SASKATOON, Sask. – Exclusive Autosport has expanded their full line-up for the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda season, and is pleased to confirm that Atlanta, Georgia’s Dev Gore will drive for the team in 2017. The 19-year-old will pilot the #92 Exclusive Autosport / AER Apartments entry, kicking off the season in just over a week at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. Gore is an accomplished kart racer who won two American Rotax DD2 championships in 2016, taking home the US Open and US Rotax Grand National titles. Gore joins USF2000 veterans Parker Thompson and Luke Gabin to form a strong team of drivers under the Exclusive Autosport tent, as all three will be gunning for the series championship. Gore is also fully focused on winning the Rookie of the Year crown.
“I am very excited about working with Dev,” commented Michael Duncalfe, President and CEO of Exclusive Management, Inc. “He has an impressive karting resume and immense racecraft. He is a welcomed addition to our team. He will no doubt be a contender for Rookie of the Year and challenging upfront. We are thrilled to welcome Dev to our program and look forward to kicking off the season in St. Petersburg in a couple of weeks.”
Gore launched his karting career at Carolina Motorsports Park and Lamar County Speedway (Barnesville), and was a quick study, and won the club championships in his first year of competition. Dev has worked with a list of talented coaches and teams during his development in karting, and spent three summers at Le Circuit Mont Tremblant under the tutelage of world champion kart racer Ben Cooper and noted Canadian karter Zach Robichon. He’s also been part of the powerhouse Andersen Karting Team, winning races and championships for the Florida-based operation. Gore was also selected as one of two winners in the MRTI Maxspeed Driver Advancement program last year, which provided him with the opportunity to drive a USF2000 car in October at the Chris Griffis Memorial Test at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
“2017 is going to be an interesting year in USF2000,” Gore commented. “This was such a last minute deal, so I am happy to be able to get onboard with a team as stacked as Exclusive Autosport. I believe that I will have the best support between my two teammates and crew. Michael Duncalfe has pulled out all the stops in securing the best mechanics, engineers and crew chief. I also have two of the strongest teammates that I could ask for working together for the benefit of our program. I am extremely confident in both Parker and Luke to work together with Jay Green, the engineers and myself in order to come home with race wins and strong results for the three of us. I am looking forward to a very strong year.
The team is currently setting up shop at Homestead-Miami Speedway, prepping for the official MRTI Spring Training outing for USF2000 drivers on Tuesday and Wednesday. The opening round of the series is just two weeks away, as the season will kick off at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 10-12. The on-track action from St. Petersburg will be streamed live on the Mazda Road to Indy app or through the MRTI.TV website (www.roadtoindy.tv), as will the entire USF2000 season.
Exclusive Autosport anxiously awaits the start to the new season and is thrilled to tackle this new challenge with the support of fantastic partners, such as Aero™ Advanced Paint Technology (www.rethinkpaint.com), which is used on all their race cars.
About Exclusive Autosport:
Exclusive Autosport (EA) is a professional racing team dedicated to the success of its drivers in open wheel formula car competition in North America. EA operate teams in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda in the United States and the Formula Tour 1600 series in Canada. Exclusive’s drivers have secured numerous race wins, podium finishes and pole positions, as well as Rookie of the Year championships, a Team USA Scholarship and nominations for Team Canada F1600. Exclusive’s drivers are on the podium in over 80% of the races they enter. Exclusive Management Inc., the team’s parent company, has enjoyed great success in both open wheel and sports car racing and has worked with standout drivers like Thomas McGregor, Jack Mitchell Jr., Shelby Blackstock, Gregory Liefooghe, Jayson Clunie, David Levine and Trenton Estep. EM Inc. drivers are highly sought after in the motorsports industry.