INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Turn 3 Motorsport showed tremendous speed at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park during Round 8 of the USF Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires last week, placing the #1 USF Pro Championships/Priority Payments Systems car of Michael d’Orlando fastest in two of the three pre-race practice sessions and second in the other by just .05 seconds. Unfortunately, that top level speed didn’t carry over into qualifying for the young American; although d’Orlando jumped to provisional pole in his single car qualifying run, the time wasn’t quick enough to hold onto the top spot, resulting in a P7 starting position.
d'Orlando had a great start in Friday night’s Cooper Tires Freedom 90, battling forward early on and gaining two positions on the difficult to pass .686-mile oval. As the race went on, the USF2000 Champion stuck with the lead pack and put out quick lap times but ultimately couldn’t find an opportunity to move up further, eventually bringing home a strong sixth-place finish and solid points for the USF Pro 2000 championship.
#1 Michael d'Orlando // USF Pro 2000 USF Pro Championships / Priority Payments Systems / Focused Project Management / UFC Gym Mamaroneck / Rising Star Racing
“This weekend at IRP was quite interesting to say the least,” said d’Orlando. “The Turn 3 team and I put together a fast car, a car that I could consistently be the fastest with. Though misfortune struck again in qualifying, putting us with a P7 starting position for the race. I gave it everything I had in the race, but the third win in a row wasn’t in the cards for us today. Let’s go get ‘em at Road America.”
Teammate Jonathan Browne carried his momentum from the last round in Indianapolis – where he earned two back to back fourth place finishes – into the oval event at IRP, putting on a worthy performance on the challenging circuit. After qualifying P8, only .06 seconds off from teammate Michael d’Orlando, the Irishman set his sights on another top five finish in the 90-lap race.
Misfortune struck for Browne on Lap 20 when he tapped the wall and damaged his car just enough to throw off the balance; however, the 22-year-old demonstrated skill in holding on to the #2 car throughout the remainder of the race, gaining a position and finishing on the lead lap to take P7 at the checkers. The result also awarded Browne enough points to tie for sixth in the current championship standings and continue to lead the team in the driver points.
#2 Jonathan Browne // USF Pro 2000 JB Racing / Motorsport Ireland / CRPS Awareness
“We had a solid run at the Freedom 90,” said Browne. “We qualified in P8 which gave me a platform to build on in the race. Early in the race, I tapped the wall and it knocked the car’s balance out a little bit. That made it tough out there, but I adapted to it in the coming laps and was able to bring it home in P7. A huge thanks to the Turn 3 crew as always. The target is set on Road America next!”
Avon, Indiana native Jackson Lee kicked off the weekend by claiming the sixth fastest time in first official test session, only .3 seconds off of teammate d’Orlando’s top spot. Qualifying was also a success for Lee, yielding a P10 starting position for the 20-year-old and putting all three of Turn 3 Motorsport’s cars in the top ten starting positions.
For Lee and much of the field, the physicality of 90 laps on racing on the tricky oval presented the biggest challenge, but he overcame the rigorous track to finish the race and bring the #47 IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center/Browning Chapman/Prime 47 car home in a well-earned P12.
#47 Jackson Lee // USF Pro 2000 IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center / Race for RP / Prime 47 / Browning Chapman
“Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park was a great learning experience for me this year,” said Lee. “This is by far the most physical race on the calendar, and it was certainly a challenge as the race progressed. It was a great opportunity to run laps and figure out oval racing in the USF Pro 2000 car. Now it’s time to switch my focus to one of my favorite tracks on the schedule, Road America. It’s a place where I’ve had great results in the past, and I am looking forward to heading to Wisconsin to show what I can do.”
I’m super proud of the team’s efforts all weekend long,” said Team Owner Peter Dempsey. “We were unable to execute when needed this weekend, and that really hurt us. You can’t afford to be back mid-pack at this track, and that’s where we found ourselves. I know the drivers gave it their all, and I’m proud of them for hanging in there and getting some solid results. We will look at this as a team and focus on trying to be there when it counts at Road America. We had a pole position and a second place finish last year with Josh Green, so hopefully we can have positive results the next time out.”
The USF Pro Championships will return to road course racing at the fan favorite Road America circuit in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin for Rounds 8 and 9 from June 15-18.