Mansfield, Ohio – Darren Keane is set to return to Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda action this weekend as the series stages Rounds 10, 11, and 12 at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.
With races set for Friday, Saturday and Sunday, the race weekend will get off to a fast start, something that Keane is prepared for. Keane, who has demonstrated outstanding pace this year but has not enjoyed the results to match, will look to make the most of the three-race weekend, the first triple-header event format for the Mid-Ohio USF2000 weekend since 2016.
“One of my strengths is that I can get up to speed pretty quickly, which will help this weekend with three races,” said Keane. “I’m really looking forward to it because there will be more opportunities to get a good result. The races are where I feel the strongest and where I feel like my pace shines.”
Keane returns to the 2.258-mile, 13-turn course following a solid learning opportunity during the 2017 season and a staggering nine on-track test seasons this year. Mid-Ohio is also the site of Keane’s first-ever car race in Formula 4 in 2016 building on his familiarity with the course.
“Mid-Ohio is a fun, but difficult track,” said Keane. “There are lots of places that are crucial to speed and getting a run on someone to pass. The test that I had there went well. I learned a lot and worked really well with my engineer John (Hayes). We will be entering the race weekend with a combination of set ups from the test as well as things we have learned in-between. So I am confident that we can get up to speed pretty quickly.”
Keane’s strengths will take center stage on the natural-terrain course at Mid-Ohio with its elevation changes and fast, flowing and tight corners. With a season best of third scored on the St. Pete street circuit, Keane’s best result on a road course came in Round 4 at the Indianapolis Grand Prix where he racked up a top-five finish.
It is the constant work both on and off track that has helped Keane grow this season.
“The test at Mid-Ohio was really the first time I was able to tell my engineer specific changes that I wanted,” said Keane. “We have a really open dialogue and I am starting to fully understand what each change does and then come back after the sessions and give my engineer good feedback to make it better.”
As the USF2000 schedule comes to the tail-end of the season, Keane aims to use promising test results to translate to race results.