INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – As a one-car team in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda, JDC MotorSports and their rookie driver Parker Thompson have been one of the most exciting highlights of the series’ first three doubleheader events. The young Canadian pilot has shown maturity and growth since his debut at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in March and his back-to-back fifth place finishes at Barber Motorsports Park in late April have put him in the top-six in the championship standings. Parker and the team head to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course alongside the Verizon IndyCar Series this coming weekend, where Thompson will have a teammate for the first time this year. F1600 graduate and current F2000 Championship Series driver Sam Chastain has signed to run with JDC MotorSports in the #19 Miller-Eads Company / The Harding Group entry.
“We’re very excited to be bringing on a teammate for Parker this weekend,” offered John Church. “This will be Sam's home race and we hope he can put on a show for all his fans. I expect that he and Parker will work very well together, and the team is motivated by the fact that we’ll have double the data. If Parker can continue his momentum, I think we’ll be challenging for a podium finish.”
Thompson has posted five top-seven finishes in the six races that have been run this season, with the only blemish being his opening lap DNF for the first round in St. Petersburg. The multi-time karting champion and Team Canada member has become more and more comfortable with his USF2000 car, as well as the demands and competition of the series. Parker remains focused on making his first trip to a post-race podium and the team expects that this accomplishment is right around the corner.
Chastain comes to JDC MotorSports from the F2000 Championship Series, where he is campaigning the full series and currently sits sixth in points. Sam finished sixth and fourth in the opening two races of the program at Road Atlanta in his F2000 debut. The 22-year-old driver spent the last two seasons racing in the F1600 program, where he competed against current USF2000 drivers Aaron Telitz, Jake Edison, Ayla Agren and Garth Richards. In 2014, he finished seventh in the points with a single race win.
Parker, Sam and their JDC MotorSports crews will tackle the next stop of the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda on Wednesday running in a pair of official series test sessions ahead of practice on Thursday. The JDC MotorSports duo will qualify on Friday at 9:30 am EDT and Race one will go green at 1:00 pm that afternoon. Race two is scheduled for 10:30 am EDT on Saturday.
JDC MOTORSPORTS – DRIVER INFORMATION:
Parker Thompson - #80
Age: 17
Hometown: Red Deer. Alberta
Sponsors: Bell Helmets, OMP, Parker Thompson: Drive to Stay Alive
2015 Record:
Point Standings: 6th – 88 points
Best Finish: 4th – NOLA (Race 2)
Best Qualifying Position: 5th – Barber (Race 1)
Driver Quote: “"Heading into the month of May, I am extremely confident that JDC Motorsports and I will be in for some solid finishes and competing for wins. We have signed a second car to the USF2000 program, which is huge for getting our set-ups polished for the races. Now I have half the work to do setup-wise. I also think that the team and I have been gaining huge momentum in the last few races. We are all working extremely hard and it will pay off in the near future. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course was an excellent track for myself at the Chris Griffiths Memorial test, so I am really looking forward to what we can do this weekend."
Sam Chastain - #19
Age: 22
Hometown: Noblesville, Indiana
Sponsors: Miller-Eads Company, The Harding Group, Bella Vita, D2 Land and Water Resource, Atlantic Mortgage, NT supply, and Beach Bum Vacations
2015 Record:
Point Standings: N/A
Best Finish: N/A
Best Qualifying Position: N/A
Driver Quote: “I’m super excited to be getting the opportunity to run the Grand Prix of Indianapolis. I plan on having a lot of fun and hopefully walking away with a couple of top-fives. It's also a dream come true and a big privilege to get this opportunity.”
About JDC Motorsports:
Involved in formula car racing since its inception in 1994, JDC Motorsports has established itself as one of the leading junior open-wheel teams in North America. Initially making its mark in the F2000 class of club racing competition, JDC Motorsports was soon a team worth watching in the pro ranks. Competing in the Formula Ford 2000 Zetec Championship, the team not only won races, but also helped develop multiple young drivers. In 2005, JDC Motorsports expanded its efforts, entering the Star Mazda Championship. Quickly becoming one of the top teams in the series, JDC captured both the driver and team titles in 2007, as well as Rookie of the Year honors, with Dane Cameron scoring a series-high three wins. In 2008, JDC Motorsports was the runner-up in the Star Mazda Championship and finished fourth in its inaugural season of F2000 Championship Series competition. The Minnesota-based team won the Star Mazda Championship title with Rookie of the Year Adam Christodoulou, and the F2000 Championship Series title with Chris Miller in 2009. The following year, JDC continued its winning ways, earning the Rookie of the Year award in the Star Mazda Championship with Connor De Philippi, and scoring a non-points win in the USF2000 National Championship. In 2011, the Minneapolis-based squad captured its third Star Mazda Championship title with Tristan Vautier, scored a win in the USF2000 National Championship, and made its Prototype Lites Championship debut, earning five podium finishes. JDC Motorsports added to its Star Mazda Championship win tally, USF2000 Championship podium total, and finished as the Prototype Lites Championship runner-up in 2012. Last year, the squad continued its run of Pro Mazda and USF2000 podium finishes, and was third in the Prototype Lites title fight.