ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Christian Rasmussen recorded his first victory of the Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires for Jay Howard Driver Development (JHDD) on Sunday morning with a dominating display to move him firmly into championship contention.
Rasmussen enjoyed a fine weekend, finishing second on the Saturday to complement his victory the following day, thus demonstrating that the JHDD squad have wasted little time in getting up to speed in the ultra-competitive series. Wyatt Brichacek once again demonstrated exceptional speed in his #5 machine, setting the second fastest lap in Race One before being involved in a racing incident on the opening lap during Race Two.
The JHDD Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship squad endured a character-building weekend on the iconic street course, with Bijoy Garg and Peter Vodanovich being on the short end of the stick in the Saturday morning race that was marred by a number of incidents. Garg in particular was enjoying a fine run inside the top 10 and was unfortunate to sustain enough damage to keep him out of the second race that same afternoon. Rookie Jackson Lee escaped the carnage to bring home two solid finishes on his street course debut, thus ensuring his 100% finishing record on the Road to Indy.
“It’s always good to come to St Pete, the first street race of the year for the boys,” commented team owner Jay Howard. “Rasmussen carried on from where he left off in Barber and definitely made a statement that he will be a force to reckoned with this season. Wyatt showed great speed once again, and he knows he needs to work on his qualifying to maximize his speed. On the USF2000 side of things, Bijoy had a really tough break getting crashed out in Race 1 when he was having a great run. Peter got caught up as well in what was just a very messy Race 1, and Jackson was able to keep his nose clean and bank some valuable experience as he continues to show that he is a good wheel-to-wheel racer. Again, I have to say a big thank you to all the boys for their hard work. Next up is Indy GP, and that’s where we traditionally start to see the championships settle into their rhythms. We’ll be ready to go!”
WHAT THE USF2000 DRIVERS SAID:
#6 Bijoy Garg
Round 3 – DNF; Round 4 – DNS
“We were having a great run inside the top 10 yesterday, before I ran into some problems, initially with my dash going out then getting taken out at T10 by someone who had absolutely no reason to be there. It’s frustrating because we were having a solid run and likely would have enjoyed a strong finish. That damage kept me out of the second race, unfortunately. We need to dust ourselves off and go again at the Indy GP.”
WHAT THE DRIVERS SAID:
#1 Christian Rasmussen
Round 3 – P2; Round 4 – P1
“Very happy getting my first win in Indy Pro. It was great giving it back to the team. I think they really deserve this win after getting the car near perfect for both here and Barber. I’m now only a few points behind the leader. Looking to build on this momentum and hopefully get a lot more wins the rest of the season.”
#5 Wyatt Brichacek
Round 3 – P8; Round 4 – DNF
“Always an eventful time at St. Petersburg. Started off the weekend with a pair of 8th places in qualifying. Finished the first race where we started, and unfortunately got taken out on lap one after making up a few positions in Race 2. We have good speed just need to focus up on qualifying. Looking forward to the Indy GP in a few weeks.”
The Road to Indy series returns to action in three weeks’ time for the Indy GP at the famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway, May 13–15. Fans can follow all of the action from the first triple of the season live via Road to Indy TV.