INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Legacy Autosport made its official debut on Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in early March, and while the team was tested with the highs and lows of motorsports, they came out the other side riding a positive wave of momentum.
The Legacy crew fielded a pair of Tatuus USF-17 cars for Alex Baron and Jose Sierra in the first rounds of the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship on the challenging Florida temporary street and airport circuit. Unfortunately, Baron was involved in a massive shunt at the start of the opening race on Friday, which sent the team to work overnight to get the #14 back on-track for Saturday’s second event of the doubleheader.
The crew proved their abilities and determination, rebuilding the car to have it ready for Alex to drive to a fourth-place finish in Race 2, salvaging the weekend and leaving the Frenchman within striking distance of the top-five in the championship points.
Everyone on the Legacy Autosport team is now ready to get back to work when the USF2000 series return to action on the road course at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in May.
“It was unfortunate what happened in the first race,” said Mike Meyer, Legacy Autosport Team Principal. “We had two fast race cars, but just couldn't catch any breaks in qualifying to start where we did. What we did get out of the first race was the fact that we showed that this team does what it takes to go for championships. I am so proud of the crew here at Legacy Autosport with their teamwork, dedication and quality of work. The list of undamaged parts was shorter than the list of damaged parts. To work through the night and have the results we did says a lot.”
With his newly-repaired car, Baron went out on Saturday and ran 25 clean laps to hold his starting position and finish fourth. The result provided important championship points as the team now focuses on the upcoming events in May just nine points out of fifth.
“The final results didn’t reflect Legacy Autosport’s true potential,” Baron added, detailing the quality of the crew. “With very limited running during the off-season, we able to start strong with P2 in Practice 1. Unfortunately, as a new team, we were cursed with having the last pit spots on pit lane for both qualifying sessions, so we didn’t have the results we wanted nor expected as I had to deal with a considerable amount of traffic. A huge misjudgment from myself resulted in a terrible crash for the team and myself in Race 1. I’m glad to have the best guys in the business and they put my car back together for the next day. Race 2 was a relief for us as we managed to bring it back with a fourth. The guys kept pushing me until the end to have this sort of result. It was the best way for me to thank the team for all the hard work they put in. Now we’re totally focused on the Indianapolis Grand Prix. We will be ready for that event more than ever. I have to thank all the guys at Legacy Autosport and Metalloid Corporation for their continuous support.”
“We struggled a little in qualifying, but the set-up that we managed to develop was really good,” offered Sierra. “In the races, the car felt very solid and while I knew there are things we can work on, I believe that we have a strong driver line-up and a really good team of people around us. My engineer Nathan (Toney) is really good and I think we developed close connection. This program came together very late for us, and that might have put us behind a little, but I think it will be successful in the future.”
The team is planning two tests before heading to Indianapolis for the May 9-11 race weekend on the facility’s road course.