Spring Training Moves to Barber Motorsports Park
Spring Training for all three levels of the Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires has been moved to Barber Motorsports Park – the site of the opening rounds of its 2021 calendar in addition to the season-opener for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES – marking the first venue change for the annual event since 2016. The newly scheduled dates are April 4/5 for the Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires and the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship, and April 6 for Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires.
In addition to extensive track time for each level, Spring Training features the usual mix of off-track pre-season preparation and series’ content days. Elements include Race Director presentations, driver media training, Cooper Tires Hashtag Program updates, photography sessions and filming with Road to Indy TV and IMS Productions.
The outing will also feature the debut of a Halo-type device on all Indy Lights Dallara IL-15s.
Road to Indy Well-Represented at Daytona
The international auto racing season in North America gets under way this coming weekend in Florida with the 59th annual Rolex 24 At Daytona, a traditional twice-around-the-clock endurance event which serves as the opening round of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. A total of 45 drivers – almost a quarter of the 189 drivers in the field of 49 cars – are current or former drivers on the Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires.
Nine of those – Oliver Askew, Gabby Chaves, Jack Hawksworth, Ed Jones, Kyle Kirkwood, Spencer Pigot, Aaron Telitz, Tristan Vautier and Rinus VeeKay – have earned a total of 13 championship titles in either Indy Lights, Indy Pro 2000 or USF2000 during the past 10 years. Seven more – Townsend Bell, Jonathan Bomarito, Dane Cameron, Scott Dixon, John Edwards, JR Hildebrand and Bryan Sellers – earned championships prior to the formal inauguration of the “Road to Indy” in 2010.
TireRack.com eSeries Heads to Road America for First Round Next Week
A field of 28 drivers have registered to date for the opening double-header round of the TireRack.com Road to Indy iRacing eSeries Presented by Cooper Tires. The Hyperco Grand Prix of Road America will take place at 7:00 pm EST next Wednesday, February 3. Among the stacked field of Indy Lights, Indy Pro 2000 and USF2000 drivers is 13-year-old rising karter Dean Dybdahl, who earned his invitation by winning the opening round of the World Karting Association (WKA) eSeries – a new partnership that further extends the Road to Indy ladder to the grassroots of the sport.
Tatuus Returns to Victory Circle
Indy Pro 2000 and USF2000 chassis manufacturer Tatuus once again continues to lend its support by returning as title sponsor of the Tatuus Victory Lane for all three ladder series. Tatuus is currently in the design process with both the PM-18 and USF-17 chassis which will see new safety update kits for 2022 including the addition of a Halo-type device.
Road to Indy Grids Continue to Build
The long-awaited although not surprising announcement that reigning Indy Pro 2000 champion Sting Ray Robb will remain with the championship-winning Juncos Racing squad for his debut in Indy Lights was recently confirmed alongside the news that British talent Toby Sowery will join the team for his second season of Indy Lights competition. Sweden’s Linus Lundqvist will make his debut with Global Racing Group with HMD Motorsports following a dominant season in FR Americas with wins in 15 out of 17 races.
In Indy Pro 2000, Abel Motorsports has announced a full-time, two-car entry for the season with Jacob Abel securing the first seat. The team will be managed by veteran team manager John Brunner, who formerly served in this capacity at Belardi Auto Racing. New entrant Velocity Racing Development (VRD) yesterday confirmed Hunter Yeany, who will make his series debut at Barber Motorsports Park.
USF2000 welcomed the news that Yuven Sundaramoorthy will return with Pabst Racing in 2021 as well as the announcement of rookie drivers Dylan Christie with Turn 3 Motorsport and Trey Burke with new USF2000 team Joe Dooling Autosports.
Blue Marble Radical Cup Added to Indy Pro 2000/USF2000 Season Finale
The Blue Marble Cocktails Radical Cup North America has been added to the bill for the season-ending triple-header finale for Indy Pro 2000 and USF2000 at New Jersey Motorsports on August 27-29. This is not the first time the multi-class Le Mans-style racing series will compete alongside the Road to Indy with at least two events already scheduled in support of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES at Barber Motorsports Park and Road America.