Since the Mazda Road to Indy was formed in 2010, bringing together Indy Lights, Pro Mazda and the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship powered by Mazda in a defined ladder system under a single umbrella, the results have been positive. It’s a little bit more to take in, but the general aspect of it is pretty straightforward.” There are a lot more things you can move and adjust in an Indy car. “But honestly, it’s almost the same as if I was testing a Lights car. “I was just listening in to see how things operate on a testing day in an Indy car,” O’Ward said. Last week at Portland International Raceway, O’Ward listened in and watched while Herta and Zach Veach – another Mazda Road to Indy alum – tested Indy cars. Last year, after winning at Daytona and Sebring, he helped Performance Tech Motorsports win the Prototype Challenge title in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. In 2016, he won seven races in the Pro Mazda Championship presented by Cooper Tires, the middle level of the MRTI ladder. Last year, at age 17, the native of Monterrey, Mexico, became the youngest driver to win a class of the Rolex 24 at Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring. Just 19 years old, he’s already assembled a resume that older drivers would envy. O’Ward, one of four Andretti Autosport drivers among the seven full-timers, has won half of the races and eight pole positions this season. I’m just trying to take advantage of everything I can and capitalize on every single race that I can.”Ĭapitalize he has. If I hadn’t been doing so well, then I wouldn’t have drawn so much attention. ![]() ![]() If it happens, it’s because of the experience I’ve had in Indy Lights. “The hope is that I get to INDYCAR next year. “Being in Indy Lights and doing well is opening doors,” O’Ward explains. Their struggle to advance continues, but Lights remains the fundamental and top rung on the Mazda Road to Indy ladder to reaching the goal. Yet we all know there isn’t any logic, rhyme or reason to racing. If racing had any logical rhyme or reason, two or three of those seven drivers would be locked into Verizon Ind圜ar Series rides for 2019. If you’ve paid attention to Indy Lights races this year, you’re aware that slight fields often yield abundant talent. ![]() You’d be making a good choice by hiring any of them. Santi Urrutia is third, just 38 points behind Herta, followed by Victor Franzoni, Ryan Norman, Aaron Telitz and Dalton Kellett. ![]() O’Ward is leading Colton Herta by just 32 points with three races remaining in the 2018 season. There are only seven full-time drivers in Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires right now, but all seven are worthy. “If you had these seven cars in a 20-car Lights field,” O’Ward says, “all of them would be battling for the top five.” There aren’t many of them, but all are deserving of your attention. If you can get past the thin car count in Indy Lights and look solely at the quality of talent, you’ll see what Patricio O’Ward sees. Kids who can represent and draw sponsors. Kids who can race competitively without breaking things. Specifically, you’ve zeroed in on starting a team in the Verizon Ind圜ar Series, and you want to hire young drivers with appropriate skills and the potential to become prominent in the series. Just play along with the premise, please.) (Yes, we understand this means you’re hellbent on giving most of that coin away. Let’s say, for the sake of this column, that you’ve got enough coin to start a race team.
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