the season (see below for 2nd half USF2000 points), finishes the lone race of “Soul Red Finale” weekend on the podium, the Floridian will walk away with his third scholarship in the past twelve months (the Team USA Scholarship, and the Mazda Road to Indy $200K Scholarship Shootout being the other two).

The lowest that VeeKay can finish and still win the title would be sixth, and that would require Askew to finish dead last.

Laddies, and gentlemen, start your Excel spreadsheets.

Oliver Askew (left), and Rinus VeeKay (right) will fight for the Mazda Motorsports Advancement Scholarship that the USF2000 championship winner will receive. (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

Askew, who drives for Cape Motorsports can draw on his past experience in karting and at shootouts, will also be able to draw on the knowledge of his team owners, brothers Dominic and Nicolas Cape. Drivers from the St. Petersburg, Fl based duo’s stable have won the last six USF2000 drivers championships.

“I’ve been in this situation countless times in my career, and what is on the line is very similar to what I went through last year at the MRTI Shootout at Mazda Raceway. The mindset that I’ve developed through this year will be the same in the final race at Watkins Glen, I will be focusing on the elements within my control, and will maximize the opportunity given to me.”

VeeKay, who is 16 years-old, has shown maturity beyond his years in rookie season in cars, and is taking the same approach to Saturday’s finale.

“You start the race and just forget about everything else,” explained VeeKay. “Otherwise you can go crazy! Don’t worry about plans, and just react to what’s happening.”

No matter what happens on Saturday afternoon, the 16 year-old VeeKay will be happy with his first year of racing.

“To get 11 podiums in 13 races so far is a great year,” said VeeKay. “It was a difficult beginning, but to get where we are now – I was reading on Twitter the other day, and I didn’t realize it, but I have never lost a position in a race. I have equaled my qualifying position, or moved up. It was the best start you can have in your first year in racing.”

Some other stats and facts related to the title tilt between Askew and VeeKay:

  • Askew leads VeeKay in victories by a seven to two margin.
  • VeeKay leads Askew in podiums by a margin of 11 to 10.
  • VeeKay leads Askew in top five finishes by a 12 to 11 margin.
  • VeeKay leads Askew in top 10 by a margin of 13 to 11.
  • Askew has seven poles compared to one by VeeKay.
  • Askew has a significant 21-5 lead over VeeKay in bonus points
  • Askew has 199 points on road courses,which tops VeeKay by 8.
  • VeeKay is the only USF2000 driver to complete every lap so far in 2017, and has finished even with or higher than his starting position.
  • Askew leads VeeKay in average starting position – 1.6 to 4.5
  • VeeKay leads Askew in average finishing position – 2.6 to 3.6

Parker Thompson, who has won three out of the last four races, has been the class of the field since a non-team related mechanical issue hindered the top speed of the No. 90 Exclusive Autosport Mazda/Tatuss (hint, hint – it had to do with the throttle) was discovered between the Iowa Speedway and Toronto rounds. The 19 year-old will finish third in the championship, but will be pushing hard to add a fourth win, and seventh podium, in the hopes of finding a sponsor to continue his dream of becoming a Verizon IndyCar Series driver.

Parker Thompson, who will be looking to end the season by winning four of the last five races, will be all business at the “Soul Red Finale” at Watkins Glen International (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

Kyle Lavigne from NBC’s Motor Sports Talk site has a fantastic feature about Thompson: MRTI: Parker Thompson hoping to end USF2000 year on high note

Two drivers are making their Mazda Road To Indy presented by Cooper Tire debuts at Watkins Glen International, and another pilot is returning to USF2000 for a return engagement.

Formula Ford National Champion, Walter Hayes Trophy Winner, Formula Ford Festival winner, and Mazda Road to Indy $200K Scholarship Shootout finalist Niall Murray will make his first MRTI appearance with Newman Wachs Racing this weekend. The 22 year-old came close to putting together a 2017 USF2000 program, and aspires to race in the U.S.A. in 2018. Murray hopes to travel back to “The States” in December, and take part in the Scholarship Shootout for a second time.

“Last year we met Brian Halahan from Newman Wachs Racing at the Mazda Road to Indy Shootout and we’ve kept in regular contact since,” said Murray, from Dublin, Ireland. “I’m absolutely over the moon that this opportunity has finally come together. Having come so close last December, USF2000 is a series I’ve wanted to race in since, so I will be making sure I make the most of every lap. We’ve worked very hard behind the scenes to make this happen, and I have a lot of people around me to thank for this so I’ll be making sure to give them a good performance. I’m hoping this run in the car will help me if I make it back to the shootout again this year, and prove to the judges that I am very serious about my intentions of racing in the USA in 2018.”

Zach Holden will parter with David Malukas at BN Racing. This will be the first time that the rookie team will enter a second car. Holden, who had a stand-out karting career, just made the move to cars in 2017, and is currently competing in the F1600 Formula F Championship Series with K-Hill Motorsports. The 17 year-old is in the hunt for that championship as the popular entry level series heads to New Jersey Motorsports Park for their finale.

After being absent at the last few rounds of competition, Team BENIK will return for the finale with a familiar name. Callan O’Keeffe, who scored a top five in first MRTI appearance on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course in May will return. The 21 year-old South African is currently sits sixth in the 2017 BRDC British Formula 3 Championship.

Rookies Kaylen Frederick (Team Pelfrey) and Calvin Ming (Pabst Racing) have both had up and down seasons, but between them have eight podiums. Both drivers have shown the pace, and would love to end the season with their first win.

One last thing we’ll be watching — Pabst Racing, who have dethroned Cape Motorsports as the team champions, would love to add their first drivers title to their haul. TSO expects VeeKay’s teammates Ming and Lucas Kohl to do everything within reason to try to place themselves between VeeKay and Askew.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Powered by Mazda second half points

RANK DRIVER POINTS
1 Rinus Van Kalmthout 153
2 Parker Thompson 147
3 Oliver Askew 132
4 Calvin Ming 99
5 Kaylen Frederick 96
6 Lucas Kohl 84
7 Devin Wojcik 74
8 Robert Megennis 66
9 Kory Enders 63
10 Dev Gore 58
11 Moisés de la Vara 51
12 David Malukas 50
13 Darren Keane 50
14 Jayson Clunie 42
15 Alex Baron 42
16 Jose Sierra 32
17 Colin Kaminsky 25
18 Bruna Tomaselli 22
19 Rick Donison 20
20 Andres Gutierrez 19
21 Ayla Agren 13
22 Jacob Abel 13
23 Phillipe Denes 6
24 Chandler Horton 4
25 Jacob Loomis 2

Cooper Tires USF2000 Powered by Mazda schedule

Friday

8am – 8:30am USF2000 Practice #1
1pm – 1:30pm USF2000 Practice #2
3:15pm – 3:45pm USF2000 Autograph Session

Saturday

TIME EVENT
8am – 8:30am USF2000 Qualifying
1:15pm – 2pm USF2000 Race

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MRTI at Mid-Ohio – Saturday – USF2000 Race #2

Posted by  on Saturday, July 29th 2017     

By Steve Wittich

“Pitter-patter, let’s get at ‘er” is a common refrain heard north of the border in Canada when it’s time to bear down, stop making excuses, and just get the job done.

With three trips to the top step of the podium in the last four races, all-Canadian USF2000 team Exclusive Autosport, and Red Deer, Alberta pilot Parker Thompson are in full throttle, pedal to the floor “at ‘er” mode.

“This Exclusive Autosport team, what can I say, I really can’t say enough about them,” exclaimed Thompson enthusiastically to TSO. “They’ve been going a great job, they’ve put their nose to the grindstone, and have been putting in the dedication and the work that it takes to put on a race like we did today.”

All-Canadian team Exclusive Autosport and driver Parker Thompson won for the third time in four race (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

In the first eight races of the year Thompson collected 143 points, enough to put him in fourth place in the championship. But, in the last four races the Drive To Stay Alive ambassador and his Canadian team owner, engineer, and mechanic have found another gear, amassing 121 points, 25 points more than his closest competitor over the same four race span.

That up-tick in performance also just happens to coincide with the team discovering a non-team related mechanical issue that had been hampering Thompson’s black and red No 90 all season long.

Rinus VeeKay entered the second and final Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio Presented by Allied Building Products race of the weekend, 19 points behind Oliver Askew, in the chase for the

VeeKay’s second place finish was his eighth straight and 11th overall podium of 2017, and that, coupled with Askew’s fourth place finish means that the Dutch driver now trails the American by 13 points headed to the finale at Watkins Glen International on Labor Day Weekend.

Team Pelfrey rookie Kaylen Frederick made up four spots from his inside row four starting spot, executing a text-book pass on Askew to stand on the podium for the fifth time this season. The 15 year-old’s fourth place position in the championship is now solidified, and the future is bright for the Potomac, Md. native.

For the first time since the season opener in St. Petersburg, Fla., Oliver Askew was not on the front row when a USF2000 race took the green flag.

The front row of Thompson and VeeKeey brought the field slowly through the final turn, and as they got deep into the start zone, the third year pole sitter punched it, surprising the young drivers starting around him.

“They (the USF2000 field) watched me start on pole in Toronto and they knew I went early there, and you have to mix it up,” explained wily veteran Thompson. “I’m not a one-trick pony, you’ve got to mix it up here and there, and it caught them off guard which is good, because I had a nice clean run through Turn 1, and then it was easy sailing from there on.”

Askew, who started directly behind Thompson, was able to get half a car inside of VeeKay headed into the high-speed left-hander. But, the Rising Star Racing supported driver thought better of pushing the issue and fell in behind the 16 year-old Dutchman.

Oliver Askew kicks up dust as he makes a move to go inside Rinus VeeKay on the first lap, before wisely backing out. (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

Askew’s wise decision meant a suboptimal exit from the first of 273 turns that the No. 3 Soul Red machine of Askew would make. That compromised the long run uphill to The Keyhole (Turn 2), and allowed Lucas Kohl, who started outside of Askew on the second row, to make the inside pass.

At the end of the first lap of the 2.258-mile, 13-Turn natural terrain road course the top 10 were: Thompson, VeeKay, Askew, Kohl, Kaylen Frederick, Calvin Ming, Moisés de la Vara, David Malukas, Kory Enders, and Andres Guttierez.

On the next lap, Askew fell down to fifth place after Frederick passed him in Turn 4. Further back in the field, Phillipe Denes, who was making his USF2000 debut for Team Pelfrey, came to a stop in Turn 6. The Holmatro Safety Team was able to get him pointed in the right direction and the 18 year-old Californian was able to continue, but finished one lap down in 18th spot.

On the fifth lap of the race, Frederick got by Kohl for the final spot on the podium, and was followed through by Askew. Kohl, who is managed by Roberto Moreno ended the race in eighth.

Further back in the field, a train of seven cars was being led around the 2.258-mile, 13-Turn natural terrain road course by de la Vara.

Moisés de la Vara leads a train of cars through Madness at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

On Lap 11, Ming grabbed the final spot on the podium from his teammate Kohl, and Malukas was finally able to get by the brilliant blue DEForce Racing machine of de la Vara.

At the half-way point of the timed 30 minute race, Thompson’s lead over VeeKay was a comfortable 3.2 seconds, and VeeKay had an equally comfortable 3.2 second lead Frederick.

VeeKay was pushing hard to make up time, but was struggling with front grip.

VeeKay told TSO: ‘I was pushing pretty hard in the middle of the race the tires were all grained, so I didn’t have any grip in the front any more.”

With only eight minutes left in the race Thompson had his 4.2 second lead erased when the lone yellow flag of the race was shown around the track.  Darren Keane and Enders made contact while fighting for 11th, with Enders coming to a stop in Madness (Turn 5). Keane was penalized for avoidable contact, but was able to continue and finished in 16th. Enders lost three laps while the safety team came to Ender’s rescue.

The green flag came back out with 17 laps to go, and once again, Thompson was able to get cleanly through Turn 1, and once again pulled out to a comfortable lead.

Frederick used the restart to make an attempt to reach the second step of the podium when he made a pass attempt around the outside of the 16 year-old VeeKay in Turn 4.

“Just before Turn 4, he (Frederick) came out of the draft,” explained VeeKay to TSO after the race. “I was on the inside, and he was on the outside. I braked a little later, and I put the car a little in front of him, he got dirty air and I could driver away from him.”

Thompson was able to extend his lead to 1.2 seconds when the checkered flag flew on the 19 year-old’s seventh career Mazda Road To Indy presented by Cooper Tire trip to the top step of the podium.

Oliver Askew, and Rinus VeeKay will fight for the Mazda Motorsports Advancement Scholarship that the USF2000 championship winner will receive. (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio Presented by Allied Building Products Race #2 Results 

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER TEAM GAP
1 90 Parker Thompson Exclusive Autosport 21 LAPS
2 21 Rinus VeeKay Pabst Racing 1.1713
3 81 Kaylen Frederick Team Pelfrey 1.6874
4 3 Oliver Askew Cape Motorsports 2.6639
5 22 Calvin Ming Pabst Racing 3.0560
6 79 David Malukas BN Racing 4.2453
7 80 Robert Megennis Team Pelfrey 5.3141
8 23 Lucas Kohl Pabst Racing 6.7386
9 12 Moises de la Vara DEForce Racing 7.9495
10 7 Devin Wojcik ArmsUp Motorsports 8.8970
11 10 Andres Gutierrez DEForce Racing 9.4644
12 92 Dev Gore Exclusive Autosport 10.2078
13 37 Jacob Abel Newman Wachs Racing 10.8632
14 97 Bruna Tomaselli ArmsUp Motorsports 18.7035
15 93 Jayson Clunie Exclusive Autosport 29.3860
16 36 Darren Keane Newman Wachs Racing 30.3200
17 27 Colin Kaminsky John Cummiskey Racing -1 LAPS
18 82 Phillippe Denes Team Pelfrey -1 LAPS
19 11 Kory Enders DEForce Racing 3 LAPS
category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, USF2000 News/Results
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MRTI at Mid Ohio – Saturday – USF2000 and Pro Mazda qualifying

Posted by  on Saturday, July 29th 2017     

A crazy final two minutes of qualifying for the second Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio Presented by Allied Building Products of the weekend ended up with Exclusive Autosport’s Parker Thompson putting a beat down on his competitors.

Thompson was joined by championship contenders Oliver Askew, and Rinus VeeKay in a final shootout for the pole, and the important bonus point that goes with it. The three drivers traded the provisional pole a total of five different times in the final 120 minutes of qualifying. But, it was Thompson’s final lap of 82.612 seconds that ended up an expansive six-tenths of a second ahead of Dutch youngster VeeKay.

After high humidity and overcast skies Friday at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Saturday dawned with bright blue skies, low humidity, a brisk breeze from the North, and the temperature around 56F.

For the second straight day, it was 19 Cooper Tires USF2000 Powered by Mazda drivers and teams that served as the alarm clock for the legion of campers surrounding the 2.258-mile, 13-Turn Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course natural terrain circuit.

The Pabst Racing threesome of Rinus VeeKay, Calvin Ming, and Lucas Kohl were the first three cars on track for the 20-minute qualifying stanza.

At the half-way point of qualifying, the top 10 were: Oliver Askew, Parker Thompson, Rinus VeeKay, Calvin Ming, Andres Guttierez, Lucas Kohl, Jacob Abel, Kaylen Frederick, Devin Wojcik, and Robert Megennis.

The times fell continually throughout the session as the Cooper Tires and Mazda 2.0L power plants got warmed-up.

Yesterday’s winner, Oliver Askew grabbed the provisional pole just past the half-way point, and the Mazda backed driver continued to go quicker, which was a good thing, as VeeKay, Ming, and Thompson all made runs at the top spot.

It was finally VeeKay, who knocked the championship leader’s No. 3 Soul Red Cape Motorsports machine from the provisional. Just a few seconds later, Thompson took over the top spot, and those two drivers traded the top spot two more times.

Of note, yesterday’s race winner Askew, who was on probation for jumping the start on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course in May, was penalized 10 points for jumping the race start in Friday’s race. That reduced the 20 year-old’s championship lead over the 16 year-old VeeKay to 19 points.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio Presented by Allied Building Products qualifying #2 results

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER QUICK LAP DIFFERENCE
1 90 Parker Thompson 1:22.612 –.—-
2 21 Rinus VeeKay 1:23.284 0.6719
3 3 Oliver Askew 1:23.342 0.7300
4 23 Lucas Kohl 1:23.732 1.1205
5 22 Calvin Ming 1:23.856 1.2443
6 10 Andres Gutierrez 1:23.886 1.2749
7 81 Kaylen Frederick 1:23.909 1.2978
8 79 David Malukas 1:24.132 1.5201
9 12 Moises de la Vara 1:24.209 1.5970
10 11 Kory Enders 1:24.337 1.7258
11 36 Darren Keane 1:24.441 1.8297
12 80 Robert Megennis 1:24.500 1.8886
13 7 Devin Wojcik 1:24.634 2.0225
14 27 Colin Kaminsky 1:24.815 2.2035
15 82 Phillippe Denes 1:24.841 2.2294
16 37 Jacob Abel 1:25.331 2.7189
17 97 Bruna Tomaselli 1:26.210 3.5988
18 92 Dev Gore 1:26.626 4.0140
19 93 Jayson Clunie 1:27.070 4.4583

The final USF2000 race of the weekend, and penultimate race of the season is scheduled to get the green flag in less than four hours at 12:10 p.m. this afternoon.

 

Anthony Martin came to the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on an early Saturday morning with a three point deficit to Victor Franzoni in the chase for the $790,000 Mazda Motorsports Advancement Scholarship a driver takes for winning the Pro Mazda Championship, but after a 20 minute qualifying session he will start this afternoons race trailing by two points.

Martin’s best lap of 79.544 seconds earned the 22 year-old his fourth pole of the year, 12th of his Mazda Road To Indy presented by Cooper Tire and the important bonus point.

The second Pro Mazda presented by Cooper Tire qualifying session of the weekend, immediately followed USF2000 qualifying on this sunny, but brisk Saturday morning.

Franzoni led for the most of the first half of the session, but just before the half-way point of the 20 minute session, it was the Soul Red No. 8 of Martin that took away the provisional pole from his Brazilian rival.

For much of the second half of the session, Martin’s quickest lap was a full second ahead of Franzoni, but with a few minutes left, Franzoni was able to cut the gap to just under three-tenths of a second.

But, a local yellow flag in Turn 1 for Max Hanratty’s contact, meant that Franzoni was denied the opportunity to make a run at Martin for the pole.

The heavily damaged Pro Mazda presented by Cooper Tire machine of Max Hanratty comes back to the paddock after heaving contact in Turn 1 during qualifying at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (Photo courtesy of Patrick Stephan)

Yesterday’s first time pole sitter Carlos Cunha will start on the inside of the second row and is joined in the top five by his Team Pelfrey teammates Nikita Lastochkin, and TJ Fischer.

Cooper Tires Pro Mazda Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio Presented by Allied Building Products Qualifying two results: 

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER QUICK LAP DIFFERENCE
1 8 Anthony Martin 1:19.544 –.—-
2 23 Victor Franzoni 1:19.838 0.2941
3 81 Carlos Cunha 1:20.022 0.4777
4 80 Nikita Lastochkin 1:20.366 0.8223
5 82 TJ Fischer 1:21.257 1.7134
6 14 Sting Ray Robb 1:21.577 2.0332
7 13 Bobby Eberle 1:22.660 3.1164
8 12 Kris Wright 1:22.923 3.3788
9 60 Jeff Green 1:23.104 3.5604
10 57 Bob Kaminsky 1:23.606 4.0623
11 6 Max Hanratty 1:23.918 4.3739
12 2 Dave Zavelson 1:26.846 7.3018
13 5 Kevin Bury 1:34.208 14.6643

The second leg of the Pro Mazda triple-header weekend is scheduled to get the green flag at 1:05 P.M. this afternoon (Saturday, July 29).

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category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, Pro Mazda News/Results, Pro Mazda presented by Cooper Tire - TSO, USF2000 News/Results
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MRTI in Toronto – Sunday – USF2000 Race #2 – notes and results – Thompson and VeeKay are both winners

Posted by  on Sunday, July 16th 2017     

By Steve Wittich

For the third straight race in row the 1.786 mile, 11-Turn Exhibition Place street circuit was kind to fellow Canadian Parker Thompson. After dominating the race on Saturday, the Red Deer, Alberta native needed a little luck to climb to the top step of the podium on Sunday. The Exclusive Autosport veteran was the beneficiary of home court advantage when the top three collided while he was running fourth.

Thompson’s sixth career MRTI win solidified his third place championship standing, and opened the door just a little bit for him to make a run at the Mazda Motorsports Advancement Scholarship for winning the championship.

Thompson won the race, but Rinus VeeKay was also a big winner. The 16 year-old showed incredible patience, and it payed off when current points leader Oliver Askew was collected in an incident and VeeKay inherited second place, and moved to within 19 points of Askew in the title chase.

Kaylen Frederick, who didn’t become comfortable on the tricky street circuit until yesterday’s race was the biggest mover of the day. The 15 year-old Team Pelfrey driver started the race in 13th and gained 10 spots to snag the final spot on the podium.

Darren Keane, a 17 year-old is in only his second season in cars, and his fourth place finish is the best of his young career. The Florida native had a stand-out karting career and is coached by current Michael Shank Racing driver Oswaldo Negri, Jr.

There was drama before the start of the race. Cape Motorsports driver Rick Donison did not start the race, and the DEForce Racing machine of Kory Enders could not get going. The Texas based crew was able to get the distinctive silver and blue No. 11 push started, and the 19 year-old was able to recover to finish the race in seventh.

Askew got a good start on the field, but by the time he and fellow front row start David Malukas got to the end of the long Lake Shore Boulevard straight, they were side-by-side. Askew “missed” the corner, but kept it off the wall and both he and Malukas were passed by Alex Baron, who started the race on the inside of the second row.

At the end of the fist lap the top 10 were: Baron, Askew, Malukas, Thompson, VeeKay, Robert Megennis, Calvin Ming, Jose Sierra, Devin Wojcik, and Frederick.

At the beginning of the second lap, Baron’s lead over Askew was 0.7 seconds. Further back in the field newcomer Sierra and Pabst Racing’s Ming made contact. Ming was forced to pit road for repairs, and lost two laps to the leaders, finishing in 11th. Sierra was forced to serve a drive-thru for avoidable contact, but was able to stay on the lead lap, ending the day in eighth.

Malukas obviously had a fast car, and was able to get by Askew in Turn 3 on Lap 4, and immediately started to eat into the lead that Baron had built.

For two straight laps, Malukas tried to go around the outside of Baron for the lead. Both times Baron chose the inside defensive line, and Malukas could not get far enough ahead of Baron to complete the pass.

On the next circuit, The No. 79 of Malukas followed the Cooper Tire tracks of Baron’s No. 4 down the long Lake Shore Boulevard back straight, and just as they reached the braking zone, popped to the inside of the No. 4 ArmsUp Motorsports machine of Baron. Malukas was able to get the car slowed down enough to make the corner, but pushed out into Baron across the concrete patch making contact with Baron’s car and spinning him to the inside.

The No. 4 spun into the side of Malukas immediately ending the day of the first and second place drivers, and Askew, who was right behind them had nowhere to go, coming to a stop with damage to the nose of his car.

Not surprisingly, after the race both drivers pointed the finger of blame at each other.

Askew was able to get the Mazda sponsored Soul Red No. 3 re-started and extricated, and back to his Cape Motorsports crew. They attempted to fix the car, but Askew was forced to retire, finishing the race in 12th.

This handed the lead over to Saturday race winner Thompson, who was followed by VeeKay, Robert Megennis, Kaylen Frederick, Devin Wojcik, Darren Keane, Dev Gore, Jayson Clunie, Kory Enders, and Jose Sierra.

Thompson did not get a great jump on the restart, and VeeKay told us that he was definitely going for the win, but the young Dutch driver faced too much pressure from behind. Megennis got a great start and tried to go around the outside of VeeKay, but was not able to complete the pass, and lost momentum falling back to sixth.

This allowed Wojcik to move up to the final spot on the podium. The ArmsUp Motorsports rookie was able to hold onto the last spot on the podium for two laps before he was passed by Frederick.

Wojcik lost a couple of more spots to Keane and Megennis the last few laps, but when TSO chatted with the 17 year-old after the race he was still happy with his best finish of the year. The native of Up-State New York State credited having Indy Lights veteran Alex Baron as his teammate the last two weekends as helping him learn where he needs to improve.

Over the course of the final six laps VeeKay was clearly the quickest driver on track. On Lap 14 Thompson had 1.9 second lead over VeeKay, and when they took the checkered flag nine laps later Thompson crossed the line only 0.6 seconds ahead VeeKay.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Toronto Presented by Allied Building Products Race #2 results

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER DIFFERENCE
1 90 Parker Thompson 22 laps
2 21 Rinus VeeKay 0.6379
3 81 Kaylen Frederick 6.4381
4 36 Darren Keane 12.7684
5 80 Robert Megennis 13.6881
6 7 Devin Wojcik 13.9084
7 11 Kory Enders 14.3149
8 10 Jose Sierra 17.5367
9 93 Jayson Clunie 26.0396
10 92 Dev Gore 26.5358
11 22 Calvin Ming – 2 LAPS
12 3 Oliver Askew -12 LAPS
13 4 Alex Baron -14 LAPS
14 79 David Malukas -14 LAPS
15 23 Lucas Kohl -22 LAPS
16 12 Moises de la Vara DNS
17 2 Ricky Donison DNS
category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, USF2000 News/Results
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MRTI in Toronto – Saturday – USF2000 Race #1

Posted by  on Sunday, July 16th 2017     

By Steve Wittich

Despite winning on home soil at this event one year ago, Canadian Parker Thompson experienced a whole new range of emotions when he crossed under the checkered flag to claim victory in Toronto while driving for Exclusive Autosport, a Canadian team.

“No disrespect to the Cape Motorsports crew, but I have to say winning with Exclusive Autosport has been one of the most emotional victories that I’ve ever had,” Thompson told TSO. “The whole team was screaming on the radio after I took the checkered flag. I was screaming on the radio. You look at our team, my engineer Kristof is Canadian, my mechanic Alex is Canadian, my team owner Michale Duncalfe is Canadian, we’re all Canadian. Most of them are from Toronto, but we’re all from across Canada. We’ve almost got every province represented on our team, so  take a win in our home country, the words don’t describe it. It was so emotional, there have been very few times that I’ve teared up after a race win. Usually I can hold my composure, but today, there was no holding it back.”

Oh Canada! Canadian driver Parker Thompson, driving for Canadian team Exclusive Autosport won during the first USF2000 race in Toronto in 2017 (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

The win was the first in USF2000 for the Saskatoon, Saskatchewan team that is lead by Michale and Kimberly Duncalfe, and the fifth of Thompson’s Mazda Road To Indy presented by Cooper Tire career.

Starting on pole, for the second time this season, Thompson was ready to go the minute he go into his OpnHwy sponsored No. 90.

“Not even after the first lap. I’d say I was in rhythm leaving pit lane,” said the Red Deer, Alberta native after being asked if it took him a lap to get comfortable. “I think I got my tires warmed up a little bit more than Oliver and the other competitors did. I seemed to be a little more aggressive on that warm-up lap, and then from there, I was just a man on a mission. I think I did a really good job on that first start of the race to get that advantage because ultimately that’s what won me the race towards the end. If I didn’t have that gap, I probably wouldn’t have come out on top. So, it was awesome to just go out there and really get into rhythm, by the first lap, I was tapping walls and comfy with my situation, and you’re not going to be able to do that if you’re not confident in your car. And, the guys from Exclusive Autosport gave be better than a good car, they gave me an awesome car to go out and do what I needed to do.”

After a single pace lap, front row USF2000 starters Thompson and Askew brought to field to green flag. The pole sitter Thompson was able to get a good jump on Askew, and won the drag race down to Turn 1.

The entire field was able to get through entire first lap cleanly, and when they crossed the line to complete the opening lap, the top ten were: Thompson, Askew, VeeKay, Kaylen Frederick, David Malukas, Jose Sierra, Calvin Ming, Robert Megennis, Alex Baron, and Moisés de la Vara.

On the Lap 2, VeeKay was forced to go on the defensive against Frederick, which opened the door for Malukas to pressure the 15 year-old Team Pelfrey rookie.

Frederick, facing pressure from Malukas made a mistake in Turn 8, tagging the tire barrier and heading to pit road. Frederick who currently holds third in the championship, was forced to retire due to contact.

By Lap 5, Thompson was able to build a 1.5 second over Askew, who was busy defending against VeeKay and Malukas – further back Baron was working over Megennis and was able to make an outside pass in Turn 3 and Turn 4 on Lap 7

On the next lap Malukas, who was the quickest car on track was able to get around VeeKay in T3 for the final spot of the podium, but almost immediately made a mistake in Turn 7. The No. 79 BN Racing machine got into the Speedi Dri left behind from a previous clean-up and hit the concrete wall. The 16 year-old from Chicago, Ill. was forced to bring his damaged machine to pit road and immediately retired due to the contact.

Further back it was debutante Sierra who was on the move.  The 18-year old Mexican driver was battling Ming, his chief rival in the NACAM FIA Formula 4 Mexico Championship for … position, which immediately put Ming into the clutches of Baron. The twosome made slight contact in Turn 3, with disastrous results for both drivers. Ming’s pursuit for his third straight podium came to an end when the No. 22 Pabst Racing machine came to pit road, and was retired. Baron fell down to 10th in the running order, and was only able to recover to record a sixth place finish.

At the halfway point of the 45-minute race, Thompson was able to grow his gap over Askew to a comfortable 1.8 seconds.  VeeKay was another 2.8 back seconds a field of the Mazda backed Soul Red No. 3 of Askew, but the 16 year-old Dutch driver was coming quickly. On Lap 15, VeeKay turned the quickest lap of the race, a scorching lap of 1 minute, 11.868 seconds, over a second quicker than the race record set in 2016 by Jordan Lloyd.

Further back in the field, rookies Wojcik and de la Vara were having an entreating battle for what would end up being the seventh spot, after Robert Megennis retired from fifth with damage from contact. It took three laps of stalking de la Vara, but the ArmsUp Motorsports rookie was eventually able to get by the No. 12 DEForce Racing machine in Turn 3.

With seven laps left to go in the 25 lap race, both Thompson, and Askew turned their quickest circuits. Askew was the quicker of the two, shrinking a Thompson’s 1.8 second lead at the half-way point of the race to 0.873 seconds when they took the checkered flag.  Thompson told TSO that it was his good start that allowed him to win the race.

“Staring second for that race next to Parker, I got a good start and slotted in behind him,” said Askew, who collected his ninth podium in 10 races. “I think we had one or two tenths (of a second) on him from the middle to the end of the race, but it’s so hard to pass. The track has such low grip, so when you get behind someone, you lose everything, so you just have to hold onto it and with a few laps to go, I just started thinking championship, and hung in their for good points.”

Oliver Askew finished second in the first of two Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Toronto Presented by Allied Building Products in Toronto, and grew his points lead to 34 points over Rinus VeeKay (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

Askew came into the Toronto race-weekend with a 32 point championship lead over VeeKay, and ended the first of two races with a 34 point lead. After an exciting qualifying session earlier in day, the Jupiter, Fla. resident will start on pole for the second USF2000 race of the weekend, gaining one bonus point and growing his advantage over VeeKay to 35.

category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, USF2000 News/Results

MRTI in Toronto – 2017 – USF2000 qualifying #2 – provisional pole changes hands 10 times in final minutes

Posted by  on Saturday, July 15th 2017     

By Steve Wittich

An exciting final five minutes of USF2000 qualifying featured five different drivers trading the provisional pole a total of ten times. At the end of the 20 minute session, it was current points leader Oliver Askew that will won the bonus point, and will start on the inside of the front row for Sunday’s Race #2. This will be the sixth time this season that Askew will start on pole in 2017.  It will be the ninth time that a Cape Motorsports driver will start on pole in Toronto, Ontario.

The lap of 1 minute, 12.219 seconds turned in by the Cape Motorsports rookie was almost two-tenths of a second quicker than David Malukas, and over three-tenths of a second under the track record set by Anthony Martin last year.

Malukas, who started on pole in Road America, will start outside of Askew. ArmsUp Motorsports pilot, and 2014 Toronto Indy Lights winner, Alex Baron will start inside the second row. Race #1 pole-sitter Parker Thompson will start fourth. Championship contender Rinus VeeKay will start inside the third row beside Team Pelfrey veteran Robert Megennis.

The USF2000 drivers entered in the twin Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Toronto Presented by Allied Building Products races, took a more familiar spot as dew sweepers on the schedule to begin Saturday. If the residents of the multitude of condominiums surrounding Exhibition Park were still asleep at 8am, the chorus of 17 Mazda 2.0L MZR engines served as an alarm clock.

Even though they were first out on track first,  cloudy skies and cool temperatures provided the perfect combination to make speed.

The red flag came out eight minutes into the session to pick up front-wing debris from the No. 2 Cape Motorsports rookie Rick Donison who tagged the wall. The Indian drivers was able to come back to pit road and put on a new front wing.

At that point Thompson’s lap of 1 minute, 14.078 seconds was at the top of the timesheet and was followed in the top 10 by Baron, Askew, Malukas, Megennis, VeeKay, newcomer Jose Sierra, Calvin Ming, Moisés de la Vara, and Devin Wojcik.

The track quickly went back to green, and after a a couple of laps to warm up their Cooper Tires the drivers began to trade the provisional pole.

Race #1 pole-sitter Thompson was the first driver to turn in a flier, but it didn’t take long for the provisional pole to change places with Askew, VeeKay, Thompson, Baron and Malukas all holding the top spot, before Askew turned the quickest lap of the weekend on his final lap.

Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of Toronto Presented by Allied Building Products Qualifying results #2

RANK CAR NO. DRIVER QUICK LAP TIME DIFFERENCE
1 3 Oliver Askew 1:12.219 –.—-
2 79 David Malukas 1:12.412 0.1931
3 4 Alex Baron 1:12.452 0.2326
4 90 Parker Thompson 1:12.452 0.2329
5 21 Rinus VeeKay 1:12.618 0.3983
6 80 Robert Megennis 1:12.821 0.6015
7 22 Calvin Ming 1:12.996 0.7764
8 7 Devin Wojcik 1:13.178 0.9589
9 10 Jose Sierra 1:13.378 1.1584
10 23 Lucas Kohl 1:13.484 1.2644
11 36 Darren Keane 1:13.526 1.3073
12 81 Kaylen Frederick 1:13.615 1.3954
13 11 Kory Enders 1:13.654 1.4346
14 12 Moises de la Vara 1:14.118 1.8988
15 92 Dev Gore 1:14.703 2.4837
16 93 Jayson Clunie 1:16.117 3.8974
17 2 Ricky Donison 1:20.367 8.1474

The first USF2000 race of the weekend roles off noon.

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MRTI in Toronto – A trio of Canadian cherish the opportunity to race in the Great White North

Posted by  on Saturday, July 15th 2017     

By Steve Wittich

What do Paul Tracy, Greg Moore, Andrew Bordin, David Rutledge, Michael Valiante, Antoine Bessette, and Parker Thompson all have in common?

The Canadian race car pilots have all won an Indy car ladder series race on home soil on the streets of Toronto, Ontario.

In 2017 there are three drivers, including Thompson, who is looking for a second win, and one team that would love to fly the Canadian Flag while standing on the top step of the podium.

So far – it’s Thompson, who won the second USF2000 race on the 1.786 mile, 11-Turn Exhibition Place street circuit last year – who is the best candidate to win at ‘home.’

Parker Thompson wheels his No. 90 Openhwy Exclusive Autosport Mazda/Tatuus to a home soil pole in Toronto (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

When we caught up with Thompson after he won his second pole of the USF2000 season and fifth career MRTI pole, he was almost at a loss for words.

“There’s no words to describe what it feels like,” Thompson told TSO after winning his second pole of the season. “That was such a special moment. There was pressure coming back. I won last year (with Cape Motorsports), so to come back here again this year, it was so cool. Even when I touched down in Toronto, the memories were there.

“I’ve been the happiest I’ve been all season, just because we are back in Toronto, but to come and repeat the success I’ve had is just amazing. Especially with the new team Exclusive Autosport. You know, the bounce back from Iowa, I’m pretty sure is going to be a pretty good Cinderella story. What this team has done on such a short turn around in a weeks time from our race in Iowa is incredible.”

Thompson, who hails from Red Deer, Alberta, has twenty guests attending the Honda Indy Toronto this weekend.

“It’s unbelievable. This is the only race where my whole family has come out. This is the first race that mom and grandma have shown up to. I’ve got my two best friends coming out (from Alberta). I’ve got all my sponsors on the car at this race. In total we have over twenty people here, so it’s pretty unbelievable to come and get pole for them. They all showed up for the qualifying this afternoon so it was definitely a really special moment.”

A pair of Canadians, driver Parker Thompson and team owner Michael Duncalfe, celebrate a home soil poll in Toronto (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

Thompson’s Exclusive Autosport team who also fly the Canadian flag, calls Saskatoon, Saskatchewan home, and over the last four years have had incredible success racing in Ontario.

The Michael and Kimberly Duncalfe led squad has over 20 F1600 and F2000 wins at Calabogie Motorsports Park, Canadian Tire Motorsports Park (Mosport), Shannonville Motorsports Park, and on the streets surrounding Exhibition place (Tristan DeGrand in 2014).

“It’s an honor. I’m absolutely thrilled,” exclaimed Michael Duncalfe when asked what winning the pole in Canada meant to the team. “Parker did a fantastic job. The crew busted their butts, and to go P1 in both sessions is pretty amazing. “It’s fantastic to have all the hometown support, and great to put the car up front for them.”

———-

Dalton Kellet, who was born at the North York General Hospital in Toronto, Ontario, and grew up in Stoufville, a northern suburb Canada’s largest city, did not attend the Honda Indy Toronto until he first raced here in 2013. That isn’t because he didn’t want to, it’s because the 23 year-old always had a karting event to take part in.

Toronto born Dalton Kellett gets ready to head out on track for Indy Lights Practice #1 in Toronto (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

(I’m) Really looking forward to Toronto”, explained Kellett. “It’s awesome, Toronto is one of the best races on the calendar. I really love the track. Having driven the streets in a road car, going down Lake Shore (Boulevard), and having the chance to driver three to four times the speed in an Indy Lights car is really awesome. You have the hometown crowd, lot’s of friends and family, and just the Canadian race fans. It’s just an honor.”

Because we are geeks, TSO had to check exactly how fast Kellett is going on Lake Shore Boulevard. His K-Line Insulators sponsored No. 28 Mazda/Dallara hit a top speed of just over 163mph, or 262kph in the speed trap just before Turn 3. The posted speed limit on Lake Shore Boulevard is 60kph, so Kellett’s top speed is exactly 4.36 times over the speed limit.

Canadian Dalton Kellett and his No. 28 K-Line Insulators USA Inc. Mazda/Dallara on the streets surrounding Exhibition Place in Toronto, Ontario (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

Kellett told TSO that between sponsors, their guests, family and friends, he has over 100 guests attending over the course of three days.

Kellett, who finished third in this year’s Freedom 100, and Mazda Iowa 100 has also kept busy keeping local media up-to-date on the event and his activities.

https://twitter.com/FollowAndretti/status/885684763708674048

 

https://twitter.com/FollowAndretti/status/885817100903821312

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Zachary Claman De Melo, who hails from Montreal, Quebec, told TSO that between his sponsors and family, he has almost 20 guests to entertain this weekend.

Carlin’s Zachary Claman DeMelo, a native of Montreal, QC, wheels his ZCD Montreal/Zoological Wildlife Foundation Mazda/Dallara on home soil (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

De Melo said: “I have a lot of my sponsors coming, my family is coming, so hopefully I can do well and show them a good time.”

Claman De Melo, who recently won his first Indy Lights at on the 14-Turn, 4.014-mile Road America road course , will be making his third and fourth starts on the streets of Exhibition Place, and told TSO that it’s the passion of the Canadian fans that he appreciates the most.

Canadian Zachary Claman DeMelo is focused on doing well at the only Canadian event on the Indy Lights calendar in 2017 (Photo courtesy of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, LLC Photography)

“It’s a big race, there is a big crowd, so it’s exciting to race on the streets of Toronto,” said the 19 year-old. “I like street courses particularly, so it’s a lot of fun. There was a lot of support at the autograph session, so I couldn’t be happier to race in Canada. It’s one of my favorite races on the calendar. It’s a Friday, and it’s already really busy today. Too see this much support for the Canadian race is a great thing.”

The first USF2000 race of the weekend takes place at noon on Saturday, and is immediately followed by the first Indy Lights race at 1pm.

category: Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda - TSO, Indy Lights News/Results, Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tire - TSO, USF2000 News/Results
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