St. Petersburg, Fla. – Will Owen will start off his rookie season in the Pro Mazda Championship presented by Cooper Tires this weekend at the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, he will be behind the wheel of the #23 AMR Juncos Racing machine.  

Owen returns to the track after a successful first outing in his Pro Mazda car during the Cooper Tires Winterfest where the young Colorado native impressed the MRTI paddock by capturing two podiums and one pole position, and instantly became a threat for victories among this highly competitive grid. 

The 20-year-old driver has been climbing through the Mazda Road to Indy ladder and will make his second start at the tricky St. Pete street circuit, after competing last year in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda. 

During the off-season Owen has had to balance being a full time student at Texas Christian University in Forth Worth, while carrying on with strict training, testing and simulator routines in preparation for his 2015 attack on the championship.  The student-racer will have the support of the Juncos Racing team, which captured the series championship in 2014 and for this year has once again proven that they will be a serious contender for the crown. 

In 2014 Owen made a big impression within the IndyCar community after taking his first career victory at the Inaugural Grand Prix of Indianapolis, and also scored multiple top-10s during his rookie year.  

Will Owen, Driver, #23 Juncos Racing /Pro Mazda/Cooper Tires: “Well, it's finally time. After the Winterfest and all the preparation before that it's time to go get some championship points.  This event has a lot different feel than the Winterfest because now we are doing everything for real. The results really matter and the pressure has escalated a lot for me. I will learn how to better cope with it the more I race.

"Having a successful Winterfest has got me so much more excited for St Pete because I know I have the ability to run in the front of the pack.  Pro Mazda is a big step up from last year but I feel more than ready.  It is going to be challenging driving the new car on a street course for the first time, mostly because we have such limited track time.  I am ready to perform though and with the help of Juncos, Speed Group, and AMR we have the ability to do well this weekend.  I have learned that you have to keep your expectations open though because anything can happen in racing!”

For more information and up to the minute updates, images, and information you can follow Will at www.facebook.com/williamowenracing, www.twitter.com/wowen23, www.instagram.com/wowen23. 

About Will Owen:

The Denver native now resides in Fort Worth and is a full time student at Texas Christian University (TCU) where he is currently pursuing a Bachelors of Business Administration Finance.

He began karting in 2010 at the age of 15 and quickly developed a passion for kart racing.  After completing his first year racing local club races at the Track at Centennial, his home kart track, he developed a relationship with Brandon and Eric Jones of Kartsport North America and began competing in regional and national races.  He quickly gained speed and racing experience over the next couple of years. 

He has competed in the Rotax Challenge of the Americas, Florida Winter Tour, SKUSA Supernationals and many other series. He competed in a large number of races in 2011 and 2012 to gain vital experience he missed from starting karting later than most drivers.  In 2012, Owen competed in 22 karting events including national, regional and local series earning a total of eight wins and several podium finishes.  Most recently he was ranked 20th in the e-karting news Tag Senior national rankings. 

Wanting to continue his racing career, he began testing in a Formula Mazda with Moses Smith of Texas Autosports late in 2012.  Owen enjoyed the transition into open wheel racecars and over the course of the USF2000 season, he achieved four top-10 finishes, including one win at the Indy Road Course.  In 2015 Owen moved up to the Pro Mazda Championship presented by Cooper Tires with Juncos Racing where he will take on his biggest challenge yet.