All posts by Christopher DeHarde

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer The grid for the 2017 Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship powered by Mazda has gotten more solid with Thursday’s announcement that 2016 Rookie of the Year Robert Megennis will rejoin the team for this year’s championship. “Welcoming Rob back to the Team Pelfrey family for a third straight season in yellow says a lot about this partnership. Rob, his family and his partners believe in us, and we have absolute faith in Rob’s abilities,” said Team Pelfrey’s General Manager, Jonny Baker. “The wayRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer Oliver Askew is no ordinary teenager. The 19-year-old Floridian represented Team USA at the Formula Ford Festival in England, finishing second at the prestigious Walter Hayes Trophy Race at Silverstone and won the Mazda Road to Indy Shootout. With that win, he earned a $200,000 Mazda Racing scholarship to fund a drive in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship powered by Mazda for 2017. The craziest part of this whole situation is that before going over to race in England in November, Askew hadRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer Zach Veach is a very seasoned driver in the Mazda Road to Indy presented by Cooper Tires. Since starting in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship powered by Mazda, Veach has 183 starts across all three steps on the MRTI. His last season in Indy Lights in 2016 netted him three wins (and nearly a fourth at the opening race of the season) but so far he hasn’t secured an IndyCar ride for the 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series season.  How has Veach kept himself busyRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer Nicolas Dapero began the 2016 Pro Mazda Championship presented by Cooper Tires as an unknown in the paddock. The Argentinian finished sixth in the 2015 Brazilian F3 Championship with five podiums and a fastest lap in 12 races before going to race in the United States. After an interesting 2016 season, Dapero will be moving up to Indy Lights for 2017 with the same team he raced with in Pro Mazda in Juncos Racing. Dapero began 2016 with pairs of tenths, seventhsRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer Parker Thompson had what many racers would consider to be a successful 2016 racing season. After winning four races in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship powered by Mazda and finishing second in the championship to teammate Anthony Martin, Thompson represented Team Canada at the Formula Ford Festival and the Walter Hayes Trophy Race in England. However, heading into 2017, it’s unclear what 18-year-old’s racing plans are in the Mazda Road to Indy presented by Cooper Tires. “We’re doing everything we can behind theRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer Across all three levels of the Mazda Road to Indy presented by Cooper Tires, there were moments that stood out from the start of the season to the end.  Here’s a look at the top five moments across the Mazda Road to Indy. 1. Indy Lights: The Freedom 100 Dean Stoneman earned both of Andretti Autosport’s wins this season and scored their final victory of the year at the Freedom 100, edging out Carlin’s Ed Jones by 0.0024 of a second.  JonesRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer Team Pelfrey announced on Thursday that they are moving their programs in the Pro Mazda Championship presented by Cooper Tires and the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship powered by Mazda to Indianapolis. The teams will be housed at TKM, Inc. under Thomas Knapp’s management and this move signifies a major shift in the home of the Mazda Road to Indy presented by Cooper Tires as it marks the continuation of a trend. Many teams in the MRTI are or have been based in Florida,Read More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer In an announcement that came out of left field, Colton Herta was announced as Andretti Autosport’s fourth driver in their Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires program alongside Dalton Kellett, Nico Jamin and Ryan Norman today. Herta’s entry is funded with a partnership between Andretti Autosport and Steinbrenner Racing, which is owned by the same family that purchased the New York Yankees in 1973. After racing British F4 in 2015 and EuroFormula Open in 2016, the son of current IndyCar team co-ownerRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer There is an unknown to Anthony Martin’s future as he has yet to announce which Pro Mazda Championship team he plans to join in 2017, but perhaps the that campaign won’t see as much change after all. In 2015, Martin drove in the USF2000 Championship powered by Mazda for John Cummiskey Racing and the Kalgoorlie, Australia native won Rookie of the Year after finishing fourth in the championship. Martin’s results and funding were enough to secure a seat at Cape MotorsportsRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, IndyCar & Road to Indy Writer Many drivers in motorsport are looking to move up the open wheel racing ladder. In the latest ‘wishlist,’ we’ll take a look at several drivers that we believe should be in the Mazda Road to Indy presented by Cooper Tires. That brings us to Hunter Brayton.  The nephew of two time Indianapolis 500 pole winner Scott Brayton, Hunter got his start karting before moving up to SCCA Formula 600 Challenge. In 2014, Brayton did his first full season in F600, finishingRead More