By Road to Indy ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Pato O’Ward was gifted an opportunity to start from the pole position for today’s Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires season opener after fastest qualifier Aaron Telitz’s Belardi Auto Racing Dallara-Mazda was withdrawn following an incident during qualifying for Race Two this morning. The Mexican teenager took full advantage by storming into the lead at the start of the Mazda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Presented by Cooper Tires and was never seriously challenged on his way to a comfortable victory forRead More

By Road to Indy ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Teenager Rinus VeeKay faced plenty of challenges prior to the opening round of the new Pro Mazda Championship Presented by Cooper Tires, but he put all that behind him this afternoon as he swept to an impressive victory for Juncos Racing in the first of two races which will comprise the Pro Mazda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Presented by Allied Building Products. Fellow Pro Mazda debutant Parker Thompson finished a close second after leading for much of the 25-lap race forRead More

By Road to Indy ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Kyle Kirkwood drove a flawless race this morning to win the Cooper Tires USF2000 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Presented by Allied Building Products for the locally based Cape Motorsports team. Kirkwood, 19, from Jupiter, Fla., the reigning US F4 champion, qualified second behind young Mexican Jose Sierra (DEForce Racing) but took the lead at the first corner and never looked back on his way to an impressive debut victory in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda. Sierra finished secondRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer ST. PETERSBURG, Florida — It’s back to school time for the Verizon IndyCar Series and the Mazda Road to Indy presented by Cooper Tires and the streets of St. Petersburg, Fl showcases the drivers on a grand stage. Let’s take a look at random tidbits from Friday. IndyCar For the IndyCar guys, it was an interesting situation on top of the time sheets in the two practice sessions. Matheus Leist was quickest, the first year driver for A.J. Foyt Racing going around the 1.8 mile streetRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer The final step on the Mazda Road to Indy presented by Cooper Tires might have the smallest field, but top to bottom the Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires has an extremely stacked field going for a one million dollar scholarship package to move to the Verizon IndyCar Series. First, let’s look at the schedule. The 2018 schedule is identical in layout to 2017 except for two changes. The final race weekend is now at Portland International Raceway and it’s also a doubleheader weekend instead ofRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer The 2018 Pro Mazda Championship presented by Cooper Tires kicks off on the streets of St. Petersburg and with the strongest field from top to bottom since 2015, this year promises to be a special one. Before getting to the teams and drivers, let’s first look at the tracks. Barber Motorsports Park returns to the schedule after a 2017 hiatus and Mid-Ohio only has two races this year instead of three like it had last year. Gone is the single oval race date and instead thereRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer The 2018 season for the Cooper Tires USF2000 powered by Mazda begins on the streets of St. Petersburg with a 25 car entry list. This year’s championship looks to be a tough one on paper so let’s look at what will make up the 2018 USF2000 season. First, the tracks. USF2000 has had some venue changes for 2018. Gone is Barber Motorsports Park and Iowa Speedway but returning is the third race at Mid-Ohio, the Carb Night Classic at Lucas Oil Raceway and the doubleheader atRead 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. I can’t believe the first race of the IndyRead More

By Aaron Bearden, Contributing Writer Ahead of each Verizon IndyCar Series race weekend, Motorsports Tribune offers an in-depth look at the details and storylines going into the weekend’s event(s). Verizon IndyCar Series Race(s): Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg (110 laps, 198 miles) Circuit: Streets of St. Petersburg (St. Petersburg, Fla.) Track Details: Clockwise – 14 turns, 1.80 miles Track Record: 107.561 mph (Will Power, 2016) What Happened Last Year: Sebastien Bourdais overcame a disastrous qualifying crash to rise from last to first and claim his first win in St. Pete, establishing himself and DaleRead More