PALMETTO, Fla. – As driver program announcements continue in preparation for the start of the 2021 Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires season in April, competitors in its TireRack.com iRacing eSeries continue to heat up the virtual racing world. Two double-header rounds remain in the championship chase beginning with this evening’s fourth event to be held at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.
Five different drivers have claimed victories to date, showcasing a competitive playing field, but a pair of race wins by Max Esterson has vaulted the New York native into the points lead. The 2020 F1600 competitor holds a 20-point advantage, 121 to 101, over 16-year-old karter Bryson Morris from Mount Juliet, Tenn., the most recent race winner at last week’s Iowa Speedway round.
Indy Pro 2000 Presented by Cooper Tires driver Braden Eves of Exclusive Autosport lies only three points back in third (98 points) with a host of drivers in contention to break into the top three. As points are awarded for each race of the doubleheader – and 65 in total for a clean sweep – drivers such as Mac Clark (87 points), Max Kaeser and Josh Green (tied on 78 points), Benjamin Pedersen (75 points), Keawn Tandon (73 points), Michael Myers (69 points) and Nikita Lastochkin (60 points) all will be jockeying to capture maximum digits.
Representing the World Karting Association (WKA) this week will be Will Salisbury of Niagara Falls, N.Y. Salisbury earned his invitation into the event by winning the fourth round of the WKA Maxx Racing eSports Series.
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“The first three TireRack.com eSeries events certainly featured their share of action, as we hit all three styles of our race tracks,” offered Rob Howden, Road To Indy Series Development Director. “We feel that some of the chaos could be attributed to the spec set-up we provided our drivers at Detroit and Iowa, so we’ve spent more time developing a highly-raceable set-up for tonight’s event at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.
“The championship is heating up with just two events to go and I’m thrilled to see the mix of our Road to Indy drivers and young RTI Prospects battling it out. Going off-track at Laguna is punishing, so look for the drivers who can paint between the lines to come out on top.”
Coverage from a virtual WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca can be found on the Cooper Tire Facebook page, the Road to Indy TV website and App, ApexRacingTV’s YouTube and Facebook and the series’ respective websites. In addition, live coverage will be carried by REV TV Canada.