PITTSBORO, Ind. – The TJ Speed USF Pro 2000 Presented by Continental Tire contingent was back on track in Indiana this past weekend as they battled with a trio of drivers at the short .686-mile Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park. With three drivers looking to fight for podium results, recent race winner Liam Sceats led the way into event weekend with Francesco Pizzi and Bryce Aron, both of whom were making their first USF Pro 2000 starts of the season.

With a test day on Wednesday and an additional pair of test sessions on Thursday, qualifying that evening would set the grid for the Freedom 90 taking place Friday night as part of the Carb Night Classic. Aron, utilizing his experience in the INDY NXT by Firestone series, led the way for TJ Speed on the results sheets locking in the sixth fastest two-lap average in qualifying with Francesco Pizzi in ninth. Sceats, in his first career oval event, was slightly off the pace in qualifying and would start Friday’s wheel-to-wheel action from the 15th position on the grid.

With rain delaying the races until Saturday, the night race moved to daylight and would be the final race on the card Saturday taking place just after noon. Aron would go on to earn the team’s best result finishing fifth, one better than he started in the race that featured only one caution period for an incident in Turn Three. Sceats was the team’s biggest mover, gaining six positions in his oval debut to cross the line in ninth, while Pizzi was forced to retire after only 32 laps due to a mechanical issue.

“Not a bad day to have two drivers who have never raced on an oval -- and one who has not been in the car before -- finish in the top-ten,” explained Tim Neff. “We are looking forward to our next event, the site of our first win as a USF Pro 2000 team in 2023, and we will look to go back-to-back.”

Next up for TJ Speed will be a trip to The Dairy State and Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin as they ready themselves for battle on the 4.014-mile, 14-turn, Road America.