USF2000 Tag

By Road to Indy CARMEL, Ind. – Prominent karting and junior formula team Jay Howard Driver Development (JHDD) today announced it will join the Mazda Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires on a full-time basis in 2019. Led by Verizon IndyCar Series and Indianapolis 500 veteran Jay Howard, who himself has won championships in both USF2000 and Indy Lights, the team’s expansion furthers its mission of advancing drivers from the karting ranks to junior open-wheel categories en route to the Verizon IndyCar Series and the Indianapolis 500. After foundingRead More

By Road to Indy TORONTO, Ont., Canada – There were three main storylines to this morning’s ninth round of the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda – a multi-car accident at Turn Three on the opening lap which delayed many of the front-runners, a tremendous effort by Brazilian Igor Fraga, and ultimately yet another well-earned victory for runaway championship leader Kyle Kirkwood and his Cape Motorsports team. Fraga snared a career-best second for the Canadian-owned Exclusive Autosport team, while Swedish rookie Rasmus Lindh (Pabst Racing) rose from 11th atRead More

By Road to Indy TORONTO, Ont., Canada – There’s no stopping Kyle Kirkwood. The runaway championship leader started only third for this morning’s eighth round of the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda, but a well-executed pass on polesitter Dakota Dickerson at the first corner vaulted his Cape Motorsports Tatuus-Mazda USF-17 into the lead at the first corner and he never looked back. Kirkwood, 19, from Jupiter, Fla., was never able to relax, with Dickerson’s ArmsUp Motorsports car following just a few car lengths in arrears. He was neverthelessRead More

By Road to Indy PALMETTO, Fla. – All three levels of the highly effective Mazda Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires open-wheel development ladder will venture north of the border this week for their annual visit to the streets surrounding Exhibition Place – just minutes away from downtown Toronto – in support of the Verizon IndyCar Series. The 1.786-mile, 11-turn temporary circuit always provides a stiff challenge for the drivers with its omnipresent concrete walls ready to punish any mistakes. Two races each will be held for Indy LightsRead More

By Road to Indy PALMETTO, Fla. – Almost 50 drivers representing 15 different nationalities from around the globe will convene this week in rural Wisconsin, where all three levels of the Mazda Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires open-wheel development ladder will feature a pair of races in support of the Verizon IndyCar Series’ Kohler Grand Prix at the historic Road America facility in Elkhart Lake, Wis. The challenging and undulating 4.014-mile road course marks the halfway point in the season for Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires, theRead More

By Aaron Bearden, Open Wheel Editor BROWNSBURG, Ind. — Alex Baron and Russ McDonough found themselves at odds after a run-in at Lucas Oil Raceway. Baron was running third in his No. 19 Swan-RJB Motorsports machine when he caught McDonough’s lapped No. 29 BN Racing machine on Lap 29 of Friday’s Freedom 75. The French driver attempted to overtake McDonough going into Turn 3 on the .686-mile oval, but the duo made contact. The resulting shunt sent Baron into the outside wall, knocking the 23-year-old out of the race in 21st. “WhenRead More

By Road to Indy BROWNSBURG, Ind. – Up until recently, Kyle Kirkwood claimed to be not much of a fan of oval racing. His tune changed somewhat following his first left-turn-only test at Memphis Motorsports Park last week, and the 18-year-old from Jupiter, Fla., took full advantage of that positive experience this evening at Lucas Oil Raceway as he sped to a dominant victory for Cape Motorsports in the Cooper Tires Freedom 75, Round Seven of the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda. Kaylen Frederick, 15, from Potomac, Md.,Read More

By Road to Indy SPEEDWAY, Ind. – Memorial Day weekend is steeped in tradition, especially in Indianapolis where the annual federal holiday held in remembrance of the people who died while serving in the country’s armed forces coincides with the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing” – the Indianapolis 500. The Mazda Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires – a unique open-wheel development ladder which offers scholarship-funded opportunities for drivers to progress all the way from the grassroots of the sport to the Indy 500 – pays its own tribute toRead More

By Aaron Bearden, Contributing Writer Kyle Kirkwood ended his first Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the place young drivers dream of reaching. Victory lane. Kirkwood dominated early and held on through two late restarts to claim a wire-to-wire win in Sunday’s Royal Purple Synthetic Motor Oil Grand Prix of Indianapolis. The result was his second victory in four 2018 starts, allowing him to keep the points lead. Despite leading from start to finish, the Cape Motorsports star claimed the race was moreRead More

By Road to Indy SPEEDWAY, Ind. – Earlier this week, difficulties in obtaining a new visa meant that Alex Baron wasn’t even sure he would be able to make it to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for this weekend’s Royal Purple Synthetic Motor Oil Grand Prix of Indianapolis supporting the Lupus Foundation of America. Thankfully, the 23-year-old who holds dual French and English citizenship, was granted the correct paperwork on Wednesday. He immediately jumped on a plane from Europe… and ended up with a hard-earned victory this afternoon for Swan-RJB Motorsports.Read More