St. Petersburg, Fla. – Jay Howard Driver Development (JHDD) wrapped up the 2020 Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship on the streets of St. Petersburg this past weekend, putting a cap on what has been a successful and championship winning season for the outfit in only its second year of Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires competition.
Christian Rasmussen claimed the championship crown at the previous event at New Jersey Motorsports Park, and despite being involved in an unfortunate first lap incident on Saturday, the young Danish driver can look back on a dominant season where he secured nine wins along his pathway to the Road to Indy scholarship that will see him graduate to the Indy Pro 2000 category for 2021.
Nolan Siegel endured a character-building weekend at the popular street course venue after missing practice due to technical issues. However, the Californian can look back on a fine season where he secured his first two Road to Indy podiums, three top-five finishes and a pole position.
Wyatt Brichacek showed sensational pace throughout the event, and despite being involved in a first corner incident on Saturday, Sunday’s season finale saw Brichacek score yet another top 10 finish in USF2000.
Christian Bogle once again showed his fighting spirit with yet another storming drive through the field, charging from 19th to come home in the 10th position on Saturday afternoon. On Sunday evening, Bogle’s race craft was publicly recognized when he received the Hilton Hard Charger Award at the end of season awards ceremony, advancing a total of 66 positions over the course of the 2020 season.
Bijoy Garg was equally impressive, making his first appearance on a street course and brought his No. 18 machine home in the 11th position.
Team owner Jay Howard was keen to look back on the season as a whole, where the team and drivers together as a unit have demonstrated excellent progression on all fronts.
“First off, it’s great that we’ve been able to get a full season under our belts given the challenges this year have presented to us, so hats off to Dan Andersen, Michelle Kish and all the staff at Andersen Promotions for seeing it through,” noted Howard. “I must also say a huge thanks to all the drivers and every member of our team, including all the family members, for all their hard work and dedication to the cause. Rasmussen’s championship success is the obvious highlight, but equally, all of the other boys have shown so much progression from where they were at last season to now. That comes down to hard work and teamwork, so a massive thanks to everyone for standing up to be counted. We are already looking forward to 2021 where we will be ready to go again and carry on the momentum we have created.”
WHAT THE DRIVERS SAID:
#5 Wyatt Brichacek
Round 16 – P16; Round 17 – P10
"Overall, pretty good weekend. I got some pace and qualified in the top ten for both races. Then, in race 1 I got taken out early. In race 2 walked away with a top ten so a better way to end the year compared to the rest of the year. We'll come back stronger for next season."
#6 Christian Rasmussen
Round 16 – DNF; Round 17 – P5
"Finished up the last race of the year here in St. Petersburg, Florida. Not the weekend we hoped for. Two times P6 in qualifying, a DNF in race 1, and a P5 in race 2. Didn't quite have the speed this weekend, but looking back at the season, it's been a great one. Obviously, we won the championship this year, and I am very happy with how the boys have performed for the team as well as proud of myself. Onto next year to hopefully go win another championship."
#7 Christian Bogle
Round 16 – P10; Round 17 – P18
"Just finished up at St. Petersburg. I had a pretty good weekend. I went from P19 to P10 in the first race and started out at P20 the second race. I made up a few positions at the start, but I made a mistake on my end going into four that put me at the back of the field. I'm really happy with the pace I showed this weekend. We'll come back next year stronger."
#9 Nolan Siegel
Round 16 – P14; Round 17 – P12
"Just finished race 2 here at St. Pete, the last race of the season. I'm happy with how the weekend ended. We were having issues with the car all weekend, and it never got to where I wanted it, but I feel like I drove well and everything went our way that race - I think I went from P18 to P12. I am already looking forward to next season."
#18 Bijoy Garg
Round 16 – P11; Round 17 – P17
“Definitely a learning weekend here at St. Pete for the final round of the season. I didn't get the qualifying we wanted but managed to get a pretty good start in race one. Ended up with a 11th position. Race 2 was a bit harder, but we managed what we could considering the circumstances. Looking forward to next year and looking forward to better results."