IndyCars - The off-season: Series news and comment until the March 2014 kick-off

[MarkyS]

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Saturday at Indianapolis - The Indy Lights finish the day…

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…and like the other two series, the Lights ended the day with their fastest session. Topping it was veteran Benjamin Pedersen.

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Here was the order of speed for the Indy Lights T-3 session, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie

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1 - Benjamin Pedersen, GRG w/HMD Motorsports - time of 01:25.4619s for a speed of 108.680mph

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2 - Hunter McElrea [R], Andretti Autosport - time of 01:25.5218s for a speed of 108.604mph

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3 - Danial Frost, HMD Motorsports - time of 01:25.7186s for a speed of 108.355mph

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4 - Jacob Abel [R], Abel Motorsports - time of 01:25.7317s for a speed of 108.338mph

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5 - Rasmus Lindh, Juncos Hollinger Racing - time of 01:25.7684s for a speed of 108.292mph

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6 - Matthew Brabham [R], Andretti Autosport
7 - Kyffin Simpson [R], TJ Speed Motorsports
8 - Matteo Nannini [R], Juncos Hollinger Racing
9 - Manuel Sulaiman, HMD Motorsports
10 - Ernie Francis Jr [R], HMD Motorsports

11 - Sting Ray Robb, Andretti Autosport
12 - Antonio Serravalle, Pserra Racing / AS Promotions
13 - Christian Bogle, HMD Motorsports
14 - Christian Rasmussen [R], Andretti Autosport

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Notable:

• We wish Linus Lundqvist was here, so we could compare Benjamin with him. Topping two sessions in a group as good as this one shows Benjamin learned a lot in 2021.

• Jacob Abel slipped in T-2 but returns to the TOP FIVE for the T-3 session. That’s telling. He learned what to do and what NOT to do in T-2 and applied that knowledge.

• Hunter McElrea ends up the fastest rookie of the day and it’s no surprise to us. The American-born Kiwi was the top “Speed Boy” for Pabst Racing in both USF2000 and Indy Pro 2000.

• Matthew Brabham almost makes the TOP FIVE. That rust is falling off.

• Sting Ray Robb slipped after two good sessions and we are really unused to seeing Christian Rasmussen on the bottom of any time chart. The IP2K and USF2000 Champion is a full 1 and a half seconds off Benjamin.

• The TOP ELEVEN are all within 1 second of each other.

Christian Rasmussen

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That’s it for DAY ONE of the 2021 Chris Griffis Memorial Test. We are already seeing some patterns and with cool temps and clear skies forecast for tomorrow, times should drop even more before the checkered flag drops on Sunday evening.

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M

[MarkyS]

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Team USA does great at Brands Hatch on Saturday…

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Team USA Scholarship drivers Max Esterson and Andre Castro enjoyed great success on the opening day at the 50th Annual Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch, during the qualifying heats. Easterson took pole for his heat and then WON Heat 3 while Castro qualified 5th in the morning and ended Heat 1 in 3rd, with a last lap pass and a drag race to the finish line. That’s a P1 and a P3 out of the 100 drivers entered, placing both guys well for the semi-finals on Sunday morning, hopefully followed by entry in the final on Sunday afternoon.

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Max Easterson (left) and Andre Castro with Andre’s F1600 from Low Dempsey Racing

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Good luck, boys!!

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M

[MarkyS]

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Sunday at Indianapolis - USF2000 starts their day with the T-4 session…

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…and we have the first repeat leader in USF2000 with Jagger Jones taking the P1 spot for the second time, picking up where he left off, yesterday afternoon.

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Here was the order of speed for the USF2000 T-4 session, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie

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1 - Jagger Jones [R], Cape Motorsports - time of 01:35.4672s for a speed of 97.290mph

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2 - Jackson Lee, Cape Motorsports - time of 01:35.4741s for a speed of 97.283mph

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3 - Mac Clark [R], DEForce Racing - time of 01:35.5870s for a speed of 97.168mph

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4 - Thomas Nepveu, DEForce Racing - time of 01:35.8519s for a speed of 96.899mph

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5 - Dylan Christie, DEForce Racing - time of 01:35.9176s for a speed of 96.833mph

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6 - Trey Burke, Joe Dooling Autosports
7 - Simon Sikes, Legacy Autosport
8 - Lucas Mann [R], Exclusive Autosport
9 - Ayrton Houk [R], Pabst Racing
10 - Ethan Ho [R], Exclusive Autosport

11 - Nicholas d’Orlando [R], Cape Motorsports
12 - Viktor Andersson [R], Legacy Autosport
13 - TJ Thompson [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
14 - Yeoroo Lee [R], Jay Howard Driver Development - no time

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Notable:

• There are two rookies in the TOP FIVE that were expected to do well - Jones and Clark - and they are doing exactly that. Their resumes showed they were WINNERS in other disciplines and that is paying big dividends. The rest of the rookies are where we expected them to be, playing catch-up with the sophomores.

• One of those sophomores doing great is Jackson Lee, the son of broadcaster Kevin Lee. Jackson was a Team USA Scholarship WINNER but was only middling in his rookie season of 2021, driving for Jay Howard Driver Development. He has been TOP FIVE all weekend. The switch from JHDD to Cape Motorsports may be part of the reason. Sometimes, all a driver needs is a different perspective from a different team.

• We’re happy to see Viktor Andersson finally get on track. It seems that Legacy Autosport did bring two chassis to the track, after all.

• Any day that Trey Burke beats Simon Sikes on a race track is a great day for Trey Burke. We have to say that Trey is showing much improved this weekend over his 2021 season. Trey comes from USAC Midgets and Sprints.

• The TOP SEVEN are within a second of each other.

Trey Burke

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Next up, Indy Pro 2000 holds their T-4 session…

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M

[MarkyS]

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Sunday at Indianapolis - Indy Pro 2000 holds their T-4 session…

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…and British rookie Louis Foster collects his 3rd TOP SPOT for the weekend.

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Here is the order of speed for the Indy Pro 2000 T-4 session, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie

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1 - Louis Foster [R], Exclusive Autosport - time of 01:30.4354s for a speed of 102.703mph

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2 - Jack William Miller, Miller Vinatieri Motorsports - time of 01:30.5420s for a speed of 102.582mph

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3 - Reece Gold, Juncos Hollinger Racing - time of 01:30.6525s for a speed of 102.457mph

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4 - Nolan Siegel [R], DEForce Racing - time of 01:30.7810s for a speed of 102.312mph

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5 - Wyatt Brichacek, Jay Howard Driver Development - time of 01:30.8658s for a speed of 102.217mph

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6 - Josh Green [R], Turn 3 Motorsport
7 - Kiko Porto [R], DEForce Racing
8 - Bijoy Garg [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
9 - Enaam Ahmed, Juncos Hollinger Racing
10 - Billy Frazer [R], Exclusive Autosport

11 - Matt Round-Garrido, Exclusive Autosport
12 - Josh Pierson [R], Pabst Racing
13 - Yuven Sundaramoorthy [R], Pabst Racing
14 - Blake Upton [R], Turn 3 Motorsport
15 - Nicholas Rivers [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
16 - Arias Deukmedjian [R], Deuk Spine Racing
17 - Casey Putsch [R], Legacy Autosport

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Notable:

• We were told to expect great things from Foster and we were not lied to. There is always one guy who amazes and scares everyone else at these things and Foster seems to be that guy.

• One second covers the first 13 guys here. That is how competitive Indy Pro 2000 always is. The level of talent is high and pretty level across the field. The difference between good and great here is hundredths or even thousandths of a second. These 13 are all capable of podiums and even some WINS. Most have already proven that.

• Making TOP FIVE is Wyatt Brichacek. Wyatt frustrates us because he often does well in testing but his race performances are middling. We know he can go fast because he proves it, but it doesn’t translate to race pace. We won’t know if this is still the case until the next season starts.

• Another very good run for Bijoy Garg. He’s made TOP TEN in every session and was at his best on the still-wet track Saturday morning in the T-1 session.

Bijoy Garg

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Next up, Indy Lights does their first session of the day…

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M

[MarkyS]

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Sunday at Indianapolis - The Indy Lights do their first session of the day…

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…and the T-4 session has a new name at the top - Sweden’s Rasmus Lindh puts Juncos Hollinger on the map.

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Here is the order of speed for the Indy Lights T-4 session, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie

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1 - Rasmus Lindh, Juncos Hollinger Racing - time of 01:25.5988s for a speed of 108.506mph

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2 - Kyffin Simpson [R], TJ Speed Motorsports - time of 01:25.6400s for a speed of 108.454mph

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3 - Danial Frost, HMD Motorsports - time of 01:25.6569s for a speed of 108.433mph

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4 - Benjamin Pedersen, GRG w/HMD Motorsports - time of 01:25.7144s for a speed of 108.360mph

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5 - Matthew Brabham [R], Andretti Autosport - time of 01:25.8205s for a speed of 108.226mph

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6 - Christian Rasmussen [R], Andretti Autosport
7 - Matteo Nannini [R], Juncos Hollinger Racing
8 - Sting Ray Robb, Andretti Autosport
9 - Hunter McElrea [R], Andretti Autosport
10 - Ernie Francis Jr [R], HMD Motorsports

11 - Manuel Sulaiman, HMD Motorsports
12 - Antonio Serravalle, Pserra Racing / AS Promotions
13 - Jacob Abel [R], Abel Motorsports
14 - Christian Bogle, HMD Motorsports

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Notable:

• Rasmus was supposed to graduate from Indy Pro 2000 to Indy Lights in 2020, to drive for Belardi Auto Racing, and to go against his nemesis, Kyle Kirkwood. When that season was cancelled due to Covid-19 both guys went SportsCar racing (very successfully) to stay fit. Kyle got back to Indy Lights in 2021 and became Champion. Rasmus wasn’t able to get a ride until late in the 2021 season. 2022 may be his year.

• It’s great to see the old man (at 27) Matty Brabs pull down a TOP FIVE against all these kids. It’s been three of four years since he was driving open wheel, so this is terrific for him.

• The TOP TWELVE are all within a second of each other. This is a rum group of guys and outstanding excellence will be harder to measure.

• Jacob Abel was doing a lot better than this, yesterday. They may have tried something in the set-up that didn’t work, this session. We will keep an eye on him.

Jacob Abel

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Next, USF2000 does their T-5…

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M

[MarkyS]

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Sunday at Indianapolis - USF2000 does their T-5 session…

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…and Canadian super-karter Thomas Nepveu tops the charts for DEForce Racing. Meanwhile, the mystery of Viktor Andersson is solved! (and it’s good for Viktor)

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Here is the order of speed for the USF2000 T-5 session, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie

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1 - Thomas Nepveu, DEForce Racing - time of 01:35.5209s for a speed of 97.235mph

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2 - Jagger Jones [R], Cape Motorsports - time of 01:35.8078s for a speed of 96.944mph

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3 - Dylan Christie, DEForce Racing - time of 01:35.8693s for a speed of 96.882mph

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4 - Simon Sikes, Legacy Autosport - time of 01:35.9281s for a speed of 96.823mph

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5 - Mac Clark [R], DEForce Racing - time of 01:35.9294s for a speed of 96.821mph

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6 - Viktor Andersson [R], Legacy Autosport
7 - Jackson Lee, Cape Motorsports
8 - Trey Burke, Joe Dooling Autosports
9 - Lucas Mann [R], Exclusive Autosport
10 - Ethan Ho [R], Exclusive Autosport

11 - Yeoroo Lee [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
12 - Nicholas d’Orlando [R], Cape Motorsports
13 - Ayrton Houk [R], Pabst Racing
14 - TJ Thompson [R], Jay Howard Driver Development

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Notable:

• Thomas Nepveu is one of the great karters that often come out of Canada and began driving cars in USF2000 in 2021, driving for Cape Motorsports. He displayed occasional flashes of brilliance, with 10 TOP TENS, 3 TOP FIVES and WIN at Road America. With this move to DEForce he clearly wants even more. He should be a title contender.

• Jackson Lee fell out of the TOP FIVE for the first time this weekend, but by only 0.3 seconds. The TOP TEN were all within a second of each other. The kids are levelling out.

• We expected good things from Viktor Andersson, due to his resume, with a title in Formula Nordic Junior and a Vice-Championship in Formula Renault. We died for him not able to get in the car on Saturday, but we have learned that all he missed was the T-1 session, due to the weather. He was actually in the T-2 and T-3 sessions, but his transponder failed and he didn’t show up on the posted charts. Not only was he in them, but he drove to TOP FIVE in both sessions!

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Viktor Andersson - in it, after all

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Next up, the IP2K guys do T-5…

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M

[MarkyS]

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Sunday at Indianapolis - Indy Pro 2000 does their penultimate test…

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…and a series race WINNER gets to the top of the charts, as Reece Gold posts P1 for Juncos Hollinger Racing.

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Here was the order of speed for the Indy Pro 2000 T-5 session, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie

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1 - Reece Gold, Juncos Hollinger Racing - time of 01:30.8037s for a speed of 102.287mph

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2 - Louis Foster [R], Exclusive Autosport - time of 01:30.8418s for a speed of 102.244mph

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3 - Enaam Ahmed, Juncos Hollinger Racing - time of 01:31.1846s for a speed of 101.859mph

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4 - Wyatt Brichacek, Jay Howard Driver Development - time of 01:31.2236s for a speed of 101.816mph

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5 - Nolan Siegel [R], DEForce Racing - time of 01:31.2725s for a speed of 101.761mph

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6 - Kiko Porto [R], DEForce Racing
7 - Jack William Miller, Miller Vinatieri Motorsports
8 - Bijoy Garg [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
9 - Josh Green [R], Turn 3 Motorsport
10 - Matt Round-Garrido, Exclusive Autosport

11 - Billy Frazer [R], Exclusive Autosport
12 - Nicholas Rivers [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
13 - Yuven Sundaramoorthy [R], Pabst Racing
14 - Josh Pierson [R], Pabst Racing
15 - Blake Upton [R], Turn 3 Motorsport
16 - Arias Deukmedjian [R], Deuk Spine Racing
17 - Casey Putsch [R], Legacy Autosport

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Notable:

• Reece Gold had 2 WINS and 10 podiums in USF2000 in 2020, graduated to Indy Pro 2000 in '21 and took a WIN, 7 podiums, 12 TOP FIVEs and 5 poles. It was only bad racing luck that prevented him from earning more WINS. This guy is a title contender, right now, and he’s on the IP2K powerhouse team.

• Another TOP FIVE for Wyatt Brichacek. Oh, please, Wyatt. Don’t disappoint us with a slow race pace. And Bijoy Garg continues to adapt well to the new car.

• We know they are rookies in this car, but we expect better from both Yuven Sundaramoorthy and Josh Pierson. Both these guys are truly outstanding racers, with Yuven already a multi-race WINNER in USF2000. Pabst knows how to make these cars fast.

• The TOP ELEVEN cars are all within a second of each other.

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Yuven and Josh - push, guys.

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Next up, the Lights do their T-5 session…

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M

[MarkyS]

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Sunday at Indianapolis - the Indy Lights hold their T-5 session…

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…and American-born New Zealander Hunter McElrea tops for the first time, driving for Andretti Autosport.

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Here was the order of speed for the Indy Lights T-5 session, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie

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1 - Hunter McElrea [R], Andretti Autosport - time of 01:26.2405s for a speed of 107.699mph

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2 - Matteo Nannini [R], Juncos Hollinger Racing - time of 01:26.3721s for a speed of 107.535mph

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3 - Sting Ray Robb, Andretti Autosport - time of 01:26.4834s for a speed of 107.396mph

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4 - Christian Rasmussen [R], Andretti Autosport - time of 01:26.5027s for a speed of 107.372mph

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5 - Benjamin Pedersen, GRG w/HMD Motorsports - time of 01:26.6423s for a speed of 107.199mph

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6 - Danial Frost, HMD Motorsports
7 - Ernie Francis Jr [R], HMD Motorsports
8 - Kyffin Simpson [R], TJ Speed Motorsports
9 - Manuel Sulaiman, HMD Motorsports
10 - Matthew Brabham [R], Andretti Autosport

11 - Rasmus Lindh, Juncos Hollinger Racing
12 - Jacob Abel [R], Abel Motorsports
13 - Antonio Serravalle, Pserra Racing / AS Promotions
14 - Christian Bogle, HMD Motorsports

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Notable:

• Hunter came to the Road to Indy by WINNING the last great Shootout in 2018 and he’s been validating that WIN ever since. He gives Andretti their first P1 of the Test. But, he was not alone. Andretti put three guys in the TOP FIVE, just to remind everyone who the big dawgs have been for the last three years.

• Sting Ray Robb leads the team in TOP FIVES now, with three. There is always a team pecking order and everyone wants to be that top guy.

• Christian Rasmussen want to match Kyle Kirkwood in Road to Indy history, by WINNING all three series. He’s already got a title in USF2000 and a title in Indy Pro 2000. All he needs is a Lights title to do it. But, he CANNOT match Kirkwood’s record of doing it in just three years. It took Ras 2 years to get the USF2000 title.

• Benjamin leads the HMD guys, with 4 appearances in the TOP FIVE, now. We have to believe that if teammate Linus Lundqvist was driving he would have as many, but Ben is really impressing us with his consistency.

• Linus will be testing a big car on the same course, tomorrow, and for Andretti Autosport. It’s part of the prize package for coming in 3rd or better in the Championship and Linus was 3rd in 2021. Also with him will be Vice-Champion David Malukas and Champion Kyle Kirkwood.

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Linus Lundqvist (left), David Malukas and Kyle Kirkwood (right) all drive IndyCars on Monday at IMS - too much fun

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Next up, USF2000 closes out their time at the 2021 CGMT with T-6…

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M

[MarkyS]

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Sunday at Indianapolis - USF2000 closes out their weekend with T-6…

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…and taking the TOP SPOT for the third time was Jagger Jones for Cape Motorsports.

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Here was the order of speed for the USF2000 T-6 session, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie

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1 - Jagger Jones [R], Cape Motorsports - time of 01:35.8125s for a speed of 96.939mph

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2 - Mac Clark [R], DEForce Racing - time of 01:35.8242s for a speed of 96.927mph

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3 - Jackson Lee, Cape Motorsports - time of 01:35.9922s for a speed of 96.758mph

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4 - Dylan Christie, DEForce Racing - time of 01:36.1373s for a speed of 96.612mph

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5 - Simon Sikes, Legacy Autosport - time of 01:36.2305s for a speed of 96.518mph

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6 - Thomas Nepveu, DEForce Racing
7 - Viktor Andersson [R], Legacy Autosport
8 - Trey Burke, Joe Dooling Autosports
9 - Lucas Mann [R], Exclusive Autosport
10 - Nicholas d’Orlando [R], Cape Motorsports

11 - Ethan Ho [R], Exclusive Autosport
12 - Ayrton Houk [R], Pabst Racing
13 - TJ Thompson [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
14 - Yeoroo Lee [R], Jay Howard Driver Development

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Notable:

• Coming to the test we knew that Jones and Clark would be two rookies that could perform, but we figured Clark would be the better of the two, just by virtue of all his open wheel experience, but K&N series driver Jagger Jones proves that a great racer has an instinct that goes beyond experience and familiarity and when that sucker kicks in he/she kicks ass.

• No slam on Mackenzie Clark. He was outstanding, given his lack of experience in both the car and with the track. Mac made the TOP FIVE in every session and topped the first one, with the track still wet from a morning rain. (Being English helped a ton, there. They drive on wet tracks all the time). If they sign and drive, both are instant title contenders.

• Equally as impressive to us is sophomore Jackson Lee who made the TOP FIVE in 5 of 6 sessions. Had you looked at his 2021 season, (and we did), you never would have pegged the Indianapolis native for that kind of performance. Jackson now KNOWS what he needs to do and is willing to do it, it seems.

• We can say virtually the same thing about fellow sophomore Dylan Christie. We have seen this before. Same thing happened with IP2K drivers Nolan Siegel and Reece Gold - lackluster 1st year in USF2000 and then BOOM! We have ourselves a potential race WINNER at every venue on our hands. Damnedest thing.

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Nolan Siegel (left) and Reece Gold - scary good all of a sudden

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Next up, the Indy Pro 2000 gang hold class for the last time this weekend…

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M

[MarkyS]

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Sunday at Indianapolis - Indy Pro 2000 ends their weekend of testing…

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…and taking the last session’s TOP SPOT was Reece Gold, for the 2nd time in 2 sessions, making a statement for IP2K king-makers Juncos Hollinger Racing.

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Here was the order of speed for the Indy Pro 2000 T-6 session, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie

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1 - Reece Gold, Juncos Hollinger Racing - time of 01:30.6674s for a speed of 102.440mph

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2 - Jack William Miller, Miller Vinatieri Motorsports - time of 01:30.8098s for a speed of 102.280mph

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3 - Kiko Porto [R], DEForce Racing - time of 01:30.9188s for a speed of 102.157mph

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4 - Nolan Siegel [R], DEForce Racing - time of 01:31.0497s for a speed of 102.010mph

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5 - Enaam Ahmed, Juncos Hollinger Racing - time of 01:31.0580s for a speed of 102.001mph

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6 - Josh Green [R], Turn 3 Motorsport
7 - Yuven Sundaramoorthy [R], Pabst Racing
8 - Louis Foster [R], Exclusive Autosport
9 - Wyatt Brichacek, Jay Howard Driver Development
10 - Bijoy Garg [R], Jay Howard Driver Development

11 - Josh Pierson [R], Pabst Racing
12 - Matt Round-Garrido, Exclusive Autosport
13 - Billy Frazer [R], Exclusive Autosport
14 - Nicholas Rivers [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
15 - Blake Upton [R], Turn 3 Motorsport
16 - Arias Deukmedjian [R], Deuk Spine Racing
17 - Casey Putsch [R], Legacy Autosport

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Notable:

• Reece’s fastest lap was the 2nd fastest lap of the IP2K bunch. The fastest lap was set by Louis Foster in the T-4 session, by 0.2563 seconds.

• Jack William Miller makes his 4th TOP FIVE of the weekend and his 2nd P2, following his TOPPING the T-3 session. JWM showed strong at the end of the 2021 season and he’s clearly ready for podiums and WINS to come his way.

• Nolan Siegel also makes 4 TOP FIVE finishes as a rookie, besting fellow rookie and USF2000 2021 Champ Kiko Porto, who made it 3 times. Both drive for DEForce, which has to be ecstatic.

• Rookie Yuven Sundaramoorthy recovers a lot from the slipping he made in the middle stints. Yuven should be a top performer in these cars, once he gets used to the additional power and grip.

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Next up, the final session of the weekend, as the Indy Lights do T-6…

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M

[MarkyS]

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Sunday at Indianapolis - the Indy Lights close out the event with their final test session…

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…and we have a new driver TOPPING a session in T-6, as Cayman Islander Kyffin Simpson gives new team TJ Speed Motorsports a P1.

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Here was the order of speed for the Indy Lights T-6 session, with times for the TOP FIVE: [R] denotes rookie

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1 - Kyffin Simpson [R], TJ Speed Motorsports - time of 01:25.4850s for a speed of 108.651mph

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2 - Matteo Nannini [R], Juncos Hollinger Racing - time of 01:25.5425s for a speed of 108.578mph

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3 - Christian Rasmussen [R], Andretti Autosport - time of 01:25.5509s for a speed of 108.567mph

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4 - Sting Ray Robb, Andretti Autosport - time of 01:25.6578s for a speed of 108.431mph

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5 - Rasmus Lindh, Juncos Hollinger Racing - time of 01:25.8412s for a speed of 108.200mph

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6 - Hunter McElrea [R], Andretti Autosport
7 - Danial Frost, HMD Motorsports
8 - Matthew Brabham [R], Andretti Autosport
9 - Jacob Abel [R], Abel Motorsports
10 - Manuel Sulaiman, HMD Motorsports

11 - Ernie Francis Jr [R], HMD Motorsports
12 - Benjamin Pedersen, GRG w/HMD Motorsports
13 - Antonio Serravalle, Pserra Racing / AS Promotions
14 - Christian Bogle, HMD Motorsports

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Notable:

• Kyffin’s time was the 2nd fastest time of the test. The fastest time belongs to Benjamin Pedersen for GRG w/HMD. His T-3 session time was 0.029 seconds quicker than Kyf.

• Speaking of Ben, he really fell flat on his face in this session. It may be that they threw the kitchen sink at it to try to top another session and went the wrong way on set-up.

• Rasmus Lindh ends up making the TOP FIVE in all but one session, and TOPPED a session, too. He’s going to fight Matteo Nannini for supremacy at Juncos Hollinger and will likely win that fight.

• It’s clear we have a sterling class of rookies and a bunch a good returnees lined up for 2022. This should be a great season of the Lights, but then, they usually all are great seasons.

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That’s it for the driving. The next thing is to do the evaluating and scoring of what we saw, but first, there were several self-interviews over the weekend and we’d like to bring you a few of them…

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M

[MarkyS]

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The drivers attending the Chris Griffis Memorial Test had a few things to say…

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…for Road to Indy TV and we’d like to bring you a few of them:

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Nicholas d’Orlando on his first session…

USF2000 Series

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Yuven Sundaramoorty on his first day…

USF Pro 2000

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2021 USF2000 Champ Kiko Porto …(BTW, “ka-TEG-or-eee” is “category” with a Brazilian accent)

USF Pro 2000

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Hunter McElrea speaks of Day 1…

INDY NXT

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IP2K 2021 Champ Christian Rasmussen.…

INDY NXT

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Kyffin Simpson weighs in on the Lights car…

INDY NXT

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Matty Brabs is loving it, but taking a lot of online joshing…

INDY NXT

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David Malukas is here for his IndyCar test on Monday, and he took over duties as host for the Road to Indy…

INDY NXT

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Now, David does a quick chat with Ernie Francis, Jr…

INDY NXT

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Here, David speaks with Brit Enaam Ahmed…

USF Pro 2000

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Thanks for all those quick comments, guys!

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[MarkyS]

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PODIUM!!..Team USA comes home P2 and P3 at the Formula Ford Festival…

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…at Brands Hatch, this afternoon. Max Easterson and Andre Castro finished second and third behind Englishman Jamie Sharp in the hotly-contested final. This was the first time ever that BOTH Team USA pilots got on the podium at the same time.

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Scott Dixon (left) congratulates Max Easterson on Sunday

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Castro started his semi heat this morning from P6 and made a few great passes to end in P4. Max started his semi heat this morning from pole, but his car slipped on the very wet track and he dropped down the order. Within a few laps he was down 7 spots and battled hard to hang onto that to the end.

Those results had Max starting in P13 in the Grand Final with Andre starting in P8. After a few laps Max was already up into the top ten. Quickly, two cars near the front clashed and took each other out. After that was cleared up, another car went off. That left 11 cars to contest the race for the last 10 laps.

By half distance Max was in P3. With 5 laps to go, Andre clawed his way to P5. With one lap remaining, the top six cars were blanketed by less than a second and Andre was in P4, behind Max. At the line the WINNER was Sharp with Scotsman Neil Maclennan in P2, but Maclennan was disqualified for overtaking under yellow flags during the race, advancing Max to P2 and Andre to P3.

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Andre Castro

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It’s truly remarkable how well these guys did, given that they have so little time in F1600s compared to the guys they raced against. Next up for them is the Walter Hayes Trophy at Silverstone, on Wednesday.

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Way to go, guys! Proud of you!!!

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M

[MarkyS]

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The Chris Griffis Memorial Test - Let’s do some scoring!..

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Once the wheels stop turning, it’s time to evaluate what we saw in the two-day CGMT. What we are looking for is a combination of outright speed and consistency. Sometimes a driver will shine for one lap and astonish everyone with speed, but cannot repeat that for the rest of the test, so consistency makes for the better driver over a season, and consistently fast drivers are title contenders, for sure.

We score the test very simply. A position gives us a number. A P1 is one point. A P2 is 2 points, and so on, so the LOWER a driver’s score, the faster he is and the lower scores overall show consistently fast guys.

Drivers missing a session have their other sessions averaged and that score is added to fill in the missing session. An averaged score will appear in ( ). We also take into account the fastest lap of the test, but in evaluation - not in scoring.

With all that, let’s see who scored what, starting with USF2000, with the lowest to the highest scores:

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1 - Jagger Jones [R], Cape Motorsports - 3, 10, 1, 1, 2, 1 = 18

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2 - Mac Clark [R], DEForce Racing - 1, 5, 3, 3, 5, 2 = 19

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3 - Simon Sikes, Legacy Autosport - (3.8), 1, 2, 7, 4, 5 = 22.8

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4 - Jackson Lee, Cape Motorsports - 5, 2, 5, 2, 7, 3 = 24

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5 - Thomas Nepveu, DEForce Racing - 6, 6, 4, 4, 1, 6 = 27

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6 - Dylan Christie, DEForce Racing - 2, 9, 9, 5, 3, 4 = 32
7 - Trey Burke, Joe Dooling Autosports - (6.4), 3, 7, 6, 8, 8 = 38.4
8 - Viktor Andersson [R], Legacy Autosport - (7), (5), (5), 12, 6, 7 = 42
9 - Lucas Mann [R], Exclusive Autosport - 7, 7, 10, 8, 9, 9 = 50
10 - Nicholas d’Orlando [R], Cape Motorsports - 8, 4, 6, 11, 12, 10 = 51

11 - Ayrton Houk [R], Pabst Racing - 4, 8, 8, 9, 13, 12 = 54
12 - Ethan Ho [R], Exclusive Autosport - 9, 13, 12, 10, 10, 11 = 65
13 - Yeoroo Lee [R], Jay Howard Driver Development - 10, 12, 11, (11), 11, (11) = 66
14 - TJ Thompson [R], Jay Howard Driver Development - 11, 11, 13, 13, 14, 13 = 75

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Notable:

• We knew that rookies Jagger Jones and Mackenzie Clark would be good, based on their resumes and we were prepared for Mac to be better than Jagger, whose discipline is stockers, not open wheel, but Jagger was superb, with no less than three P1s and the Fastest Lap of the USF2000 bunch. Had he not had a relatively bad T-2 session it wouldn’t even be close.

• Mac was more consistent than Jagger and that’s how he stayed close, despite collecting only one P1. His one P1 was in the first session, when the track was still wet from a morning rain. Mac is English, so he is extremely well trained on driving in the wet.

• We’re not at all surprised that former Team USA driver Simon Sikes is 3rd. He had several podiums and great drives in 2021 and just needs to seal the deal with a WIN to open the floodgates.

• Conversely, we ARE surprised that the other Team USA driver, Jackson Lee, did so well, based on his 2021 season, which was middling, at best. Jackson apparently is ready to show what he learned in 2021 and put the heat on it.

• Canadian Thomas Nepveu proves the theory that you can be the fastest guy on track one day, but if you aren’t consistently fast, you don’t WIN a lot. Still, he did great and all he needs to do is add a little more speed to his performance.

• We are very pleased to see Dylan Christie do this well. Like Jackson, he was only middling at best in 2021 - not TOP TEN material at all, but now there he is, solidly in the TOP TEN.

• Trey Burke is another guy who could be counted on the be at the bottom of the charts, but he too is now TOP TEN with decent consistency. A little more speed and he’s a TOP FIVE guy.

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Dylan Christie (left) and Trey Burke - big improvements

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Next, let’s see the gang from Indy Pro 2000…

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(continued)

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M

[MarkyS]

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The Chris Griffis Memorial Test - Let’s do some scoring!..(part 2)…

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Let’s do Indy Pro 2000 next. This is a bigger group and the difference between the fastest guys and the slowest guys will be greater. At the top, sophomore Reece Gold for Juncos Hollinger Racing.
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1 - Reece Gold, Juncos Hollinger Racing - (2.25), (2.25), 4, 3, 1, 1 = 13.5

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2 - Louis Foster [R], Exclusive Autosport - 1, 1, 2, 1, 2, 8 = 15

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3 - Jack William Miller, Miller Vinatieri Motorsports - 5, 9, 1, 2, 7, 2 = 26

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4 - Nolan Siegel [R], DEForce Racing - (4.6), 3, 7, 4, 5, 4 = 27.6

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5 - Kiko Porto [R], DEForce Racing - 9, 4, 3, 7, 6, 3 = 32

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6 - Enaam Ahmed, Juncos Hollinger Racing - (5.4), 2, 8, 9, 5 = 32.4
7 - Bijoy Garg [R], Jay Howard Driver Development - 3, 10, 5, 8, 8, 6 = 40
8 - Josh Green [R], Turn 3 Motorsport - (7.2), 6, 9, 6, 9, 6 = 43.2
9 - Wyatt Brichacek, Jay Howard Driver Development - 8, 12, 6, 5, 4, 9 = 44
10 - Matt Round-Garrido, Exclusive Autosport - 2, 5, 12, 11, 10, 12 = 52

11 - Billy Frazer [R], Exclusive Autosport - 4, 8, 11, 10, 11, 13 = 57
12 - Josh Pierson [R], Pabst Racing - 7, 7, 13, 12, 14, 11 - 64
13 - Yuven Sundaramoorthy [R], Pabst Racing - 10, 15, 10, 13, 13, 7 = 68
14 - Blake Upton [R], Turn 3 Motorsport - 6, 11, 15, 14, 15, 15 = 76
15 - Nicholas Rivers [R], Jay Howard Driver Development - 11, (13.2), 14, 15, 12, 14 =
79.2
16 - Arias Deukmedjian [R], Deuk Spine Racing - (15.4), 13, 16, 16, 16, 16 = 92.4
17 - Casey Putsch [R], Legacy Autosport - (16.4), 14, 17, 17, 17, 17 = 98.4

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Notable:

• We knew the two guys were close, but we were expecting Louis Foster to take the TOP SPOT with his 3 P1s and he pulled in the Fastest Lap of the IP2K bunch, by 0.263 seconds, but Reece was simply almost as fast and more consistent. Louis lost his lead when he muffed the last session with a P8. Reece was never worse than a P4 and took two P1s, to boot. You could almost call them tied. There is NO DOUBT that both these guys are title contenders TODAY.

• We saw Jack William Miller get more aggressive about 5 races into 2021, as if a switched turned on. He was a hard-charger from then on and it has carried over to now. Jack is always TOP TEN now, but still has no podiums. He’s hungry. What he needed this weekend was a bit more consistency, but he was often lightning fast.

• Nolan Siegel was one of the most talented USF2000 pilots in 2021 - TOP FIVE all the time, with 6 podiums and a WIN at New Jersey. He spends hours in simulators and gets into any car, any time - including SportsCars, where Nolan pulled down a WIN in an Aston Martin in the World Racing League 8-hour at Circuit of the America. We are NOT surprised the 16-year-old is unfazed by the extra 100 horsepower of the PM-18, compared to the USF-17. This kid races Astons…and WINS in them!

• We expected 2021 USF2000 Champ Kiko Porto to make the TOP FIVE and he did. He was worst in the T-1 session when the track was wet, so he needs to work on his rain performance. Otherwise, Kiko is consistently good.

• Enaam Ahmed was great in 3 sessions and less great in 2 sessions. He needed to be more consistent to break in to the TOP FIVE, but Enaam is fast. If he makes a full season - and budget is always his issue - he will be a TOP FIVE guy, we believe

• We have to mention Bijoy Garg in 7th place. This is the biggest surprise of the test, for us. We would not have believed he was capable of TOP TEN, based on his USF2000 seasons, where he had only 3 TOP TENS in 25 starts. This is a case of a guy who takes to a faster car better than a slower car. Bijoy may be in his element, at last. It will be fun to see if he can translate this into a good season.

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Enaam Ahmed (left) and Bijoy Garg

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Next, we look at the Indy Lights guys…

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(continued)

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M

[MarkyS]

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The Chris Griffis Memorial Test - Let’s do some scoring!..(part 3)…

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Finally, we do the Indy Lights and we have another bit of a surprise at the top, as Rasmus Lindh for Juncos Hollinger Racing takes the cake.

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1 - Rasmus Lindh, Juncos Hollinger Racing - 4, 2, 5, 1, 11, 5 = 28

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2 - Kyffin Simpson [R], TJ Speed Motorsports - 3, 9, 7, 2, 8, 1 = 30

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3 - Matteo Nannini [R], Juncos Hollinger Racing - 2, 11, 8, 7, 2, 2 = 32

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4 - Benjamin Pedersen, GRG w/HMD Motorsports - 11, 1, 1, 4, 5, 12 = 34

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5 - Hunter McElrea [R], Andretti Autosport - 10, 6, 2, 9, 1, 6 = 34

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6 - Sting Ray Robb, Andretti Autosport - 5, 3, 11, 8, 3, 4 = 34
7 - Danial Frost, HMD Motorsports - 13, 4, 3, 3, 6, 7 = 36
8 - Christian Rasmussen [R], Andretti Autosport - 6, 7, 14, 6, 4, 3 = 40
9 - Jacob Abel [R], Abel Motorsports - 1, 8, 4, 13, 12, 9 = 47
10 - Matthew Brabham [R], Andretti Autosport - 7. 14, 6, 5, 10, 8 = 50

11 - Manuel Sulaiman, HMD Motorsports - 12, 5, 9, 11, 9, 10 = 56
12 - Ernie Francis Jr [R], HMD Motorsports - 14, 10, 10, 10, 7, 11 = 62
13 - Antonio Serravalle, Pserra Racing / AS Promotions8, 12, 12, 12, 13, 13 = 70
14 - Christian Bogle, HMD Motorsports - 9, 13, 13, 14, 14, 14 = 77

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Notable:

• Rasmus did it with with excellent consistency - only one session out of the TOP FIVE and he topped the T-4 session. Kyffin was very close but three times he was out of the TOP FIVE and that hurt him. It was the same for Matteo. Too much time out of the TOP FIVE, even though he showed great speed, at times. Rasmus already has 2 Vice-championships in the Road to Indy and he is likely to get an IMSA Championship at Road Atlanta in a few days. He is quietly becoming one of the best junior formula drivers in the world and an Indy Lights title seems about right.

• With his 4 sessions in the TOP FIVE, including topping two session and getting the Fastest Lap, the bet was that Benjamin Pedersen was going to take it all, but Ben had a big problem with consistency, as he also had a P11 and a P12. We’re sure that the team threw a few radical changes at him that didn’t work, but that’s a part of consistency - making things that are not optimal work. Ben tied with Hunter McElrea and Sting Ray Robb, but he gets the 4th spot due to his Fastest Lap and two P1s.

• Hunter gets 5th because he also topped a session while Robb takes 6th…
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Here’s what we have to remember at this point, regarding the Chris Griffis: This is a snapshot of what we have right now. We do not even know how many of all these drivers will still be in cars in the Spring. We still have to see who they will drive for and it MIGHT NOT be who they tested for. We also don’t know who else will be driving that didn’t make the test and/or didn’t need to test, because they were already signed.

BUT, the fast guys here are going to be racing in 2022 in USF2000, Indy Pro 2000 and Indy Light and they will STILL be the fast guys.
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They just may not be the ONLY fast guys! Stay tuned!!

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M

[MarkyS]

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Well, that was quick!..We have our first CONFIRM after the Chris Griffis Memorial Test…

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…and it’s Jagger Jones signing with Cape Motorsports to do a full season of USF2000 in 2022.

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Jones, the son of IndyCar driver PJ Jones and the grandson of racing great Parnelli Jones, ha a karting background but made his career in the NASCAR K&N series, and has only recently taken to open-wheel cars. Nevertheless, he just aced the Chris Griffis Memorial Test in the USF2000 category, driving for Cape Motorsports, where Jagger TOPPED three of the six sessions and posted the Fastest Lap of the category.

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Said the 19-year-old, “I am really excited to be racing open-wheel cars in the Road to Indy. It’s a major transition from stock car racing, but my family has raced everything and I am glad to follow a similar path. Growing up, I always dreamed of driving at Indianapolis Motor Speedway one day and those dreams came true this weekend. I cannot thank everyone who helped put this together enough.

“I didn’t know how the test was going to go, but I knew I would be provided the best by Cape Motorsports. The rest would be up to me. One of my specialties has been the ability to adapt quickly at any track and in any car. I am a very technical driver and have enjoyed working with the team. I am excited to continue to improve throughout winter testing and be ready for the 2022 season.”

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The Cape Brothers have a very long history of making Champions in USF2000, but not lately. Still, they know what it takes, and with Jagger, they have the talent to take it.

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Nicholas & Dominic Cape

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M

[MarkyS]

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Rumor du jour - Exclusive Autosport will come to Indy Lights in 2022 with two cars…

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…and one of them will be driven by Englishman Louis Foster, who just burned up the track at IMS during the Chris Griffis Memorial Test in an Indy Pro 2000 car.

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We expect confirmation of at least some of this rumor soon.

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M

[MarkyS]

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Announced today - Devlin DeFrancesco will drive for Andretti in the big cars in 2022…

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Andretti Steinbrenner has been Devlin’s home in Indy Pro 2000 in 2020 and Indy Lights in 2021 and will now be the young Canadian’s home in the big cars, as he takes over the # 29 Honda previously driven for Andretti Steinbrenner by fellow Canadian James Hinchcliffe. This makes Devlin the first 2021 Indy Lights driver to secure a ride in the big cars.

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Devlin DeFrancesco

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The 2017 Spanish Formula 3 champion will join Colton Herta, Alexander Rossi and Romain Grosjean on the squad.

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Said Devlin, “I am incredibly grateful to Michael [Andretti] and George [Steinbrenner IV] for the belief they have shown in me over the past two seasons moving up the Road to Indy ladder. To now take that final step into IndyCar with two of the world’s biggest names in sports – Andretti and Steinbrenner – is an incredible opportunity that I can’t wait to take full advantage of. I have three very experienced team-mates to learn from and that is what makes this opportunity even more exciting. To get to race in the IndyCar series with Andretti Steinbrenner Autosport and to contest the Indianapolis 500 is a dream come true and I’m so looking forward to getting started.”

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Devlin came in Vice-Champion in Indy Pro 2000 but was only 6th in his Indy Lights season, so the question is why is he getting the ride, instead of Andretti’s Indy Lights Champion, Kyle Kirkwood? The answer is that George Steinbrenner has been sponsoring Devlin for a couple years now, with the plan of getting him into the big cars. Devlin has the backing and sponsorship that Kyle does not. It’s that simple.

Kyle Kirkwood

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Kirkwood is essentially a free agent, at this point, and can make any deal he can with any team he can, but he still has only the 1.3 million dollar scholarship he WON in taking the Indy Lights title. That is only enough for three races - including the Indy 500.

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Oh, and one more thing about Devlin: At the recent IndyCar test at Barber Motorsports Park, Devlin topped Kyle. It seems that DeFrancesco is well-suited to the characteristics of the big car, more than he is the Lights car. (see post # 1487).

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M

[MarkyS]

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Another big announcement - Simon Sikes will drive for Legacy Autosport in 2022…

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The 2019 Team USA Scholarship WINNER came out of the Chris Griffis Memorial Test scored 3rd out of 14 in our scoring, with 4 TOP FIVES in five runs, including TOPPING the T-2 session. On Tuesday Simon let it be known he will drive the full season in USF2000 for Legacy Autosport in 2022.

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Simon Sikes

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Simon ran a limited schedule of 10 races for Legacy in 2021, putting himself on the podium 4 times in a row in his last four races.

Said the 20-year-old, “I’m thrilled to be competing in the 2022 USF2000 Championship. With the strong run Legacy Autosport and I had this year, next year looks even more promising. 2022 will be my first full season in the series, and I am ready to chase after the championship with such a great team supporting me.

“2021 was most definitely a learning season. This year I’ve competed in a limited USF2000 schedule as well as winning the 2021 SCCA Runoffs in Formula Continental. After a run of four podiums in a row and missing out on a win by less than a tenth of a second, Legacy Autosport and I knew we had the perfect combination to compete at the front. That racing experience is something I look forward to carrying over into next year."

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If indeed he can run the entire season, we expect Simon to be one of the title contenders.

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M