KNOCKHILL, Scotland – The 2016 Beatsons with Mazda Road To Indy Scottish Formula Ford Championship has reached its halfway stage and has been fast paced and full of action from the word go as the contenders chase an opportunity to contest the inaugural Mazda Road to Indy $200K Scholarship Shootout later this year at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, Calif. The scholarship winner will earn a $200,000 prize to compete in the 2017 Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda.
The new partnership between the Scottish Formula Ford series and Andersen Promotions, which oversees the entire Mazda Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires – a unique scholarship-funded path which leads from the grassroots of the sport all the way to the Verizon IndyCar Series and the Indianapolis 500 – is regarded as a huge step in linking up the global community of junior level single seat racing. The relationship has benefitted, too, from the involvement of three-time Indianapolis 500 winner and four-time IndyCar champion Dario Franchitti, a native Scot, who has provided a car for a young, up-and-coming driver to assist in the progression from karting under the Ecurie Ecosse Young Driver banner.
After finishing second in the 2015 title-chase, Neil Maclennan, 18, from Muir of Ord, near Inverness, has been a dominant force in 2016, winning all but one of the races in the opening half of the season. Yet the Ecurie Ecosse Young Driver has been pushed hard by Jamie Thorburn, representing Border Reivers. Both youngsters are campaigning Ray chassis run by Graham Brunton Racing.
As motorsport historians and aficionados will attest, the Border Reivers and Ecurie Ecosse names are synonymous with motor racing heroes of yesteryear. These great team names returning to do battle in junior level open wheel racing adds further credence to an already strong championship.
Maclennan’s relentless pace and consistency has taken him to a commanding points lead, although Thorburn has displayed steadily improving pace and doubtless is one to watch for the rest of the season.
Jordan Gronkowski currently lies third in the points chase, and although not eligible for the Mazda Road To Indy shootout prize, he continues to impress and push the youngsters very closely as the lead Van Diemen driver in the championship. Sebastian Melrose (Ray GR14) and Matt Cowley (Van Diemen JL13K) also have posted some strong results.
An invitation to the Mazda Road to Indy Shootout has only added to the intensity of the title fight as the contenders are pushing hard to realize the dream of being able to compete against the best in the world of junior open wheel categories with a real chance of climbing the open-wheel racing ladder in North America in 2017.