Julian Van der Watt earns his first podium of the season for Team Pelfrey as the season comes to a close

The recently crowned champion stalked polesitter Rasmus Lindh through the opening stages, then pounced decisively before edging away to another relatively comfortable victory – his 11th in a row and 12th of the 14-race season, which equals the record established by former Verizon IndyCar Series driver J.R. Hildebrand en route to the championship title in 2006.

He might already have this year’s Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda – and a Mazda Scholarship worth at least $325,000 to graduate onto the next rung of the Mazda Road to Indy open-wheel development ladder in 2019 – under his belt, but now Kyle Kirkwood has his eyes set on the record books

Kory Enders and DEForce Racing prepared for the #SoulRedFinale in Portland

Kyle Kirkwood, from Jupiter, Fla., has already clinched the USF2000 title following a stellar rookie season with Cape Motorsports. He will claim a $325,000 scholarship to advance to Pro Mazda in 2019.