DALLAS, TEXAS — In just the latest example of its commitment to the future of the sport and the Mazda Road to Indy program, M1 Racing has taken a competitor in the Skip Barber Winter Nationals under its wing.
The Dallas-based team that competes in the Pro Mazda Championship Presented by Cooper Tires has not only been scouting for potential future drivers within the Mazda Road to Indy ladder system, but it is investing time and technical expertise to help one of them — 17-year-old Bryson Schutte of Uxbridge, Ontario, Canada.
Schutte will race at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Salinas, Calif., this weekend, and he’ll compete at Sebring International Raceway in Sebring, Fla., at the beginning of April. He has impressive credentials in karting, including third place at the Skip Barber Karting Shootout in 2012. Although he’s just beginning his formula car career he already has five top-five finishes in a Skip Barber formula car, including a third at Sebring last month.
Remi Lanteigne, M1 Racing’s team manager/engineer, has attended several of Schutte’s races in both karting and cars. Schutte was also a guest of M1 Racing last month at Sebring while the team was conducting a test of its lead Pro Mazda driver, Juan Camilo Acosta.
“Getting to spend time with M1 Racing at Sebring was great!” Schutte said. “I met with Remi; the team owner, Paul Mata; the team’s driver coach and with Juan,” he said. “I tried to get all the information that I could get, including tips and tricks that would help me drive the track.
“Remi showed me all sorts of data,” he said. “He also showed me the DartFish system the team uses, which was really cool. It’s a video-synching system, basically. You can see the different lines people take with it, and you can compare yourself to others. We looked at the in-car video and compared that to other people.
“Remi’s experience over the years is really helpful,” Schutte added. “In Skip Barber you can’t make any changes to the cars, so if I have an issue he can tell me how to adjust my driving to compensate for it, and sort of drive around the issue.”
“Bryson is just one of the young drivers that M1 Racing hopes to help,” said Lanteigne. “He’s a talented kid. We believe in the Mazda Road to Indy system, and we’re trying to do our part to reach out to the kids at the lower levels and help them along.
“Bryson is talented; there’s no doubt about it,” Lanteigne added. “We helped him on the technical side, and the fact that he’s now associated with a pro team gives him exposure and value when he’s talking to potential sponsors. We also are trying to educate the parents on how important it is to prepare for what lies ahead, so the transition to the next level will just be a natural transition for them all to take. It’s a way for our team to help nurture some young drivers, give back to the sport, and invest in the sport’s future.”
The personnel of M1 Racing helped many of today’s stars in their formative years. For more information on the team see its website at M1Racing.co. Its Facebook page is at M1 Racing — Pro Mazda, and it can be found on Twitter @M1ProMazda.