IndyCars - Toronto: Challenge at the Princes' Gate

[MarkyS]

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This is the weekend when the NTT IndyCar series leaves the United States and heads North to Canada, to race on the streets of Toronto as they do the…

Honda Indy Toronto

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The circuit is a very challenging street course laid out in Toronto’s Exhibition Place - the publicly-owned entertainment and exhibition district near downtown, fronted by the magnificent multi-columned Princes’ Gate, named for Prince Edward, the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII), and Prince George (later the Duke of Kent).

The layout is unique in that the pit lane curves around Turns 10 and 11, necessitating an even more careful entry and exit for everyone. The 11-turn circuit boasts two straights, including a great slowly-curving straight on Lakeshore Boulevard that leads to the heart-breaker at Turn 3, where all that speed is funneled into a greater-than-90-degree corner that can barely contain one car. This track ALWAYS produces thrills and rewards chance-takers, but is ultimately cruel.

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The race fans who attend will have a great weekend of racing to watch, as there are no less than 12 races scheduled. They include…

• The NASCAR Pinty’s series - race on Saturday
• IMSA Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada - two races on Saturday and Sunday
• Robby Gordon’s Stadium Super Trucks - two races on Saturday and Sunday
• USF2000 - two races on Saturday and Sunday
• Indy Pro 2000 - two races on Saturday and Sunday
• Indy Lights - two races on Saturday and Sunday

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

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Let’s take a look at all that support racing, starting with the Pinty series…

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NASCAR Pinty’s Series - People are always talking about a good weekend mix of NASCAR and IndyCar…Well, here it is! This is Canada’s top stock car series, with a 12-race season of competition throughout the great North, using stockers from Dodge, Ford and Chevrolet. No current IndyCar guys compete in this series but former CART driver Alex Tagliani is a series regular as is former CART driver Andrew Ranger. Andrew, in fact, has TWICE been Champion of the series and holds the most WINS ever. We’ll keep and eye on Alex and Andrew to see how they do.

The current points leader is Kevin Lacroix after 3 races, but 2nd is Ranger, only 1 point back, and 3rd is Tagliani, 20 points back.
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Kevin Lacroix

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Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada - This one-make series using Porsche’s 991 Cup car regularly produces great GT SportsCar drivers, as does the “USA” iteration of the series. The current star and points-leader of Cup Challenge Canada is 18-year-old Roman de Angelis for Mark Motors Racing. Roman also competes in Cup Challenge USA for Kelly-Moss Road & Race and is currently first in the points, there too. The only IndyCar guy here is fellow Canadian Parker Thompson, currently 2nd in the points to Roman. Parker will also compete in both Indy Pro 2000 races this weekend, so the kid from Red Deer, Alberta will be busy and we’ll keep an eye on him.

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Roman de Angelis

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Robby Gordon’s Stadium Super Trucks - Take off road trucks made to run on man-made dirt tracks in stadiums, but run them instead on street courses with metal ramps and you have this iteration of Robby Gordon’s SSTs. These 600 horsepower trucks can get over 25 feet in the air for over 200 feet of distance and when they do the audiences scream and cheer. This is one of the most popular support series in racing, always getting rave reviews. IndyCar and off-road great Robby Gordon races himself, but other IndyCar guys often show up for the fun. The current points leader is IndyCar driver Matthew Brabham.

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The Super Trucks are a fan favorite

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continued…

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M

[MarkyS]

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Support series… (continued…)

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USF2000 - This is the first step on the Mazda Road to Indy ladder system that develops IndyCar drivers and the cars will often be the first winged car with slicks that these young drivers will try. Despite their size, the racing is fast and furious with typically huge, international fields. Such will be the case at Toronto. The cars are the Tatuus USF-17. Fitted with 175 hp from its 2.0 liter Elite Engines MZR inline 4 cylinder, the transmissions are paddle-shifted 6-speed sequential boxes and the brakes are ZR24 4-piston calipers, front and rear, from Performance Friction, with a driver-adjustable brake bias - It’s all great stuff to learn to race with.

The current points leader is Braden Eves for Cape Motorsports who is running away with the title, with 5 WINS in 7 races, including one of the two most recent at Road America.

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Braden Eves

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Indy Pro 2000 - This is the middle car on the ladder. Entirely new last year, it uses the same chassis as the Tatuus-USF17 but comes equipped with a much more powerful Elite engine, at 275 hp, much bigger tires and brakes and more wings, creating more downforce. In this iteration the car is called the Tatuus PM-18. Even MORE than the USF2000 car, the PM-18 is heads and tails above the car it replaced and it is shattering track records - sometimes by more than 4 seconds. The field is FULL of very talented kids from all over the globe, all with better racecraft and more experience than those in USF2000. Most of the series drivers are capable of a WIN on any given weekend.

The points leader coming to Toronto is Swedish rookie Rasmus Lindh, driving for Juncos Racing, a multi-championship winning team in Indy Pro 2000. But hard after him and 2nd in the points is Canadian Parker Thompson for Abel Motorsports. This is always an important race for Thompson and he has 4 previous podiums here, including three previous WINS.

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Rasmus Lindh

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Indy Lights - The Lights are the top step on the ladder and a fitting stepping stone to the big cars. The Dallara IL-15 was new in 2015, replacing a decades-old chassis. It has a 450 hp AER 2.0 liter turbo-charged engine that is equipped with “push-to-pass” - the button on the steering wheel that releases additional turbo boost for a limited time, adding 50 additional ponies to the engine - just like on the big cars. The tires, wheels, brakes and downforce are all bigger and more than Indy Pro 2000, as are all the electronics, making the IL-15 a great place to not only train drivers but also their race engineers. The series drivers are superb talents and the proof of that is that so many current IndyCar drivers are very recent Indy Lights drivers.

The points leader coming to Toronto is American 22-year-old Oliver Askew - a former USF2000 Champion driving for Andretti Autosport. But hot on his heels, and WINNER of one of the two last races at Road America is Nederlander Rinus VeeKay, the 2018 Indy Pro 2000 Champ, driving for Juncos Racing. The boys are only 3 points apart, with 4 WINS for Rinus and 3 for Oliver, but one of Oliver’s was the Freedom 100 at Indianapolis, and that paid half again as many points.

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Oliver Askew

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Friday will be a full day of practice for all series racing this weekend, and a bunch of qualifying, as well. Let’s get this thing going!!!

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M

[CanadianJudo]

This is always a great event.

[daha]

@CanadianJudo

This is always a great event.

Unless you need to do literally anything else in Toronto this weekend

[CanadianJudo]

Its common there are so many event in Toronto the city is pretty much hell to drive in.

[daha]

@CanadianJudo

Its common there are so many event in Toronto the city is pretty much hell to drive in.

grins I’m well aware - I’m an hour-and-a-half away, and think I’ve been to the city twice in the last five years or so. Like Toronto, hate Toronto traffic lol Commuting used to take me 2 or 2.5 hours each way on a good day

[MarkyS]

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Friday at Toronto - USF2000 come out for practice and qualifying for Race 1…

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The first guys on track today were the kids from USF2000. They held their one and only practice session before coming out later in the day to qualify for Race 1 of the weekend.

The TOP THREE in practice were in order Darren Keane for Cape Motorsports, Braden Eves for Cape Motorsports and Zach Holden for Legacy Autosport, who is coming back to the series to replace Alexandre Baron for Legacy. But the order changed when it came time to qualify, later in the day:

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Here is the way USF2000 will grid for Season Round 8, Race 1 of the weekend, with times for the TOP SIX: [R] denotes rookie

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Row 1

Pole - Christian Rasmussen [R], Jay Howard Driver Development - time of 01:13.5452s for a speed of 87.424mph

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P2 - Darren Keane, Cape Motorsports - time of 01:13.7583s for a speed of 87.171mph

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Row 2

P3 - Hunter McElrea [R], Pabst Racing - time of 01:14.1355s for a speed of 86.728mph

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P4 - Reece Gold [R], Cape Motorsports - time of 01:14.4994s for a speed of 86.304mph

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Row 3

P5 - Colin Kaminsky, Pabst Racing - time of 01:14.5266s for a speed of 86.273mph

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P6 - Braden Eves [R], Cape Motorsports - time of 01:14.5592s for a speed of 86.235mph

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Row 4

P7 - Bruna Tomaselli, Pabst Racing
P8 - Cameron Shields [R], Newman Wachs Racing

Row 5

P9 - Eduardo Barrichello [R], Miller Vinatieri Motorsports
P10 - Jack William Miller [R], Miller Vinatieri Motorsports

Row 6

P11 - Matthew Round-Garrido [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
P12 - Zach Holden, Legacy Autosport

Row 7

P13 - Manuel Sulaiman [R], DEForce Racing
P14 - Yuven Sundaramoorthy [R], Pabst Racing

Row 8

P15 - Yuven Sundaramoorthy [R], Pabst Racing
P16 - Nolan Siegel [R], Newman Wachs Racing

Row 9

P17 - Jak Crawford [R], DEForce Racing

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Notable:

• The morning practice session was marred by several red flags, as Yuven Sundaramoorthy for Pabst Racing went off and was then clobbered by Jak Crawford for DEForce Racing, trying to avoid Yuven’s stricken car. Later, Pabst Racing’s Hunter McElrea went off, quickly followed by teammate Colin Kaminsky. Those two cars then swallowed poor Reece Gold for Cape Motorsports. Getting the worst of it was Crawford, who barely got in 1 installation lap during qualifying, after spending the day fixing his car.

• During qualifying, another red flag, as Zach Holden for Legacy Autosport went off in Turn 8, taking out the tire barriers and deftly removing his rear wing.

• This is Dane Christian Rasmussen’s first Road to Indy pole and the first for Jay Howard Driver Development.
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Hard times - Zach Holden, Jak Crawford and Yuven Sundaramoorthy

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Race 1 will be held on Saturday just before Noon.

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M

[MarkyS]

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Friday at Toronto - Indy Pro 2000 hold a practice and then qualify…

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Following the kids in USF2000 the guys from Indy Pro 2000 held their own practice session and then later qualified for their first race of the weekend.

The practice was topped by Kyle Kirkwood for RP Motorsport Racing, taking it seconds from the end of the session from Parker Thompson for Abel Motorsports, who himself had just taken it from Rasmus Lindh for Juncos racing. Later today, Kirkwood backed that up with his first pole of the season.

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Here is the way Indy Pro 2000 will grid for Season Round 8, Race 1 of the weekend, with times for the TOP SIX: [R] denotes rookie

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Row 1

Pole - Kyle Kirkwood [R], RP Motorsport Racing - time of 01:08.6978s for a speed of 93.593mph

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P2 - Rasmus Lindh [R], Juncos Racing - time of 01:08.9388s for a speed of 93.265mph

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Row 2

P3 - Danial Frost [R], Exclusive Autosport - time of 01:09.1270s for a speed of 93.011mph

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P4 - Sting Ray Robb, Juncos Racing - time of 01:09.1689s for a speed of 92.955mph

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Row 3

P5 - Ian Rodriguez [R], RP Motorsport Racing - time of 01:09.3068s for a speed of 92.770mph

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P6 - Nikita Lastochkin, Exclusive Autosport - time of 01:09.4314s for a speed of 92.604mph

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Row 4

P7 - Parker Thompson, Abel Motorsports
P8 - Phillippe Denes, FatBoy Racing!

Row 5

P9 - Antonio Serravalle, Pserra Racing w/Jay Howard Driver Development
P10 - Kory Enders [R], DEForce Racing

Row 6

P11 - Charles Finelli, FatBoy Racing!
P12 - Jacob Abel [R], Abel Motorsports

Row 7

P13 - Moises de la Vara [R], DEForce Racing

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Notable:

• Kirkwood took the top spot about midway through the session and held onto it, despite a big push at the end by points-leader Rasmus Lindh.

• All of the TOP SIX have been great performers, this season, so no surprises.

• Falling on his face a bit in qualifying was 2nd-in-points Parker Thompson who pushed to improve his time and did, but wasn’t able to improve his start, as everyone ahead of him improved, too.

Parker Thompson

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Indy Pro 2000 will hold this race on Saturday morning.

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M

[MarkyS]

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Friday at Toronto - IMSA Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada practice…

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The guys in Porsche Cup held two practices on the day and almost everyone went faster in the 2nd practice. We have the TOP THREE from that session:

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The rabbit for the day in Porsche GT3 Cup was points-leader Roman de Angelis for Mark Motors Racing who took the # 79 Porsche 991 Cup car to a time of 01:13.941s for a speed of 85.442mph. Roman bested Jeff Kingsley in the # 16 for Policaro Motorsport by 0.326 seconds. 3rd fastest was Patrick Dussault for Lauzon Autosport in the # 77 Porsche 991.

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Roman de Angelis tops the day - twice.

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left to right, Roman de Angelis, Jeff Kingsley and Patrick Dussault

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Notable:

• Roman actually topped both sessions.

• P2 in the morning session was veteran Marco Cirone, also for Mark Motors Racing, while P3 was Parker Thompson for SCB Racing.

• Parker was unable to improve in the afternoon session and was surpassed by six others to end the day P7.

Marco Cirone (left) and Parker Thompson

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Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada will qualify on Saturday, around Noon, and hold Race 1 later in the day.

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M

[MarkyS]

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Friday at Toronto - the Indy Lights hold their practice…

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…of the weekend, and the points leader, Oliver Askew for Andretti Autosport, topped the session.

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

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1 - Oliver Askew [R], Andretti Autosport - time of 01:06.5555s for a speed of 96.605mph

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2 - Rinus VeeKay [R], Juncos Racing - time of 01:06.5900s for a speed of 96.555mph

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3 - Aaron Telitz, Belardi Auto Racing - time of 01:06.5942s for a speed of 96.549mph

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4 - Ryan Norman, Andretti Autosport - time of 01:06.5963s for a speed of 96.546mph

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5 - Dalton Kellett, Juncos Racing - time of 01:06.8195s for a speed of 96.223mph

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6 - David Malukas [R], BN Racing
7 - Toby Sowery [R], BN Racing / Team Pelfrey
8 - Robert Megennis [R], Andretti Autosport
9 - Lucas Kohl [R], Belardi Auto Racing

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Notable:

• Askew holds a very slim lead in points over Rinus VeeKay, who had two WINS at Toronto in 2018. In fact, all four races VeeKay has run at Toronto were podiums finishes, while Askew has two podiums here.

• Making himself very valuable is Aaron Telitz, who was pulled in mid-season for Belardi Auto Racing and has been doing great. Telitz also has been a member of the AIM Vasser Sullivan endurance race squad in the WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and collected a podium at Daytona, at the Rolex 24.

• Dalton Kellett is doing very well here, but then Dalton is a Toronto boy and a graduate of Queen’s University, Ontario. He’s pushing hard for the home folks.

• Not doing as well as usual is New Yorker Rob Megennis, who is typically right there with teammates Oliver Askew and Ryan Norman.

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Oliver Askew (left) and Rob Megennis

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The Lights will qualify early on Saturday morning and run Race 1 later, just after Noon.

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M

[MarkyS]

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Friday at Toronto - the IndyCars practice…

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The big cars held two of three weekend practice sessions today, and everyone went faster in the P-2 session, so we have the results of that, here.

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

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1 - Simon Pagenaud, Team Penske - time of 00:59.8708s for a speed of 107.391mph

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2 - Felix Rosenqvist [R], Chip Ganassi Racing - time of 00:59.9311s for a speed of 107.283mph

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3 - Sebastien Bourdais, Dale Coyne Racing w/ Vasser Sullivan - time of 00:59.9866s for a speed of 107.184mph

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4 - Spencer Pigot, Ed Carpenter Racing - time of 01:00.0401s for a speed of 107.088mph

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5 - Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing - time of 01:00.1445s for a speed of 106.903mph

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6 - Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan
7 - Marco Andretti, Andretti Autosport
8 - Josef Newgarden, Team Penske
9 - Ryan Hunter-Reay, Andretti Autosport
10 - Will Power, Team Penske

11 - James Hinchcliffe, Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports
12 - Colton Herta [R], Harding Steinbrenner Racing
13 - Ed Jones, Ed Carpenter Racing
14 - Alexander Rossi, Andretti Autosport
15 - Max Chilton, Carlin
16 - Zach Veach, Andretti Autosport
17 - Santino Ferrucci [R], Dale Coyne Racing
18 - Tony Kanaan, A.J. Foyt Enterprises
19 - Takuma Sato, Rahal Letterman Lanigan
20 - Matheus Leist, A.J. Foyt Enterprises

21 - Sage Karam, Carlin
22 - Marcus Ericsson [R], Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports

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Notable:

• Simon Pagenaud is enjoying a great mid-season and this is adding to the shine. The Frenchman enjoys the track and it shows.

• Alexander Rossi, who is also enjoying this season, had a rotten day today, putting his Andretti Autosport car in the walls twice. Also hitting the wall was Takuma Sato for Rahal Letterman Lanigan and Josef Newgarden for Team Penske. Spinning out was Will Power for Team Penske, but he kept it off the walls.

• Felix Rosenqvist has had success at Toronto before, with two WINS at the track in the Indy Lights. He, Pagenaud and Sebastien Bourdais for Dale Coyne were the only guys to break the 1 minute mark.
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Different ends of the spectrum - Simon Pagenaud (left) and Alexander Rossi

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The IndyCars will hold a third practice on Saturday morning and then hold knock-out qualifying on Saturday afternoon.

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M

[MarkyS]

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Friday at Toronto - The Stadium Super Trucks hold practice and qualifying…

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We’re still hunting up the results of qualifying but we have the results from practice:

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1. Matt Brabham - 1:33.629
2. Robby Gordon - 1:34.765
3. Gavin Harlien - 1:35.177
4. Jeff Hoffman - 1:35.249
5. Cole Potts - 1:35.977
6. Bill Hynes - 1:37.999
7. Russell Boyle - 1:38.109
8. Ryan Eversley - 1:38.302
9. Casey Mears - no time.

Matt Brabham on the fly

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The fans were all over the trucks and loving every minute of their time on track:
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https://twitter.com/Osheafan/status/1149840533482856448

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The SSTs will hold Race 1 of the weekend on Saturday afternoon.

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M

[MarkyS]

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Friday at Toronto - The Pinty’s boys take to the track for practice and qualifying…

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…and IndyCar driver Alex Tagliani topped the timesheet to take pole for the race. To make it all the more dramatic, he got it on the final lap.

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Here is the way the NASCAR Pinty’s series will grid for their race, with times for the TOP SIX:

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Row 1

Pole - Alex Tagliani, Chevrolet - time of 1:15.918s for a speed of 83.221mph

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P2 - Marc-Antoine Camirand, Chevrolet - time of 1:16.025s for a speed of 83.104mph

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Row 2

P3 - Gary Klutt, Dodge - time of 1:16.080s for a speed of 83.044mph

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P4 - LP Dumoulin, Dodge - time of 1:16.353s for a speed of 82.747mph

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Row 3

P5 - Anthony Simone, Dodge - time of 1:16.622s for a speed of 82.457mph

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P6 - Andrew Ranger, Dodge - time of 1:16.704s for a speed of 82.369mph

Row 4

P7 - Alex Labbe, Ford
P8 - Kevin Lacroix, Dodge

Row 5

P9 - Peter Klutt, Chevrolet
P10 - JF Dumoulin, Dodge

Row 6

P11 - Jason White, Dodge
P12 - DJ Kennington, Dodge

Row 7

P13 - Donald Theetge, Chevrolet
P14 - Jason Hathaway, Chevrolet

Row 8

P15 - Mark Dilley, Ford
P16 - JF Laberge, Dodge

Row 9

P17 - Brett Taylor, Dodge
P18 - David Thorndyke, Chevrolet

Row 10

P19 - TJ Rinomato, Ford

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The race is scheduled for Saturday afternoon - last race of the day.

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M

[MarkyS]

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Friday afternoon at Toronto - the Indy Pro 2000 series hold qualifying for Race 2…

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In the Road to Indy each race of the dual-race weekend gets its own qualifying session, rather than using one session’s 2nd best times to grid a second race. It takes more time and effort, but it gives the teams a real chance to change their cars between qualifying sessions. Indy Pro 2000 held qualifying for their 2nd race of the weekend this afternoon, before running their first race, tomorrow.

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Here is the way Indy Pro 2000 will grid for Season Round 9, Race 2 of the weekend, with times for the TOP SIX: [R] denotes rookie

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Row 1

Pole - Kyle Kirkwood [R], RP Motorsport Racing - time of 01:07.3800s for a speed of 95.423mph

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P2 - Rasmus Lindh [R], Juncos Racing - time of 01:07.4385s for a speed of 95.340mph

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Row 2

P3 - Parker Thompson, Abel Motorsports - time of 01:07.6136s for a speed of 95.093mph

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P4 - Danial Frost [R], Exclusive Autosport - time of 01:07.6924s for a speed of 94.983mph

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Row 3

P5 - Sting Ray Robb, Juncos Racing - time of 01:07.8129s for a speed of 94.814mph

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P6 - Phillippe Denes, FatBoy Racing! - time of 01:08.1818s for a speed of 94.301mph

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Row 4

P7 - Ian Rodriguez [R], RP Motorsport Racing
P8 - Antonio Serravalle, Pserra Racing w/Jay Howard Driver Development

Row 5

P9 - Nikita Lastochkin, Exclusive Autosport
P10 - Kory Enders [R], DEForce Racing

Row 6

P11 - Moises de la Vara [R], DEForce Racing
P12 - Jacob Abel [R], Abel Motorsports

Row 7

P13 - Charles Finelli, FatBoy Racing!

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Notable:

• Kyle Kirkwood backs up his Race 1 pole with another pole for Race 2. That bodes well for the Floridian, as the pole sitter is a frequent race WINNER at Toronto in Indy Pro 2000.

• Parker Thompson recovered from his less-than-stellar Race 1 qualifying, and he needed to, if he is to stay in contact with points-leader Ras Lindh. From P3 he can pass and WIN, and has done just that, often.

• FatBoy Racing! is known as the old, rich guy team, fielding decent gentlemen drivers who are competing for the fun of it. Charles Finelli is one such. But Phillippe Denes is both young and talented - the first truly podium-capable driver for the team.
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Another pole for Kyle Kirkwood (left) and another fun day for Charles Finelli

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This race is scheduled to be run on Sunday morning. This was the last on-track activity of the day.

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M

[MarkyS]

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Saturday morning at Toronto - First on track today are the kids from USF2000…

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…and they came out to qualify for Race 2 of the weekend, to be run on Sunday. As with Friday’s qually for Race 1, the contest ended up being between Darren Keane for Cape Motorsports and Denmark’s Christian Rasmussen for Jay Howard Driver Development, but unlike Friday, it was Darren who took pole - his 2nd of the season.

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Here is the way USF2000 will grid for Season Round 9, Race 2 of the weekend, withg times for the TOP SIX: [R] denotes rookie

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Row 1

Pole - Darren Keane, Cape Motorsports - time of 01:11.7466s for a speed of 89.615mph

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P2 - Christian Rasmussen [R], Jay Howard Driver Development - time of 01:11.8744s for a speed of 89.456mph

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Row 2

P3 - Braden Eves [R], Cape Motorsports - time of 01:11.9603s for a speed of 89.349mph

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P4 - Colin Kaminsky, Pabst Racing - time of 01:12.5869s for a speed of 88.578mph

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Row 3

P5 - Cameron Shields [R], Newman Wachs Racing - time of 01:12.8544s for a speed of 88.253mph

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P6 - Eduardo Barrichello [R], Miller Vinatieri Motorsports - time of 01:12.9668s for a speed of 88.117mph

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Row 4

P7 - Zach Holden, Legacy Autosport
P8 - Manuel Sulaiman [R], DEForce Racing

Row 5

P9 - Matthew Round-Garrido [R], Jay Howard Driver Development
P10 - Christian Bogle [R], Jay Howard Driver Development

Row 6

P11 - Hunter McElrea [R], Pabst Racing
P12 - Nolan Siegel [R], Newman Wachs Racing

Row 7

P13 - Jak Crawford [R], DEForce Racing
P14 - Jack William Miller [R], Miller Vinatieri Motorsports

Row 8

P15 - Yuven Sundaramoorthy [R], Pabst Racing
P16 - Bruna Tomaselli, Pabst Racing

Row 9

P17 - Reece Gold [R], Cape Motorsports

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Notable:

• Championship contender Hunter McElrea will start down the order, because he brushed the wall during the qually and never got in the flyer he was hoping for.

• Zach Holden had his brush with a wall yesterday and did some damage, but the Legacy Autosport boys worked all night to give him a car capable of getting to his P7 start.

• Falling on his face was young Puerto Rico native Reece Gold. He impressed us yesterday with his P4 in the Race 1 qually, but today he was P17, with only 2 laps in the books for the session. Why we don’t know, as the Capes are very tight-lipped.

• Bruna Tomaselli was on the way to another great qually - possibly TOP FIVE and certainly TOP TEN, when she spun on the final lap, losing her fastest lap with the red flag she brought out, and will start P16, but look for her to move forward in the race.

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Left to right, Hunter McElrea, Reece Gold and Bruna Tomaselli

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This race is scheduled to be run on Sunday morning.

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M

[MarkyS]

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Saturday morning at Toronto - The Indy Lights qualify for Race 1 of their weekend…

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Next up for the day, the Lights came out to do their qualifying for their first race of the weekend, which will be run later today. A fierce battle for pole developed between the TOP THREE and pole went to each of them, at one time or another, but Aaron Telitz, wearing his IMSA AIM Vasser Sullivan firesuit, finally took it on the final lap.

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Here is the way the Indy Lights will grid for Season Round 10, Race 1 of the weekend, with times for the TOP SIX: [R] denotes rookie

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Row 1

Pole - Aaron Telitz, Belardi Auto Racing - time of 01:04.4293s for a speed of 99.793mph

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P2 - Rinus VeeKay [R], Juncos Racing - time of 01:04.5120s for a speed of 99.665mph

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Row 2

P3 - Oliver Askew [R], Andretti Autosport - time of 01:04.6523s for a speed of 99.449mph

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P4 - Ryan Norman, Andretti Autosport - time of 01:04.6818s for a speed of 99.404mph

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Row 3

P5 - Toby Sowery [R], BN Racing / Team Pelfrey - time of 01:04.8312s for a speed of 99.174mph

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P6 - David Malukas [R], BN Racing - time of 01:04.9620s for a speed of 98.975mph

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Row 4

P7 - Dalton Kellett, Juncos Racing
P8 - Lucas Kohl [R], Belardi Auto Racing

Row 5

P9 - Robert Megennis [R], Andretti Autosport

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Notable:

• This is Aaron’s 3rd Indy Lights pole and 13th in his Road to Indy career.

• Rob Megennis tagged the wall in qually and ends up last on the grid. The youngster from New York City is having a snake-bit weekend.

Robert Megennis

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This race is scheduled to start at 12:45 PM this afternoon. Next up, Indy Pro 2000 hold their first race of the weekend. The grid for this is in post # 8…

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Saturday morning at Toronto - Indy Pro 2000 hold a slugfest…

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The first race of the weekend turned out to be a wild one as Singapore’s Danial Frost took the lead right from the start and held it to the end, to take his 5th podium and 2nd WIN of the season, driving for Canadian team Exclusive Autosport. Coming home P2 was points-leader Rasmus Lindh for Juncos Racing while salvaging P3 was Canadian Parker Thompson for Abel Motorsports.

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Danial Frost (far left) takes P1 in Turn 1 on lap 1…and with it the cake.

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Starting P3, Danial Frost made a bold move from behind pole-sitter Kyle Kirkwood for RP Motorsport Racing, and ducked from behind him to beside him in Turn 1 on the opening lap and took the lead. Kirkwood and P2-starter Rasmus Lindh in the # 10 battled all the way down Shoreline Boulevard for the P2 spot and as the two entered Turn 3 their tires were screaming from late-braking - a battle the Swede would win, relegating Kyle to P3 in Turn 3. Within a lap Kirkwood was getting pressure from his teammate, Ian Rodriguez, and the two banged wheels in Turn 5 on lap 2, with Kirkwood getting damage that would send him to the pits and a lap down.

On lap 5 a caution came out as Moises de la Vara for DEForce Racing ended up in the walls at Turn 11. During the clean-up, word came that Ian Rodriguez was being penalized for avoidable contact with Kirkwood and was being sent to the rear of the field. On the lap 9 restart Danial got away clean as Charles Finelli for Fat Boy Racing! looped his PM-18, but avoided contact. On Lap 12, Sting Ray Robb for Juncos out-braked his teammate and took P2 from Rasmus Lindh in Turn 3. Behind that battle, Parker Thompson moved into P5 past Nikita Lastochkin for Exclusive Autosport.

Within a lap, Rasmus returned the favor on Sting Ray in Turn 3 and retook P2. Pushing hard to recover, Robb would make contact with the wall in Turn 6 and have to pit with terminal damage. On lap 15 Parker made another pass, this time taking P3 from young Antonio Serravalle for Pserra Racing, who was having the best race of his career. The full course yellow came out for the second time when Charles Finelli ended up in the Turn 8 tire barriers. On the restart Rasmus was able to side Danial but Frost held him off and kept the lead to the end, crossing the line less than half a second in front of Rasmus.

A wild one!

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Notable:

• With his WIN Frost takes over 2nd place in the title hunt by one point over Parker Thompson, whose heroics, going from P7 to P3, kept him close.

• With his P2 Rasmus Lindh retains the points lead.

• 16-year-old Canadian Antonio Serravalle ended the day P4 and that is easily his best performance of the year.

Antonio Serravalle

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Here is your happy podium - That’s Rasmus Lindh in P2 on the left, Danial Frost in P1 in the middle and Parker Thompson in P3 on the left:

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The guys from Indy Pro 2000 will race again on Sunday.

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Saturday at Toronto - The IndyCars hold their 3rd practice and then qualify…

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The big cars had their final practice in the morning before knock-out qualifying later in the day. In that practice Simon Pagenaud for Team Penske backed up his TOP TIME from yesterday with another topper today, setting the fastest lap of the weekend, so far. As he was on Friday, P2 was Felix Rosenqvist for Chip Ganassi Racing.

Speeds were way up, as 12 drivers posted speeds below 1 minute. P3 was Ryan Hunter-Reay for Andretti Autosport, P4 was Santino Ferrucci with Dale Coyne and P5 was Colton Herta for Harding Steinbrenner Racing - That’s 3 series rookies in the TOP FIVE.

In the afternoon we had qualifying and we have the results here. It is no surprise that Simon Pagenaud took his 2nd pole of 2019 and 12th pole of his career.

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Here is the way the IndyCars will grid for the Honda Indy Toronto, with times for the TOP SIX: [R] denotes rookie

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Row 1

Pole - Simon Pagenaud, Team Penske - time of 58.4293s for a speed of 110.041mph

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P2 - Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing - time of 58.5948s for a speed of 109.730mph

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Row 2

P3 - Felix Rosenqvist [R], Chip Ganassi Racing - time of 58.6793s for a speed of 109.572mph

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P4 - Alexander Rossi, Andretti Autosport - time of 58.9215s for a speed of 109.121mph

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Row 3

P5 - Josef Newgarden, Team Penske - time of 59.3103s for a speed of 108.406mph

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P6 - Ed Jones, Ed Carpenter Racing - time of 59.5353s for a speed of 107.996mph

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Row 4

P7 - Marco Andretti, Andretti Autosport
P8 - Sebastien Bourdais, Dale Coyne Racing w/ Vasser Sullivan

Row 5

P9 - Spencer Pigot, Ed Carpenter Racing
P10 - Takuma Sato, Rahal Letterman Lanigan

Row 6

P11 - Ryan Hunter-Reay, Andretti Autosport
P12 - Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan

Row 7

P13 - Max Chilton, Carlin
P14 - James Hinchcliffe, Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports

Row 8

P15 - Will Power, Team Penske
P16 - Colton Herta [R], Harding Steinbrenner Racing

Row 9

P17 - Santino Ferrucci [R], Dale Coyne Racing
P18 - Zach Veach, Andretti Autosport

Row 10

P19 - Matheus Leist, A.J. Foyt Enterprises
P20 - Marcus Ericsson [R], Arrow Schmidt Peterson Motorsports

Row 11

P21 - Sage Karam, Carlin
P22 - Tony Kanaan, A.J. Foyt Enterprises

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Notable:

• Despite their heroics in the 3rd practice, neither Colton Herta nor Santino Ferrucci were ale to transfer out of Q1.

• Will Power was also stuck in Q1 - a rare occurrence.

• Spencer Pigot has been the Ed Carpenter Racing driver of note so far this weekend, but Ed Jones asserted himself and it paid off big time. He topped the Q2 session and made the Fast Six.

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Lost boys - left to right, Colton Herta, Santino Ferrucci and Will Power

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The race is scheduled for broadcast on NBC-SN on Sunday, starting at 3:00 pm EASTERN time.

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IndyCar has released qualifying highlights…

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2019 NTT IndyCar Series: Honda Indy Toronto Qualifying Highlights

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Saturday midday at Toronto - USF2000 hold Race 1 of their weekend…

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…and after significant chances to WIN races all season, Darren Keane for Cape Motorsports finally collected his first series WIN, defeating pole-sitter Christian Rasmussen for Jay Howard Driver Development. P3 was American-born Kiwi Hunter McElrea from his P3 start.

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Darren Keane for the WIN - long overdue

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Rasmussen got away at the start cleanly while making bold moves saw Zach Holden for legacy Autosport go from P12 to P6 in two laps. Darren Keane held onto P2 but fell from contact with Rasmussen. On Lap 2 Reece Gold for Cape Motorsports lost P4 to teammate Braden Eves. On lap 3 Gold then fell to Cameron Shields for Exclusive Autosport and Zach Holden. Holden then took P5 from Shields. In the meantime, Darren began to set a series of Fastest Laps attempting to reconnect with Christian Rasmussen.

By lap 11 Keane was right behind Rasmussen and finally took him in Turn 3, taking the lead, but in the same lap he almost lost it in Turn 9, and Christian was inches off his tail. On lap 12 the two cars sided each other through Turns 1, 2, 3 and 4, but Darren was able to enter Turn 5 still in the lead. By the end of the lap it was Christian who was sliding in Turn 9, allowing Hunter McElrea to creep up to him and finally take him for the P2 spot.

Six laps from the end Darren was setting another Fastest Lap and was almost a full second to the clear of McElrea. Then, the only yellow flag of the race came out on lap 18 when Cameron Shields made contact with the tire barriers at the exit of Turn 8 after getting in too deep into the corner. Just before the flag flew Rasmussen was back by Hunter to reclaim P2. There was only a lap left to conclude the race. Rasmussen got a great jump and was once again aside Keane through Turns 2, 3 and 4, but Darren again took the Turn 5 in the lead and was able to keep it to the end of the lap and the race.

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Notable:

• There were a number of moments in this great race where it was hard to tell who was in the lead, as Keane and Rasmussen were both claiming the spot on track at the same time. This was a nail-biter.

• It was Christian Rasmussen who was hounding Keane at St. Pete when Darren spun out on the final corner, taking Christian with him and allowing Braden Eves to inherit the WIN. This time, Keane was not going to allow that to happen. He WON by a full second, setting Fastest Lap again.

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Here is your happy podium - That’s Christian Rasmussen in P2 on the left, Darren Keane in P1 in the middle and Hunter McElrea in P3 on the right:

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USF2000 will hold Race 2 of the weekend on Sunday, this time with Keane on the pole and Christian Rasmussen in P2…Here we go again.

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