Elkhart Lake, Wisc. – One of the biggest challenges for a rookie driver in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda series is adapting to the different tracks on the schedule.
It’s certainly been that way for Colin Kaminsky as he has navigated his way through his first year in the Mazda Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires program, but this past weekend at Road America, he was perfectly comfortable, having competed on the 4.048-mile, 14-turn circuit in various forms of racing over the years.
That showed in the final results, as the 18-year-old from Homer Glen, Ill. recorded the first Top 10 finishes of his MRTI career. Driving the No. 27 Slick Locks/Kaminsky Racing entry for John Cummiskey Racing, Kaminsky finished ninth in Race 1 on Friday morning, then followed that up with an eighth-place finish in Race 2 on Saturday afternoon.
“I was really looking forward to coming to Road America all season,” Kaminsky said. “I’ve raced here many times in SCCA spec racers, and it’s one of my favorite tracks. We also had a great test here a few weeks ago, so I had a ton of confidence coming into the weekend, which is what led to our great result.”
Kaminsky was one of the bigger movers in both races, picking up five spots from his starting position in the first race, and four spots in the second, the result of being very aggressive at the start of the race. In Race 2, Kaminsky moved from 12th to eighth in the first lap of the race, and after being pushed off course and dropped back to 11th on a restart later in the event, battled back and picked up the three spots he lost before the checkered flag fell.
“I think we could’ve had an even better result in Race 2, but the restart after the caution was a little crazy and I got shuffled back,” Kaminsky said. “We’ll take this though, and I look forward to going to Mid-Ohio (July 28-30) next month. That’s another track where I have a ton of experience, and I think we have some great momentum going, so it could lead to our best weekend yet.
Colin Kaminsky Road America Results
Qualifying 1 – 14th (2:17.0744, 105.420 mph)
Race 1 – Started 14th, finished 9th
Qualifying 2 – 12th (2:11.9525, 109.512 mph)
Race 2 – Started 12th, finished 8th