MINNEAPOLIS – Afterburner Autosports, a race winning team in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Powered by Mazda championship for the last three years, kicked off their push for the 2016 season with a number of successful test days where they ran a list of talented young drivers. At the recent Mazda Road to Indy Chris Griffis Memorial test at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas in November, Afterburner provided seat time for five different kart racers from the US Rotax program, and in mid-December, they tested Team USA Scholarship driver and Skip Barber Championship Shootout winner Dakota Dickerson at Buttonwillow Raceway Park in California.
“Our off-season testing program is running at 100% and we’ve been thrilled with the opportunity to work with a group of great young talents,” said Tim Walsh, Afterburner Autosport Team Principal. “The four Rotax kart racers were a pleasure to work with and it was fun having them in our cars. They had differing levels of experience, but it was easy to see that they all have natural talent. We’d be pleased to have them with us this year or in the future as official Afterburner Autosport pilots.”
Afterburner welcomed all four karters from the Rotax Driver Advancement Program, giving them the chance to run in the squad’s quartet of cars. Two of the drivers made their first ever laps aboard a racecar, although they are all champion karters with deep winning resumes. Dutch pilot Rinus van Kalmthout joined Americans Trenton Estep, Kyle Kirkwood and Sting Ray Robb. The quarter was expanded as Chase Owen was also in the paddock with the team. The Skip Barber IndyCar Scholarship winner is primed to take the next step up the open wheel ladder and is working hard to be on the USF2000 grid in 2016.
“Overall, I couldn’t really ask for better. Afterburner made everything quick and simple to understand and the mechanics and Stephan (Dwornick - Team Engineer) made sure everything on my car and driving was spot on, offered Kirkwood, who competed in three F1600 Championship Series race weekends this year and is considered by many as one of the finest young kart racers in the country.
“I thought the test went really well,” added Estep, who won the Junior Max championship in this year’s inaugural US Open karting series. “The team did an outstanding job helping me progress throughout the weekend, while also making me feel at home around the garages. I hope to get an opportunity to work with them again.”
Van Kalmthout was straight and to the point when describing his experience with Afterburner at the COTA test. “It was a great experience with a awesome car on a awesome track!
Coming off the test at the popular Austin, Texas facility, Afterburner headed back to their shop in Minnesota to prepare their cars for more off-season testing. This past week, they put Team USA Scholarship driver and Skip Barber Championship Shootout winner Dakota Dickerson in their car at Buttonwillow Raceway Park and the outing went extremely well. It was the California’s first time in the USF2000 car and he came up to speed methodically, and he ended the two-day test burning off some incredibly quick times the rival the best the team has ever posted at the facility.
“After two very productive days of learning how to drive the USF2000 car, communicating with the engineer, and bonding with the Afterburner Autosport crew, the limits of both my physical and mental strength were tested. I really enjoyed working with Afterburner Autosport and can't thank them enough for my first experience in a USF2000 car,” Dickerson commented.
The team has now returned to the shop to strip their cars down to the frames to begin the rebuild process for a full testing program in January and February ahead of the 2016 USF2000 season opening in St. Petersburg. The team’s engines have been sent back to Elite Engines for inspection and prep and work is underway to fill the team’s four seats for the new year.
About Afterburner Autosport:
Afterburner Autosport was formed in 2010 with the sole purpose of leading the way in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda competition. Under the guidance of former F2000 racer and engineer Tim Walsh, the team has over 20 years of experience in open-wheel competition and can field up to four cars in competition. The squad, which is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, has continually developed and grown since joining the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda and has multiple series victories, winning at least one race every year for the last three years.