Indy Lights

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS — USAC racer Chris Windom will not participate in Friday’s Freedom 100 after an incident damaged his car beyond repair with the time available before Friday. The No. 33 Belardi Auto Racing entry was in Turn 2 when Windom lost control and barely collided with teammate Santi Urrutia. The damage Windom’s car sustained would not be repairable to the teams’ satisfaction for Friday’s 40 lap race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. “He got a little loose in Turn 2 and obviously hit the wall,” saidRead More

By Road to Indy INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – When qualifying begins tomorrow for the 102nd Running of the Indianapolis 500, a record 27 Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires alumni will be among the field of 35 drivers vying for a coveted spot on the 33-car starting grid. Now more than ever, the Mazda Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires and its moniker “there’s nothing like it in the world” has underscored its relevance as a clear scholarship-funded path to the Verizon IndyCar Series and the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.Read More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer I really am a glutton for punishment, I admit it. Much to my own detriment, I read online comments and there was a central one that I saw quite often during the INDYCAR Grand Prix weekend: “Why are there only seven cars in Indy Lights? What happened to Indy Lights?” There were various people calling for outrageous suggestions such as shutting Indy Lights down or merging various championships on the Mazda Road to Indy to avoid this situation. Folks, Indy Lights is going to be fine,Read More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS — Despite another start that left Colton Herta mid-pack, another comeback was in the cards as Herta won the second Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires race of the weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course, doubling up on his win on Friday. Polesitter Pato O’Ward led the first lap but Santi Urrutia would grab the lead on Lap 2. Meanwhile, Herta’s No. 98 Andretti-Steinbrenner Racing machine was fighting to get to the lead. Herta was fourth on the opening lap and tried toRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS — Colton Herta came from the middle of the pack after a hectic start – where he fell from second – to earn his first Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires race win of the season. After a start where polesitter Pato O’Ward was hit from behind by Victor Franzoni, Herta was trapped behind O’Ward and fell back to fifth place in the seven car field. Santi Urrutia took the lead at the start and defended his lead against Victor Franzoni’s advances. Franzoni would goRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer INDIANAPOLIS — Thursday has come and gone for the 2018 INDYCAR Grand Prix weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course and despite all the on track action being devoted to the Mazda Road to Indy, the Verizon IndyCar Series had some news of its own. Alfonso Celis announced that he would be racing an Indy car for Juncos Racing at Road America. Celis raced at Barber Motorsports Park for Juncos Racing in Indy Lights, finishing seventh and eighth in his two races. Zachary Claman DeRead More

By Pato O’Ward, Driver Columnist Editor’s note: Pato O’Ward will be contributing to Motorsports Tribune selectively throughout the 2018 Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires season. The 18-year-old Texas-based Mexican racer pilots the No. 27 Mazda/Dallara IL-15 for Andretti Autosport. A Rolex 24 at Daytona winner and series champion in the Prototype Challenge class a season ago in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, O’Ward will be looking for similar success during his rookie campaign in the top rung of the Mazda Road to Indy. The month of May is very special to theRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer Two years ago, Pato O’Ward was staring at a crossroads. Having enough funding for the first two race weekends of the 2016 Pro Mazda Championship presented by Cooper Tires, the Mexican racer ended up winning three of the first four races and finished second in the other race. In 2018, O’Ward again has won three of the first four races of his championship campaign in the Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires and despite a seventh at race two in St. Petersburg, the hope is thatRead More

By Road to Indy PALMETTO, Fla. – As with the Verizon IndyCar Series and the 102nd running of the Indianapolis 500, the month of May also features a crown jewel on the Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires schedule with the Freedom 100 on Friday, May 25 – Miller Lite Carb Day. The race has produced three of the closest finishes in history at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway with the 2016 finish at the top of the record books when Dean Stoneman of Andretti Autosport won by a mere 0.0024Read More