IndyCars - Portland: Heading into the worst first turn in motorsports

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The IndyCar series holds its penultimate race of the season as the tightest championship chase in decades starts to wind down at…

The Grand Prix of Portland

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Portland

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The Grand Prix of Portland returned to the IndyCar schedule in 2018 and all three of the races we’ve seen since then only convinced us that the little road course built on the Columbia River flats outside of Portland is the hardest circuit of the season to start a race on without damage and/or excitement.

The 12-turn, 1.964-mile natural road course is relatively flat but contains several spots for passing opportunities - most notably Turn 1, which is the start of a chicane about two-thirds of the way up the front straight. Where it is on the straight, the right-hander invites cars to try to enter it too fast and the resulting chaos is almost a sure thing at the start of any race. But once the racing gets going and rhythms are set in, the racing is usually VERY tight, with some of the closest finishes on the calendar.

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This weekend racing fans will be treated to no less than NINE races from five different series, and two of those series will end their seasons and crown their champions. Races this weekend will be:

  • the ARCA Menards series - 1 race on Saturday
  • USF2000 - 3 races on Friday and Saturday
  • Indy Pro 2000 - 3 races on Friday and Saturday
  • Indy Lights - 1 race on Sunday

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…and, of course, the IndyCars will race on Sunday

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Let’s see about that support racing…

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The ARCA Menards series is an American stock car series. It is considered a semi-professional league of stock car racing, used as a feeder series into NASCAR, with events on superspeedways, road courses and even dirt tracks, using former NASCAR Cup series cars. As no IndyCar drivers will be participating, we will wish them safe and happy racing and concentrate on all the open-wheel stuff, instead.

ARCA Menards Series

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continued…

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Support Racing… (continued)…
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The Road to Indy is the ladder system that develops IndyCar drivers. It is made up of now four series in increasing complexity, performance and cost, each when conquered becomes a step towards entering the IndyCar series. They are USF Juniors, (a new series), USF2000, Indy Pro 2000 and Indy Lights. THREE of the four rungs on the ladder will be racing at Portland this weekend, with the Juniors scheduled for their finales in mid-September at Austin.
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USF2000 - What used to be the first step up on the ladder is a bit more complex than USF Juniors and is populated with drivers who have more open-wheel racing experience - even at this lower level. USF2000 uses the all-carbon Tatuus USF-22 car, powered by a 2.0 liter engine made by Elite Engines, with about 175 hp. The cars have racing slicks and adjustable wings. The transmissions are a six-speed sequential gearbox, with steering-wheel paddle shifters. The brakes are 4-piston monobloc caliper sets, front and rear.

The fields are usually very large, very eclectic and very competitive but the talent range is also large - some very good while others are learning. After 15 rounds, the current points leader is Myles Rowe, driving for Pabst Racing in his 2nd full season in this series. He has 12 TOP FIVES with 10 podiums and 5 WINs. Myles is only 23 points ahead of 3-year veteran Michael d’Orlando for Cape Motorsports. This weekend, the title will be decided.

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Myles Rowe
MylesWIN

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Indy Pro 2000 - This is the middle rung of the ladder. “IP2K” uses the IP-22 car from Tatuus, based on the USF-22, but with much bigger tires, much more wing, and a much more powerful engine. The Elite Engines 2.0 liter puts out 275 hp. The brakes are bias driver-adjustable, just like in the USF-22. Transmissions are six-speed paddle-shifter sequential jobs. With the bigger tires and more wing, the cars have substantially more downforce and braking than USF2000.

The fields are typically graduates from USF2000 or from European F3 and GP3, all used to handling more power and grip and all with great racecraft. The level of competition across the board is much more even, though the fields are smaller than USF2000. After 15 rounds, the current points leader in IP2K is England’s Louis Foster for Exclusive Autosport, a rookie with 12 TOP FIVES, including 6 WINS and 10 podiums. Louie (as he prefers to be called), is a solid 77 points ahead of Reece Gold for Juncos Hollinger Racing. This weekend, the title will be decided.

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Louis Foster
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Indy Lights - The car is the Dallara IL-15 and is substantially bigger and better than the IP-22. It is much closer to an IndyCar in performance and feel - a great training ground to step up to the big cars. The Dallara uses a 450 hp turbo-charged engine from AER. The adjustable brakes are by PFC and are the biggest in the Road to Indy. The cars have much wider wheels than the IP-22, providing much more grip. The IL-15 has one more thing - Push-to-Pass, just like on the big cars. That is, an additional burst of 50 horsepower is available to the driver under most conditions, with the push of a button on the steering wheel.

The drivers are typically graduates of USF2000 and Indy Pro 2000, but can often come from GP3 or GP2 in Europe. These drivers are ready to make the move to the big cars by season’s end and many of the drivers in IndyCars are recent graduates of Indy Lights. The Lights have held 11 races, so far, and the current points leader is Swedish sophomore Linus Lundqvist for HMD Motorsports, with 11 TOP FIVES including 5 WINS. Linus has a 108-point lead on Matthew Brabham for Andretti Autosport. With only 1 race and 54 points on tap here, the title will likely be decided at the double-header season finales, at Laguna Seca, a week from now.

Linus Lundqvist
LinusLundqvist300-1

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The weekend schedule calls for testing and practice for both USF2000 and Indy Pro 2000 on Friday. Let’s get this thing GOING!!!

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Thursday at Portland - USF2000 holds testing and practice…

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The difference between testing on a race weekend and practice on a race weekend is only a question of who is paying extra for the testing time? When a track hosts an event they will throw in a certain agreed upon number of practice sessions for that event, but if a series wants more time they have to pay extra for it. The Road to Indy likes its junior formulas to get as much track time as possible so they pay for extra time and that is a “test”. USF2000 got two test sessions today, followed by the 1 scheduled practice session. We have COMBINED all three sessions to let you see who was fastest on the day.

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Here is the order of speed for USF2000 test and practice sessions COMBINED, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie; the driver’s best session is in ( )

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1 - Myles Rowe, Pabst Racing - time of 1:12.0717s for a speed of 98.102mph (T2)
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2 - Jagger Jones [R], Cape Motorsports - time of 1:12.1033s for a speed of 98.059mph (T2)
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3 - Michael d’Orlando, Cape Motorsports - time of 1:12.1752s for a speed of 97.962mph (T2)
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4 - Jace Denmark, Pabst Racing - time of 1:12.2218s for a speed of 97.898mph (T1)
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5 - Thomas Nepveu, DEForce Racing - time of 1:12.3105s for a speed of 97.778mph (T2)
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6 - Dylan Christie, DEForce Racing (T2)
7 - Mac Clark [R] DEForce Racing (T2)
8 - Christian Weir, Turn 3 Motorsports (T2)
9 - Evagoras Papasavvas [R], Jay Howard Driver Development (T1)
10 - Joey Brienza [R], Exclusive Autosport (T2)

11 - Jorge Garciarce [R], Jay Howard Driver Development (T1)
12 - Nicky Hays [R], Cape Motorsports (T2)
13 - Spike Kohlbecker, Turn 3 Motorsports (T1)
14 - Nikita Johnson [R], Velocity Racing Development (T2)
15 - Billy Frazer, Exclusive Autosport (T2)
16 - Nicholas d’Orlando [R], Exclusive Autosport (T2)
17 - Lucas Mann [R], Turn 3 Motorsports (T1)
18 - Jacob Douglas [R], Exclusive Autosport (P1)
19 - Danny Dyszelski [R], Jay Howard Driver Development (T2)
20 - Ethan Ho [R], Velocity Racing Development (T1)

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Notable:

  • Myles TOPPED both the T2 test and the P-1 practice. The kid is racing to the Championship that he almost lost for lack of sponsorship, early in the season.

  • The TOP FIVE are the usual suspects, at this point in the season. All are capable of WINS on any day. In the TOP TEN is 14-year-old Evagoras Papasavvas with a P9, matching his excellent Toronto showing. Eva has only had 6 starts in USF2000 up to now, as he turned the required 14 years old mid-way through the season.

  • NOT in the TOP TEN - and we wonder why - are Nikita Johnson and Billy Frazer. They are not up to speed, yet.

  • USF Juniors points-leader Mackenzie Clark for DEForce Racing is stepping up to try out USF2000 for the team for these last three races, this weekend. Mac is definitely going to be in USF2000 next season. We just don’t yet know if it will be as the reigning USF Juniors Champion. That will be decided at COTA in Austin, later in this month. His P7 here shows his mettle and talent in the brand-new car for him.

  • This weekend, Ethan Ho will be making the step up to USF2000 from USF Juniors, where he has driven the season for DC Autosport w/ Cape Motorsports with several good results. Ethan joins Velocity Racing Development for his debut.

  • 16-year-old California-born racer Lucas Mann will join the fray in his USF2000 debut this weekend, driving for Peter Dempsey’s Turn 3 Motorsports. Lucas is a karter and a product of F4 United States, where he has been a consistent TOP TEN runner.

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left to right, Eva Papasavvas, Ethan Ho and Lucas Mann
EvagorasPapasavvas150-1EthanHo150-1LucasMann150-1

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Myles Rowe - driving force
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USF2000 is scheduled to qualify for the weekend of racing first thing on Friday morning. Then, later in the day they will run both Race 1 and Race 2 of the weekend. Next up, Indy Pro 2000 holds practice and testing…
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Thursday at Portland - Indy Pro 2000 holds testing and practice…

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Just like the kids from USF2000, the IP2K gang also enjoyed 2 test sessions today, followed by their scheduled weekend practice session. Again, we have COMBINED all three sessions to let you see who was fastest on the day.

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Here is the order of speed for Indy Pro 2000 test and practice sessions COMBINED, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie; the driver’s best session is in ( )

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1 - Reece Gold, Juncos Hollinger Racing - time of 1:08.3354s for a speed of 103.466mph (T1)
ReeceGoldJuncosHollingerRacing300-

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2 - Louis Foster [R], Exclusive Autosport - time of 1:08.5025s for a speed of 103.214mph (T1)
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3 - Kiko Porto [R], DEForce Racing - time of 1:08.7160s for a speed of 102.893mph (T1)
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4 - Nolan Siegel [R], DEForce Racing - time of 1:08.8430s for a speed of 102.703mph (T1)
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5 - Enaam Ahmed, Juncos Hollinger Racing - time of 1:08.8738s for a speed of 102.657mph (T2)
EnaamAhmed150-4

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6 - Josh Green [R], Turn 3 Motorsports (T2)
7 - Braden Eves, Jay Howard Driver Development (T1)
8 - Jonathan Browne [R], Turn 3 Motorsports (T2)
9 - Jack William Miller, Miller Vinatieri Motorsports w/ Exclusive Autosport (T2)
10 - Salvador de Alba [R], Jay Howard Driver Development (T2)

11 - Yuven Sundaramoorthy [R], Pabst Racing (T2)
12 - Bijoy Garg [R], DEForce Racing (T1)
13 - Marcos Flack [R], Jay Howard Driver Development (T2)
14 - Jordan Missig [R], Pabst Racing (T1)
15 - Lindsay Brewer [R], Exclusive Autosport (T2)

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Notable:

  • Reece Gold TOPPED all three session and Louis Foster was P2 in all three sessions. The field of drivers in Indy Pro 2000 are among the best junior formula drivers in the world, and these two guys may be the best of the best. These are the two guys vying for the title, this weekend, with Reece chasing a very healthy lead by Louis.

  • Kiko Porto is usually lingering near the TOP FIVE but we expected either Josh Green or Braden Eves to make TOP FIVE instead of Kiko. Apparently, the young Brazilian USF2000 Champion wants to end 2022 with a bang.

  • Mexican stock car driver Salvador de Alba has had a very good stretch of performances, lately, including his recent WIN at Gateway, but he is still learning the twisty tracks. Don’t be surprised if he learns this one before the weekend is over.

  • Jordan Missig is back from a recent foray in Lamborghini Super Trofeo where he has been putting his considerable SportsCar experience (in Radicals racing), to good use.

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Salvador de Alba (left), and Jordan Missig
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Reece Gold - last chance weekend
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Indy Pro 2000 is scheduled to qualify for the weekend of racing on Friday morning. Then, later in the day they will run both Race 1 and Race 2 of the weekend. This was the last on-track activity of the day.

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Friday morning at Portland - USF2000 holds qualifying for the weekend…

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With the tight race schedule for the weekend, this one qualifying session will be pivotal for setting all three race grids for the series. Each driver’s fastest lap of the session sets the first race grid and then the second-fastest lap of each driver helps to set the other races. Every qualifying lap will be critical.

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Here is the way USF2000 will grid for Season Round 16, with times for the TOP SIX: [R] denotes rookie

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Row 1

Pole - Jace Denmark, Pabst Racing - time of 1:11.8336s for a speed of 98.427mph
JacePole

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P2 - Nikita Johnson [R], Velocity Racing Development - time of 1:11.9141s for a speed of 97.317mph
NikitaJohnson150-4

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Row 2

P3 - Thomas Nepveu, DEForce Racing - time of 1:11.9256s for a speed of 98.302mph
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P4 - Myles Rowe, Pabst Racing - time of 1:11.9401s for a speed of 98.282mph
MylesRowe

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Row 3

P5 - Nicky Hays [R], Cape Motorsports - time of 1:12.1124s for a speed of 98.047mph
NickyHays150

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P6 - Mac Clark [R] DEForce Racing - time of 1:12.1455s for a speed of 98.002mph
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Row 4

P7 - Jacob Douglas [R], Exclusive Autosport
P8 - Billy Frazer, Exclusive Autosport

Row 5

P9 - Michael d’Orlando, Cape Motorsports
P10 - Dylan Christie, DEForce Racing

Row 6

P11 - Christian Weir, Turn 3 Motorsports
P12 - Joey Brienza [R], Exclusive Autosport

Row 7

P13 - Nicholas d’Orlando [R], Exclusive Autosport
P14 - Jagger Jones [R], Cape Motorsports

Row 8

P15 - Jorge Garciarce [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
P16 - Spike Kohlbecker, Turn 3 Motorsports

Row 9

P17 - Danny Dyszelski [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
P18 - Evagoras Papasavvas [R], Jay Howard Driver Development

Row 10

P19 - Ethan Ho [R], Velocity Racing Development
P20 - Lucas Mann [R], Turn 3 Motorsports

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Notable:

  • Jace Denmark’s third pole of the season helps to prove that Pabst Racing deserves the nickname “The Speed Boys”. With three WINS in his column, Jace is also trying to match his points-leading teammate, Myles Rowe, as the season winds down.

  • 14-year-old Nikita Johnson started the season in USF Juniors but has already dipped his toe into USF2000 five other times this year with good results. When he gets to USF2000 full time next year he will already be considered a title contender.

  • Cape Motorsports has two title contenders in their ranks, yet it is Nicky Hays who is carrying the torch for the team in qualifying - not Michael d’Orlando or Jagger Jones - both of whom should be TOP SIX and are not. Hays has clearly been keeping his eyes open and learning. Jones and d’Orlando did NOT help their title hopes, here.

  • 17-year-old Mackenzie Clark is poised to take the USF Juniors title at Austin, later this month. Here, he is showing the talent necessary to be in that position. Another sure title contender in this series in 2023.

  • Like Nicky Hays at Cape Motorsports, Jacob Douglas at Exclusive Autosport is besting his more celebrated teammates Billy Frazer and Nicholas d’Orlando, perhaps trying to prove he deserves his own celebrations on a well-fought season.

Jacob Douglas - strong finish
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Jace Denmark - on the pole
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USF2000 will hold Race 1 of the weekend right after Indy Pro 2000 qualifying, which is next up…
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Friday morning at Portland - Indy Pro 2000 qualifies…

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…for the weekend’s racing. Just as with USF2000, this one session will set the grid for their first race and be a part of setting the grid for the other two races. Every lap set down will therefore be pivotal.

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Here is the way Indy Pro 2000 will grid for Season Round 16, with times for the TOP SIX: [R] denotes rookie

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Row 1

Pole - Louis Foster [R], Exclusive Autosport - time of 1:08.2477s for a speed of 103.599mph
LouisPole

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P2 - Reece Gold, Juncos Hollinger Racing - time of 1:08.3841s for a speed of 103.392mph
ReeceGold150-5

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Row 2

P3 - Nolan Siegel [R], DEForce Racing - time of 1:08.4472s for a speed of 103.297mph
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P4 - Kiko Porto [R], DEForce Racing - time of 1:08.5775s for a speed of 103.101mph
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Row 3

P5 - Enaam Ahmed, Juncos Hollinger Racing - time of 1:08.6333s for s speed of 103.017mph
EnaamAhmad150-2

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P6 - Josh Green [R], Turn 3 Motorsport - time of 1:08.7413s for a speed of 102.855mph
JoshGreen150-5

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Row 4

P7 - Jack William Miller, Miller Vinatieri Motorsports w/ Exclusive Autosport
P8 - Yuven Sundaramoorthy [R], Pabst Racing

Row 5

P9 - Salvador de Alba [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
P10 - Bijoy Garg [R], DEForce Racing

Row 6

P11 - Jonathan Browne [R], Turn 3 Motorsports
P12 - Jordan Missig [R], Pabst Racing

Row 7

P13 - Braden Eves, Jay Howard Driver Development
P14 - Lindsay Brewer [R], Exclusive Autosport

Row 8

P15 - Marcos Flack [R], Jay Howard Driver Development

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Notable:

  • This is Louie’s fifth pole of the season and adds 1 more point to his points lead. All he has to do at this point is finish 10th or better in Race 1 to be the 2022 Indy Pro 2000 Champion.

  • The real race at this point is to see who will be Vice-Champion for 2022 and that race is tight between Reece Gold and Nolan Siegel. Reece has 300 points to Nolan’s 291.

  • We are super-impressed with Lindsay Brewer. She picked up two full seconds between her practice and qualifying. Lindsay has only had 8 starts this season and almost no testing in between. She picks things up very quickly and isn’t afraid to apply them. We are hoping she gets a full season next year, because with the track time we think she could be TOP TEN material on a regular basis.

Lindsay Brewer
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Race 1 for IP2K is scheduled to come off right after Race 1 for USF2000, which is next up. The grid for that race is in post # 5…

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Friday at Portland - USF2000 Race 1, and the chase tightens!..

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Race 1 for the USF2000 series saw 2nd-in-the-points driver Jace Denmark lead from pole to the WIN for Pabst Racing and in the doing the points chase tightened up significantly. P2 was young Nikita Johnson for Velocity Racing Development from a P2 start while P3 went to DEForce Racing’s Thomas Nepveu from his P3 start.

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JaceWIN

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The race started with the predictable schlemozzle in Turn 1 that saw at least 6 cars needing to use the escape road to avoid other cars, bringing out a full-course caution. Nkita Johnson dropped from his P2 start to P7 while Thomas Nepveu moved into P2. Nicky Hays for Cape Motorsports went from P5 to P3. Points-leader Myles Rowe for Pabst Racing stayed in P4. The big losers were Dylan Christie for DEForce and Nicholas d’Orlando for Exclusive Autosport - both out of the race. On the lap 5 restart Michael d’Orlando for Cape Motorsports took P5 from Jacob Douglas for Exclusive. Jace Denmark set Fastest Lap. On lap 6 Billy Frazer for Exclusive passed Ethan Ho for VRD for the P10 spot. On lap 7 Jace reset Fastest Lap.

On lap 8 Myles Rowe passed Nicky Hays to take over P3, with Nikita Johnson following through for P4. Michael d’Orlando went off and back on in Turns 4 / 5 and dropped from P5 to P16. Danny Dyszelski for Jay Howard Driver Development dropped three spots, from P6 to P9, elevating Jacob Douglas, Mac Clark for DEForce and Billy Frazer. On lap 9 Jacob Douglas passed Nicky Hays for P5. On lap 10 Jagger Jones for Cape Motorsports, Christian Weir for Turn 3 Motorsports and Spike Kohlbecker for Turn 3 all came together in Turn 1 / 2, with Jones getting the worst for it, out of the race and bringing out another caution.

On the lap 14 restart Myles Rowe took P2 from Thomas Nepveu in the Turn 1 / 2 complex. Nikita Johnson followed through to take P3. Jorge Garciarce for JHDD and Micheal d’Orlando took P10 and P11 past Ethan Ho. On lap 15 Myles set Fastest Lap. On lap 16 Nicky Hays dropped to P9 behind Mac Clark, Billy Frazer and Danny Dyszelski. Nikita set Fastest Lap as he began to hunt down Myles. On lap 18 Billy Frazer went off and on in Turn 12, dropping from P7 to P15. On lap 19 Mac passed Jacob for P5. On lap 20 Michael took P8 from Nicky Hays. Nikita and Myles were now nose-to-tail around the circuit. On lap 21 Rowe and Johnson were running side-by-side as they entered Turn 10. Myles went off and got back on, but dropped to P11 as Nikita went into P2.

On the last lap, lap 30, Myles was able to get P10 from Christian Weir. Jace went on to WIN by 2.29 seconds over Nikita who was only 0.8 seconds ahead of Thomas. An incredible result that brings the title chase down to only 4 points difference!

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Notable:

  • Myles erred by contesting P2 with Nikita. He should have let the 14-year-old have the spot. He led the points by 23 at the start of the weekend and is now only 4 points in the lead over teammate Jace Denmark.

  • Michael d’Orlando’s race was also hard on him. He dropped from 2nd in the points to 3rd with his P7 finish, now 20 points back. While now harder to do, he still is mathematically able to take this title.

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Your happy podium - That’s Nikita Johnson in P2 on the left, Jace Denmark in P1 in the middle and Thomas Nepveu in P3 on the right:

USFRace1Podium

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The grid for Race 2 will be created soon, using the times from the race and the 2nd fastest time of each driver from qualifying. Next up, Indy Pro 2000 holds Race 1. The grid for this is in post # 6…

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Friday morning at Portland - Indy Pro 2000 Race 1 will be memorable …

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for Brit Louis Foster, who not only WON the race from pole, but also secured the driver’s title for himself and for Exclusive Autosport in the doing. P2 went to P2 starter Reece Gold for Juncos Hollinger Racing while P3 went to teammate Enaam Ahmed from his P5 start.

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LouieWIN

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The race started as expected, with 6 drivers needing to use the escape road in Turn 1 as they dodged other cars colliding. Jack William Miller for Miller Vinatieri w/ Exclusive Autosport, Nolan Siegel for DEForce Racing and teammate Kiko Porto came together in the corner, taking Nolan and Kiko out of the race and sidelining Jack for many laps. The race remained green, however as all three cars were able to motor off the track and out of the way. Benefitting by staying on track were Braden Eves for Jay Howard Driver Development, who went from P13 to P6, Jonathan Browne for Turn 3 Motorsports, who went from P11 to P5 and Marcos Flack for JHDD who went from P15 all the way to P4.

On lap 3 Jordan Missig for Pabst Racing passed Josh Green for Turn 3 to take P8. On lap 4 Reece Gold set Fastest Lap chasing down the leader, Louie Foster. At that point the field stretched out, all running a few car lengths from each other for most of the rest of the race. On lap 27 Bijoy Garg for DEForce finally caught Yuven Sundaramoorthy for Pabst Racing to take P10. On the final lap, lap 30, Jordan Missig took P6 from Braden Eves.

Louie Foster crossed the line and went into the history books as champion, some 2.15 seconds ahead of Reece Gold, who was almost 10 seconds ahead of Enaam Ahmed in 3rd.

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Notable:

  • It took Louie Foster several races to get used to the Cooper Tires that he had never raced on before, but once he had them understood he took off with his first WIN at Indianapolis, the 7th race of the season. He continues a stellar season with now 7 WINS, 11 podiums and 5 poles, and he still has two races to go to polish that apple.

  • Reece Gold did what he could to stay close and he will most likely be Vice-Champion with Nolan Siegel’s rotten luck DNF in this race, dropping from 3rd in the title hunt to 4th, behind Enaam Ahmed. Reece is at 326 points, Enaam at 300 and Nolan at 298.

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Your happy podium - That’s Reece Gold in P2 on the left, Louis Foster in P1 in the middle and Enaam Ahmed in P3 on the right:

IP2K race1 Podium

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…and your 2022 Indy Pro 2000 Champion Louie Foster, flanked on the left by Dan Anderson, President of the Road to Indy, and Chris Pantani, representing series sponsor Cooper Tires:

LouisChamp

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The grid for this afternoon’s Race 2 will soon be set, using Race 1 times and the 2nd-fastest qually lap of each driver. next up, Indy Lights comes out for the weekend practice session…

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Friday midday at Portland - Indy Lights holds their practice session…

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This session was the first opportunity for the Lights guys to get acquainted or re-acquainted with Portland’s fast little road course.

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Here was the order of speed for the Indy Lights P-1 practice, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R]denotes rookie

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1 - Benjamin Pedersen, GRG w/HMD Motorsports - time of 01:04.4820s for a speed of 109.649mph
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2 - Linus Lundqvist, HMD Motorsports - time of 01:04.5247s for a speed of 109.577mph
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3 - Matthew Brabham, Andretti Autosport - time of 01:04.5694s for a speed of 109.501mph
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4 - Christian Bogle, HMD Motorsports - time of 01:04.6980s for a speed of 109.283mph
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5 - Sting Ray Robb, Andretti Autosport - time of 01:04.7967s for a speed of 109.117mph
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6 - Jacob Abel [R], Abel Motorsports
7 - Kyffin Simpson [R], HMD Motorsports
8 - Christian Rasmussen [R], Andretti Steinbrenner Racing
9 - Flinn Lazier [R], Abel Motorsports
10 - Danial Frost, HMD Motorsports
11 - Ernie Francis, Jr. [R], Force Indy
12 - Hunter McElrea [R], Andretti Autosport

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Notable:

  • New to the grid this week is Flinn Lazier, son of Indy 500 WINNER Buddy Lazier. He put in a very credible first practice session. Flinn is the 2018 SCCA National Runoffs Champion for Formula Enterprises 2 and the 2019 SCCA National Runoffs Champion for Formula Atlantic. He also has 4 races in Indy Pro 2000, but this is his first race weekend in the Indy Lights.

  • This is one of Christian Bogle’s best showings all season. Let’s see if he can keep this speed for the rest of the weekend.

  • Hunter McElrea was only able to put in 8 laps before he had some sort of failure that saw him unable to brake properly in Turn 1, where he went off in the escape road and obliterated a few signs. Hunter was this week re-signed for a second season with Andretti Autosport for the 2023 Lights season. He is currently 3rd in the points.

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Flinn Lazier (left), and Hunter McElrea
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Benjamin Pedersen - Fastest in the P-1 session
Benpedersen300-

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The Lights will hold a second practice on Saturday and then qualify later in the day for their Sunday race.

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Friday at Portland - the Road to Indy has released the USF2000 Race 2 grid…

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This grid is determined by the driver’s 2nd best qualifying lap or their best Race 1 lap - whichever is faster.

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Here is the way USF2000 will grid for Season Round 17: [R] denotes rookie

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Row 1

Pole - Jace Denmark, Pabst Racing
JaceDenmark300

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P2 - Myles Rowe, Pabst Racing
MylesRowe150-3

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Row 2

P3 - Thomas Nepveu, DEForce Racing
ThomasNepveu150-1

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P4 - Nikita Johnson [R], Velocity Racing Development
NikitaJohnson150-1

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Row 3

P5 - Nicky Hays [R], Cape Motorsports
NickyHays150-1

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P6 - Michael d’Orlando, Cape Motorsports
MichaelD'Orlando150-7
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Row 4

P7 - Mac Clark [R] DEForce Racing
P8 - Christian Weir, Turn 3 Motorsports

Row 5

P9 - Billy Frazer, Exclusive Autosport
P10 - Dylan Christie, DEForce Racing

Row 6

P11 - Jacob Douglas [R], Exclusive Autosport
P12 - Jorge Garciarce [R], Jay Howard Driver Development

Row 7

P13 - Spike Kohlbecker, Turn 3 Motorsports
P14 - Danny Dyszelski [R], Jay Howard Driver Development

Row 8

P15 - Evagoras Papasavvas [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
P16 - Jagger Jones [R], Cape Motorsports

Row 9

P17 - Nicholas d’Orlando [R], Exclusive Autosport
P18 - Ethan Ho [R], Velocity Racing Development

Row 10

P19 - Lucas Mann [R], Turn 3 Motorsports
P20 - Joey Brienza [R], Exclusive Autosport

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Notable:

  • What a volatile situation, with teammates Myles Rowe and Jace Denmark 1st and 2nd in the points and 2nd and 1st on the grid! They will be advised to take care of each other at the start of the race, but the start of any race at Portland is usually NOT TOO CLEAN!

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The race is scheduled for later this afternoon, right after the IndyCar practice session.

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M

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Friday at Portland - the Road to Indy has released the Indy Pro 2000 Race 2 grid…

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Like the USF2000 Race 2 grid, this grid is determined by the driver’s 2nd best qualifying lap or their best Race 1 lap - whichever is faster.

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Here is the way Indy Pro 2000 will grid for Season Round 17: [R] denotes rookie

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Row 1

Pole - Reece Gold, Juncos Hollinger Racing
ReeceGold300-5

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P2 - Louis Foster [R], Exclusive Autosport
LouisFoster150-3

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Row 2

P3 - Kiko Porto [R], DEForce Racing
KikoPorto150-2

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P4 - Nolan Siegel [R], DEForce Racing
NolanSiegel150-5

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Row 3

P5 - Enaam Ahmed, Juncos Hollinger Racing
EnaamAhmed150-3

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P6 - Jack William Miller, Miller Vinatieri Motorsports w/ Exclusive Autosport
JackWilliamMiller150-1

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Row 4

P7 - Salvador de Alba [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
P8 - Josh Green [R], Turn 3 Motorsport

Row 5

P9 - Bijoy Garg [R], DEForce Racing
P10 - Yuven Sundaramoorthy [R], Pabst Racing

Row 6

P11 - Braden Eves, Jay Howard Driver Development
P12 - Jonathan Browne [R], Turn 3 Motorsports

Row 7

P13 - Jordan Missig [R], Pabst Racing
P14 - Lindsay Brewer [R], Exclusive Autosport

Row 8

P15 - Marcos Flack [R], Jay Howard Driver Development

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Notable:

  • The title in hand for Louis Foster, the next item on the agenda is Vice-Champion. The contestants are Reece Gold, Enaam Ahmed and Nolan Siegel and all three are in the TOP FIVE. Should be fun to watch!

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This race grid will go into operation this afternoon, after the USF2000 Race 2 and the last activity of the day. Next up, the IndyCars hold their first practice session…

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Friday afternoon at Portland - the IndyCars hold their P-1 practice session…

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It took 2 hours and 47 minutes to do the 1 hour and 15 minute session, due to a red flag 24 minutes in, caused by the Jumbo-tron screen on the front straight going all wobbly when the hydraulics that control it leaked out. The session was completed, despite that, and we have the results, here.

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Here was the order of speed for the IndyCar P-1 practice session, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie

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1 - Josef Newgarden, Team Penske - time of 00:58.5769s for a speed of 120.703mph
JosefNewgardenTeamPenske300-

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2 - David Malukas [R], Dale Coyne Racing w/ HMD Motorsports - time of 00:58.7024s for a speed of 120.445mph
DavidMalukas150-5

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3 - Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske - time of 00:58.7156s for a speed of 120.418mph
ScottMcLaughlin150-5

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4 - Alexander Rossi, Andretti Autosport - time of 00:58.7639s for a speed of 120.319mph
AlRossi_zpsmyjd251w

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5 - Colton Herta, Andretti Autosport - time of 00:58.8246s for a speed of 120.195mph
ColtonHerta150-7

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6 - Felix Rosenqvist, Arrow McLaren SP
7 - Kyle Kirkwood [R], AJ Foyt Enterprises
8 - Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan
9 - Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing
10 - Will Power, Team Penske

11 - Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing
12 - Jack Harvey, Rahal Letterman Lanigan
13 - Devlin DeFrancesco [R], Andretti Steinbrenner
14 - Callum Ilott [R], Juncos Hollinger Racing
15 - Simon Pagenaud, Meyer Shank Racing
16 - Marcus Ericsson, Chip Ganassi Racing
17 - Helio Castroneves, Meyer Shank Racing
18 - Rinus VeeKay, Ed Carpenter Racing
19 - Christian Lundegaard [R], Rahal Letterman Lanigan
20 - Conor Daly, Ed Carpenter Racing

21 - Romain Grosjean, Andretti Autosport
22 - Pato O’Ward, Arrow McLaren SP
23 - Dalton Kellett, AJ Foyt Enterprises
24 - Jimmie Johnson, Chip Ganassi Racing
25 - Takuma Sato, Dale Coyne Racing w/ Rick Ware Racing

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Notable:

  • Once the session was going again, Takuma Sato went off in Turn 11 and nosed the car into the tires, there. When they pulled him out the car looked okay but he retired from driving it for the rest of the session and thus missed a chance for running a qually run on alternate red tires. David Malukas’ red-tire information - very good information - will be invaluable.

  • Soon after Takuma’s off, Pato O’Ward went off in Turn 5 and was dragged behind the wall, instead of getting back to the pits, in order to save time for others, so he also had no chance to run on reds. He will have to rely on Felix Rosenqvist’s information, which luckily is good

  • Before he could run the reds, Romain Grosjean pitted to change tires but his transmission chose that time to fail, so he too has no qually set-up and will have to rely on teammates for a set-up. With two of them in the TOP FIVE he will be helped a lot.

  • Newgarden looks great for qualifying tomorrow, but no matter where he qualifies, he will lose 6 grid spots for an unapproved engine change. He can earn the point for pole, should he get it, but then he would start the race in P7.

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Josef Newgarden
JosefNewgarden300-1

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The IndyCars will have their 2nd practice first thing in the morning Saturday and then qualify around Noon. Next up, Indy Pro 2000 holds their 2nd race of the weekend. the grid for this is in post # 11…

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Friday afternoon late - Indy Pro 2000 holds Race 2 of the weekend…

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Because of the long delay for the IndyCar practice, the IP2K race was moved up to start before the 2nd USF2000 race and it was also shortened from 30 laps to 22 laps, and of those 22 laps pole-sitter Reece Gold for Juncos Hollinger Racing led every one of them to take the WIN. P2 went to 2022 Champion Louis Foster for Exclusive Autosport from his P2 start while P3 went to Kiko Porto for DEForce Racing from his P3 start - his 2nd podium of the year, following his WIN at Mid-Ohio.

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ReeceGoldWIN

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The IP2K drivers were excellent at the start, with every one of them getting through Turns 1 and 2 without any problem. In the turns Kiko jumped on and passed Louis for P2 while Enaam Ahmed for Juncos passed Nolan Siegel for DEForce Racing for the P4 spot, with Jack William Miller for Miller Vinatieri w/ Exclusive Autosport following through to P5. On lap 2 it got worse for Nolan as he lost P6 to Salvador de Alba for Jay Howard Driver Development. Josh Green for Turn 3 Motorsports and Yuven Sundaramoorthy for Pabst Racing were battling for the P8 spot when they both went off in Turns 10 and 11. They climbed back on the island in P15 and P14 respectively. Caught up in that somehow was Marcos Flack for JHDD who took some damage and pitted, out of the race. One lap later, Jonathan Browne for Turn 3 pitted for a flat and rejoined a lap down.

By lap 6 it was clear that Reece was inching away as P2, P3, P4 and P5 all ran nearly nose-to-tail for a few laps. Reece set fastest Lap on lap 7. On lap 8 Louis finally retook P2 from Kiko. On lap 10 Reece reset Fastest Lap, while Yuven passed Lindsay Brewer for Exclusive Autosport to take over P11. On lap 13 Louis set his own Fastest Lap trying to catch up to Reece. On lap 17 he did it again. Lap 18 saw Nolan Siegel attach himself to the tail of Salvador de Alba and the two stayed that way through to lap 20, when Jordan Missig for Pabst Racing caught up to them and passed Nolan for the P7 spot.

Two laps later Reece took the checkered flag by 3.55 seconds over Louis, who was 6.68 seconds ahead of Kiko at the line.

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Notable:

  • This was Gold’s 2nd WIN and 7th podium of 2022. With Nolan’s bad luck Reece is poised to take the Vice-Championship in Race 3 on Saturday. Today was Gold’s 18th birthday and he gave himself a great present. With this WIN he becomes the 2022 Vice-Champion of Indy Pro 2000.

  • Louis was coming on hard when the race ended. Had it run the full 30 laps he might have caught up to Reece, but then he would have had to pass him.

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Because of the time shortening, there was no podium ceremony for the 2nd IP2K race. The podium is:

left to right, Reece Gold in P1, Louis Foster in P2 and Kiko Porto in P3
ReeceGold150-LouisFoster150-5KikoPorto150-6

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Once the Road to Indy creates the grid for Indy Pro 2000 Race 3 we will bring it to you. That race is scheduled for Saturday in the mid-afternoon. Next up, USF2000 holds race 2 of the weekend. The grid for this is in post # 9…

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Friday evening at Portland - USF2000 holds Race 2 of the weekend…

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The race was delayed until the end of the day and shortened to 18 laps from the original 25, but it was surely full of action. Taking the WIN was newbie-to-the-series Mac Clark for DEForce racing from his P7 start. P2 went to Nicky Hays for Cape Motorsports from his P5 start while P3 went to Billy Frazer for Exclusive Autosport from a P9 start.

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MacWIN

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The race started with DISASTER for the four front runners, Jace Denmark on pole for Pabst Racing, teammate Myles Rowe in P2, Thomas Nepveu for DEForce Racing in P3 and Nikita Johnson for Velocity Racing Development in P4. At the drop of the green Rowe tucked in behind Denmark as Jace took the inside line for Turn 1. Rowe quickly punted a slowing Denmark in the rear, taking off Jace’s rear wing and his own front wing. Thomas Nepveu, behind the crashing teammates, could not make the corner after getting sideways in avoidance. Nikita Johnson, was stuck on the outside of Thomas and had to use the Turn 1 run-off. Nepveu fell to P13 and Johnson fell to P18.Taking over the lead at that moment was Mac Clark. Slotting into P2 was Hays with Billy Frazer now in P3. Rowe and Denmark motored around at the back of the field to the pits for repairs.

On lap 4 Christian Weir for Turn 3 Motorsports took P5 from Dylan Christie for DEForce as Myles rejoined a lap down with a new front wing. On lap 5 Hays set Fastest Lap in pursuit of Clark. Spike Kohlbecker for Turn 3 passed Dylan Christie for P6 as Myles Rowe set Fastest Lap himself. Jace Denmark rejoined the fray with a new rear wing, 4 laps down. On lap 6 Jacob Douglas for Exclusive passed Dylan to take over P6. On lap 11 Jace set Fastest Lap. On lap 14 Myles reset Fastest Lap. On lap 16 Nicholas d’Orlando for Exclusive tried to pass Spike Kohlbecker on the inside of the curving back straight but instead got pinched into the wall. He caromed off the wall at Turn 10 and went off, bringing out a full-course caution to retrieve him.

The race ended under yellow as the safety team collected d’Orlando.

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Notable:

  • We feel ready to start a Psychic Hotline after calling this one in the Notable section of post # 10. Teammates Denmark and Rowe did the unthinkable. They took each other out at the start of the race. The blame has to lay with Rowe, who didn’t anticipate Denmark’s slowing to make the Turn 1 corner. The result is Myles is now only 7 points ahead of Michael d’Orlando and 8 points ahead of Jace Denmark, with ONE RACE left to run to determine the Champion.

  • Mackenzie Clark, currently leading the USF Juniors series, came to Portland this weekend just to sample USF2000 in anticipation of running the full season, next year, and he gets a P4 and a WIN, so far!! Just incredible.

  • This is rookie Nicky Hays’ first podium, with a best of P5 prior to this. Sophomore Billy Frazer has been to the podium 6 times prior to this - all from this season.

  • Myles ended the race sill one lap down, but near the front. Had the race been full length, he may have gotten his lap back and then some.

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Your happy and incredulous podium - That’s Nicky Hays in P2 on the left, Mac Clark in P1 in the middle and Billy Frazer in P3 on the right:

USFRace2Podium

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Once the Road to Indy sets the grid for Race 3 we will bring it. That race is scheduled for mid-morning on Sunday. This was the last on-track activity of the day.

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Saturday morning at Portland - the Road to Indy sets the grid for USF2000 Race # 3…

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The grid for Race 3 was set using either a driver’s 2nd-fastest qualifying lap or their fastest Race 2 lap - whichever is fastest.

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Here is the way USF2000 will grid for Season Round 18: [R] denotes rookie

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Row 1

Pole - Jace Denmark, Pabst Racing
JaceDenmark300-

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P2 - Myles Rowe, Pabst Racing
MylesRowe150-5
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Row 2

P3 - Thomas Nepveu, DEForce Racing
ThomasNepveu150-2

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P4 - Nikita Johnson [R], Velocity Racing Development
NikitaJohnson150-2

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Row 3

P5 - Nicky Hays [R], Cape Motorsports
NickyHays150

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P6 - Michael d’Orlando, Cape Motorsports
MichaelD'Orlando150-1

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Row 4

P7 - Mac Clark [R] DEForce Racing
P8 - Christian Weir, Turn 3 Motorsports

Row 5

P9 - Billy Frazer, Exclusive Autosport
P10 - Dylan Christie, DEForce Racing

Row 6

P11 - Joey Brienza [R], Exclusive Autosport
P12 - Jacob Douglas [R], Exclusive Autosport

Row 7

P13 - Jorge Garciarce [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
P14 - Spike Kohlbecker, Turn 3 Motorsports

Row 8

P15 - Danny Dyszelski [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
P16 - Evagoras Papasavvas [R], Jay Howard Driver Development

Row 9

P17 - Jagger Jones [R], Cape Motorsports
P18 - Nicholas d’Orlando [R], Exclusive Autosport

Row 10

P19 - Ethan Ho [R], Velocity Racing Development
P20 - Lucas Mann [R], Turn 3 Motorsports

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Notable:

  • This is almost a perfect copy of the Race 2 grid and is thus fraught with as much peril as that one was.

  • Joey Brienza for Exclusive Autosport is listed in P11 but he may not be racing in order to keep his rookie status for 2023, and thus potentially only 19 cars will take to the field.

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This race is scheduled to commence right after the IndyCar practice session.

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Saturday morning at Portland - the Road to Indy sets the grid for Indy Pro 2000 Race # 3…

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The grid for Race 3 was set using either a driver’s 2nd-fastest qualifying lap or their fastest Race 2 lap - whichever is fastest.

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Here is the way Indy Pro 2000 will grid for Season Round 18: [R] denotes rookie

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Row 1

Pole - Reece Gold, Juncos Hollinger Racing
ReeceGold300-4

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P2 - Louis Foster [R], Exclusive Autosport
LouisFoster150-5

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Row 2

P3 - Kiko Porto [R], DEForce Racing
KikoPorto150-5

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P4 - Nolan Siegel [R], DEForce Racing
NolanSiegel150-1

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Row 3

P5 - Enaam Ahmed, Juncos Hollinger Racing
EnaamAhmed150-4

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P6 - Jack William Miller, Miller Vinatieri Motorsports w/ Exclusive Autosport
JackWilliamMiller150-3

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Row 4

P7 - Salvador de Alba [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
P8 - Josh Green [R], Turn 3 Motorsport

Row 5

P9 - Bijoy Garg [R], DEForce Racing
P10 - Yuven Sundaramoorthy [R], Pabst Racing

Row 6

P11 - Braden Eves, Jay Howard Driver Development
P12 - Jonathan Browne [R], Turn 3 Motorsports

Row 7

P13 - Jordan Missig [R], Pabst Racing
P14 - Lindsay Brewer [R], Exclusive Autosport

Row 8

P15 - Marcos Flack [R], Jay Howard Driver Development

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Notable:

  • This is a carbon copy of the Race 2 grid.

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The race is scheduled for late in the afternoon. Next up, the indyCars come out for their P-2 practice session…

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Saturday morning at Portland - The IndyCars hold their 2nd practice session…

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…of the weekend. This one is the last chance to get a good race set-up before qualifying commences, but it will not be about qualifying set-ups, as no alternate tires will be used.

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Here is the order of speed for the IndyCar P-2 practice, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie

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1 - Will Power, Team Penske - time of 00:58.3946s for a speed of 121.080mph
WillPowerTeamPenske300-

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2 - Josef Newgarden, Team Penske - time of 00:58.4083s for a speed of 121.051mph
JosefNewgarden150-8

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3 - Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske - time of 00:58.4910s for a speed of 120.880mph
ScottMcLaughlin2_zps8g3op87o

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4 - Colton Herta, Andretti Autosport - time of 00:58.7201s for a speed of 120.409mph
colton_zpsighrheds

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5 - Christian Lundegaard [R], Rahal Letterman Lanigan - time of 00:58.7463s for a speed of 120.355mph
ChristianLundgaard150-4

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6 - Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan
7 - Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing
8 - Alexander Rossi, Andretti Autosport
9 - Callum Ilott [R], Juncos Hollinger Racing
10 - Pato O’Ward, Arrow McLaren SP

11 - David Malukas [R], Dale Coyne Racing w/ HMD Motorsports
12 - Romain Grosjean, Andretti Autosport
13 - Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing
14 - Kyle Kirkwood [R], AJ Foyt Enterprises
15 - Marcus Ericsson, Chip Ganassi Racing
16 - Simon Pagenaud, Meyer Shank Racing
17 - Devlin DeFrancesco [R], Andretti Steinbrenner
18 - Jack Harvey, Rahal Letterman Lanigan
19 - Conor Daly, Ed Carpenter Racing
20 - Rinus VeeKay, Ed Carpenter Racing

21 - Felix Rosenqvist, Arrow McLaren SP
22 - Helio Castroneves, Meyer Shank Racing
23 - Takuma Sato, Dale Coyne Racing w/ Rick Ware Racing
24 - Jimmie Johnson, Chip Ganassi Racing
25 - Dalton Kellett, AJ Foyt Enterprises

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Notable:

  • Clearly, Team Penske benefitted by coming to Portland for a test recently, as did Andretti Autosport. At that test the driver with the most trouble adapting was Romain Grosjean and he is the worst of the three Andretti veteran drivers here, but not by much, as the Frenchman was P12 - not too shabby.

  • Three rookies in the TOP ELEVEN is a remarkable showing, with Christian Lundgaard just acing out his veteran teammate Graham Rahal. RLL was not at the Portland test, so they have to be really stoked with this team effort.

  • The big team that should be a bit worried is Ganassi, with only 1 car in the TOP TEN at the moment.

  • All but the last two car were covered by 1 second. Remarkable parity in this series.

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Will Power
Will-Power-IndyCar-Barber-2014_zps86c81f01

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The IndyCars will come out to qualify around Noon, PACIFIC time. Next, the kids from USF2000 hold Race 3 of the weekend. The grid for this is in post # 15…
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Saturday morning at Portland - The USF2000 Race 3 - UN-BE-LEIVABLE!!!

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An incredible drama played out this morning that saw 3-year veteran Michael d’Orlando for Cape Motorsports go from his P6 start to take the WIN, and with it the 2022 USF2000 Championship. Taking P2 from his P5 start was teammate Nicky Hays in his 2nd podium of the weekend. P3 went to Christian Weir for Turn 3 Motorsports from his P8 start - his 2nd P3 of the season.

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DorWIN2

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The race started with Pabst Racing’s Jace Denmark (2nd in the points), on the pole with points-leader and teammate Myles Rowe beside him in P2. As the cars funneled into Turn 1 P3 starter Thomas Nepveu for DEForce Racing clipped Denmark and sent him spinning. Myles Rowe went off in avoidance and dropped to P15. Also making contact were P4 Nikita Johnson for Velocity Racing Development, P7 Mac Clark for DEForce Racing and P12 Jacob Douglas for Exclusive Autosport. All three were out of the race, as Jace Denmark pitted for repairs. Billy Frazer for Exclusive went off in avoidance and dropped from P9 to P14. The race went yellow to clear the track. On the lap 6 restart with Nepveu leading, Michael quickly passed Nicky Hays to take over P2. At the end of the lap Nepveu was called into the pits for a drive-thru penalty for avoidable contact, dropping him to P15 and elevating Michael to P1, Hays to P2 and Weir to P3.

By lap 7 Myles was clearly on a tear to get back to the front and was already up to P10. By lap 8 he was past Billy Frazer to take over P8. Thomas Nepveu set Fastest Lap from his 15th position. On lap 9 Jace Denmark rejoined the race after repairs, several laps down. Myles passed Danny Dyszelski for Jay Howard Driver Development to claim P7. On lap 10 Billy Frazer took P8 from Danny. On lap 11 Myles set Fastest Lap. On lap 14 Myles passed Spike Kohlbecker for Turn 3 Motorsports to take over P6. Jace set Fastest Lap but one lap later Jagger Jones, running in 4th for Cape Motorsports, reset Fastest Lap.

On lap 16 Myles took P5 from Jorge Garciarce for JHDD and set after Jones. Jace reset Fastest Lap as Billy Frazer passed Spike to take hold of P7. Lap 17 saw Myles reset Fastest Lap as he closed the considerable gap to Jagger. On lap 22 Billy erred trying to catch Jorge and went off, dropping from P7 to P10. On lap 23 Myles reset Fastest Lap and was very close to Jagger but ran out of time. On lap 25 Michael crossed the line in P1 1.1 second ahead of Nicky, who was 1.1 second ahead of Christian.

IT DOESN’T GET more dramatic than this!

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Notable:

  • Micheal d’Orlando came into the weekend 2nd in the points, 23 points behind Myles. He crashed in practice and had to rebuild his car for qualifying. After Race 2 he was third in the points behind Myles and Jace and starting Race 3 from P6 to their P1 and P2. The odds that everything would fall his way and hand him a much-deserved title (he was Vice-Champion in 2021), had to be astronomical, but the racing gods finally smiled on him. He WINS the title with 387 points to Myles’ 381 and Jace’s 363.

  • This is also the Cape Brothers last USF2000 driver title after an incredible run of success over many years. They will leave the program to concentrate on a new Indy Lights effort in 2023.

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Your happy podium - That’s Nicky Hays in P2 on the left, Michael d’Orlando in P1 in the middle and 14-year-old Christian Weir in P3 on the right:

USFRace3Podium

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…and your 2022 USF2000 series Champion, Michael d’Orlando, flanked by Copper Tires’ Chris Pantani on the left and Road to Indy CEO Dan Anderson on the right:

DorChampion

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That ends the 2022 season of USF2000 and it could hardly have been a better, more exciting season with a wiz-bang triple-header finish. Next up, the Indy Lights hold their P-2 practice…

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Saturday early afternoon at Portland - the Indy Lights hold their 2nd practice session…

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The session went off without incident, as Benjamin Pedersen for Global Racing Group w/ HMD Motorsports continues to be the fastest car on track.

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Here was the order of speed for the Indy Lights P-2 practice, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie

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1 - Benjamin Pedersen, GRG w/HMD Motorsports - time of 01:03.9024s for a speed of 110.644mph
image

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2 - Danial Frost, HMD Motorsports - time of 01:03.9071s for a speed of strong text 110.636mph
DanialFrost150-7

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3 - Sting Ray Robb, Andretti Autosport - time of 01:03.9404s for a speed of 110.578mph
StingRayRobb150-7

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4 - Christian Rasmussen [R], Andretti Steinbrenner Racing - time of 01:03.9790s for a speed of 110.511mph
ChristianRasmussen150-6

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5 - Hunter McElrea [R], Andretti Autosport - time of 01:04.0623s for a speed of 110.368mph
HunterMcElrea150-2

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6 - Linus Lundqvist, HMD Motorsports
7 - Matthew Brabham, Andretti Autosport
8 - Jacob Abel [R], Abel Motorsports
9 - Ernie Francis, Jr. [R], Force Indy
10 - Christian Bogle, HMD Motorsports
11 - Kyffin Simpson [R], HMD Motorsports
12 -Flinn Lazier [R], Abel Motorsports

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Benjamin Pedersen - still the HOT SHOE
BenjaminPedersen300-

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The Indy Lights will qualify for Sunday’s race right after the final Indy Pro 2000 race, this afternoon. Next up, the IndyCars qualify…

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Saturday at Portland - the IndyCars are qualified!..

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…And starting on the pole for Team Penske will be Scott McLaughlin with his 3rd pole of the season.

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Here is the way the IndyCars qualified for Season Round 16, with times for the TOP SIX: [R] denotes rookie

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Row 1

Pole - Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske - time of 58.2349s for a speed of 121.412mph
MacPole

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P2 - Josef Newgarden, Team Penske - time of 58.3129s for a speed of 121.249 mph
JosefNewgarden150-3

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Row 2

P3 - Will Power, Team Penske - time of 58.4254s for a speed of 121.016mph
WillPower150-7

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P4 - Christian Lundegaard [R], Rahal Letterman Lanigan - time of 58.4482s for a speed of 120.969mph
ChristianLundgaard150-6

Row 3

P5 - Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing - time of 58.5075s for a speed of 120.846mph
AlexPalou150

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P6 - Pato O’Ward, Arrow McLaren SP - time of 58.6090s for a speed of 120.637mph
PatoOward150-10

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Row 4

P7 - Felix Rosenqvist, Arrow McLaren SP
P8 - Colton Herta, Andretti Autosport

Row 5

P9 - Alexander Rossi, Andretti Autosport
P10 - David Malukas [R], Dale Coyne Racing w/ HMD Motorsports

Row 6

P11 - Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan
P12 - Rinus VeeKay, Ed Carpenter Racing

Row 7

P13 - Kyle Kirkwood [R], AJ Foyt Enterprises
P14 - Callum Ilott [R], Juncos Hollinger Racing

Row 8

P15 - Romain Grosjean, Andretti Autosport
P16 - Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing

Row 9

P17 - Jack Harvey, Rahal Letterman Lanigan
P18 - Marcus Ericsson, Chip Ganassi Racing

Row 10

P19 - Simon Pagenaud, Meyer Shank Racing
P20 - Conor Daly, Ed Carpenter Racing

Row 11

P21 - Helio Castroneves, Meyer Shank Racing
P22 - Takuma Sato, Dale Coyne Racing w/ Rick Ware Racing

Row 12

P23 - Jimmie Johnson, Chip Ganassi Racing
P24 - Devlin DeFrancesco [R], Andretti Steinbrenner

Row 13

P25 - Dalton Kellett, AJ Foyt Enterprises

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Notable:

  • The Penske P1, P2 and P3 will not be the grid we see on Sunday, as Josef Newgarden incurred a six-spot grid penalty for an unapproved engine change and will actually start the race from P8, with everyone ahead of him moving up a spot. to his P2 qually position.

  • Colton Herta hit the Armco barrier at Turn 1 in the Q1, Group 1 session, just before he changed to reds to finish the session. His pit crew scrambled to repair his right front and they managed to get him out in time to make one banzai lap on reds and he made it into the Fast Twelve. During Q1 Group 2 they then fine-tuned the repair, so he was ready for the Fast Twelve where he pulled in P8 and missed moving on to the Fast Six.

  • Christian Lungaard not only made it to the Fast Six but he also put in the fastest lap during qualifying, with a 57.9218 during the Q1 Group 2 session. Remarkably, this is Christian’s first visit to Portland.

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Speedy Christian Lungaard (left), with fellow Dane and Lights driver Christian Rasmussen
LundRas

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The IndyCars will put in their final practice late this afternoon, following Indy Lights qualifying. Next up, Indy Pro 2000 holds their final race of the season. The grid for this is in post # 16…

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