Elkhart Lake, Wis. – In an unbelievable drive from the back of the grid, Danial Frost won the opening round of the 2020 Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires at Road America Friday.
Frost set the pace with the fastest practice time on Thursday and solidified his speed by qualifying on pole by .3 seconds. Unfortunately, a technical oversight nullified his lap time, and he was placed at the back of the field to start the first race.
Knowing his No. 68 DEN-JET car was fast, the 18-year-old made it his mission to fight back to the front, and by lap two, he had already flown up to fourth position. As the laps ticked by, Frost pushed on, and on a last lap shootout, he overtook Devlin DeFrancesco just before the checkers in a thrilling side-by-side victory.
Frost started second for Race 2 and finished the final stint of the weekend with another podium finish in third place, putting him six points ahead in the driver’s championship.
“Coming into qualifying, we managed to get the car on pole, but with some technical difficulties, we were sent to the back of pack for the first race,” said Frost. “In Race 1, we knew we had to charge ahead and take some risks, and we were rewarded with first place which I am very excited and happy about.”
“We started second for Race 2, and it didn’t really go as planned, but we still pulled off a podium,” continued Frost. “There was one mistake I made that caused me to lose a spot, so I’m a little disappointed about that, but it is what it is, and racing is a long, long sport so you have to focus on the big picture instead. That being said, I’m really happy that we got a first and third this weekend, and I think we are in a pretty good shape for the championship. We have a six point lead right now, and we are on the right path for the rest of the year. I’m super proud of the team and myself for what we accomplished this weekend. We will keep pushing, and hopefully we can repeat this result at Mid-Ohio next.”
Teammate Antoine Comeau started the weekend with the sixth fastest time in the first official test session putting in a lap time of 2:01.7333 and setting a great pace for himself out of the gate. Later that day and into the morning, multiple rainstorms hit the Wisconsin track, creating damp conditions for qualifying. The wet track was less than ideal for Comeau, but he still managed to take the ninth fastest time in his No. 3 ACR/Eastern car. However, the rookie was moved back two starting positions after failing to recognize a yellow flag in qualifying.
The sun eventually came out and dried up the track, and in Round 1, Comeau gained three positions during the 15-lap race and finished eighth. For Round 2, Comeau started 10th and once again moved up three spots to finish seventh. With two solid finishes in the opening rounds, the Canadian left the weekend sitting eighth in the championship.
“I think overall, we had a pretty solid weekend,” said Comeau. “The improvements we’ve been working on this year have paid off, and I’m going to keep striving to improve during the season. The direction we are going in is really good, and I’m looking forward to getting to the next round at Mid-Ohio. Everyone on the team did a great job this weekend. It was a phenomenal start to the season, and I’m excited to see what is in store for the rest of the year.”
Through the highs and lows of the weekend, Turn 3 Motorsport persevered with focus and intent, and the team is contently lying second in the team standings after the opening round of the 2020 Indy Pro 2000 Championship.
“I’m extremely proud of what we achieved as a team in our first race weekend of the season,” said Team Owner Peter Dempsey. “Expanding to two cars meant we had to grow as a team, and I really feel we have a great group of people working with us and also two great drivers. Danial and Antoine did an outstanding job, and we started off this season very strongly.”
“Unfortunately, after Danial did a phenomenal lap in qualifying, we had a technical oversight that sent him to the back of the grid,” continued Dempsey. “I’ve been part of the Road to Indy for 12 years now, and his drive in the first race was one of the best I’ve seen. He really redeemed himself and the team after qualifying. He did a solid job in the second race, too, and I’m very impressed with how he managed that race. Antoine did a really good job finishing both races in the top 10 which gives him a great foundation to built on heading into Mid-Ohio. A special thanks to all the crew and the team for making the weekend as successful as it was. Now we turn our focus to preparing for Mid-Ohio.”
Up next on the schedule are back to back race weekends at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course July 29-30 and August 7-9.