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. Drive, Determination and Hunger. Those three things are whatRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer Mazda announced today that the automaker will conclude their involvement in the Mazda Road to Indy presented by Cooper Tires at the conclusion of the 2018 season. After announcing their involvement on the Road to Indy in late 2010, Mazda has handed out over $12 million in scholarships to drivers advancing their careers in motorsports, including Spencer Pigot (twice), Josef Newgarden, Kyle Kaiser, Oliver Askew (twice) and Victor Franzoni. This announcement comes at a critical time for the Road to Indy. The top two steps onRead More

By Aaron Bearden, Open Wheel Editor LEXINGTON, Ohio — The Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires doubleheader at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course played out much like the season prior to it in 2018. Colton Herta was nipping at his heels, but Patricio O’Ward held on to score consecutive trips to victory lane. O’Ward held off another late surge from Herta to claim Sunday’s Cooper Tires Indy Lights Mid-Ohio Grand Prix Race 2 – his seventh win of the 2018 season (vs. Herta’s four), and fourth triumph in the past five races. HertaRead More

By Aaron Bearden, Open Wheel Editor LEXINGTON, Ohio — Kyle Kirkwood captured the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda crown with a Friday win at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. He celebrated a new series record with his eighth-consecutive win on Saturday. On Sunday the Cape Motorsports star got out the broom for a weekend sweep. Kirkwood surged ahead of polesitter James Raven in the first two turns and drove off from there to claim another dominant victory in Sunday’s Cooper Tires USF2000 Mid-Ohio Grand Prix Race 3, tallying his ninth-straight victory andRead More

By Aaron Bearden, Open Wheel Editor LEXINGTON, Ohio — Rinus Veekay didn’t have another dominant effort from pole in the second Pro Mazda Championship Presented by Cooper Tires race at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. But after polesitter David Malukas went off-course on Lap 8, the Juncos Racing driver won the race all the same. Veekay held on to his second starting position through the opening circuit and benefitted from Malukas’ misfortune to claim Cooper Tires Pro Mazda Mid-Ohio Grand Prix Race 2, completing a weekend sweep that saw the Dutch shoeRead More

By Aaron Bearden, Open Wheel Editor LEXINGTON, Ohio — Notes, Quotes, Stories and Takeaways from the Road to Indy on Saturday at Mid-Ohio Indy Lights Talent, Drama… And Respect Among Andretti Autosport Teammates Make no mistake – Patricio O’Ward and Colton Herta want nothing more than to beat each other for the Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires championship this year. But peel beneath their competitive fire and you’ll see something other than intensity and drive shared between the Andretti Autosport duo. Respect. “I think it’s a win-win situation for both ofRead More

By Aaron Bearden, Open Wheel Editor LEXINGTON, Ohio — Rinus Veekay put together a dominant Saturday at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course to claim the Pro Mazda Presented by Cooper Tires championship lead. Veekay scored the pole and led wire-to-wire to claim Saturday’s Cooper Tires Pro Mazda Mid-Ohio Grand Prix Race 1. The Juncos Racing prospect took the checkered flag 2.8753 seconds clear of BN Racing’s David Malukas in what proved to be a comfortable win in a caution-free event. Robert Megennis rose from fifth to claim the final spot on theRead More

By Aaron Bearden, Open Wheel Editor LEXINGTON, Ohio — Andretti Autosport teammates Patricio O’Ward and Colton Herta found themselves in a familiar place in Saturday’s Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires race – battling amongst themselves for a trip to victory lane. This time it was O’Ward that took the checkered flag. O’Ward led wire-to-wire and kept Herta at bay over the final run to the finish to win Cooper Tires Mid-Ohio Grand Prix Race 1. The win was the Mexican’s sixth in 13 races this season, putting him twoRead More

By Aaron Bearden, Open Wheel Editor LEXINGTON, Ohio — With the 2018 Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda title already secured, Kyle Kirkwood returned to the field on Saturday and continued the systematic beatdown that netted him the title midway through the summer. Kirkwood led every lap after starting second to claim his eighth-consecutive USF2000 victory in Saturday’s Cooper Tires Mid-Ohio GP Race 2. Pabst Racing’s Lucas Kohl followed in second, with Exclusive Autosport’s Igor Fraga completing the podium. Rasmus Lindh and Calvin Ming rounded out the top five,Read More