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  indypro 2000 series  usf20000 series road to indyUSF JUNIORS

USF Pro  2000 Championship

USF Pro Championships Presented by Continental Tire is an evolution of the Road to Indy, one of the most successful driver development programs in the world. Comprised of USF Pro 2000 Presented by Continental Tire, USF2000 Presented by Continental Tire and USF Juniors Presented by Continental Tire

www.usfpro2000.com

 

 

USF JUNIORS

USF JUNIORS Championships Presented by Continental Tire is an evolution of the Road to Indy, one of the most successful driver development programs in the world. Comprised of USF Pro 2000 Presented by Continental Tire, USF2000 Presented by Continental Tire and USF Juniors Presented by Continental Tire

usfjuniors.com.

 

 
 

USF 2000 Championship

USF 2000 Championships Presented by Continental Tire is an evolution of the Road to Indy, one of the most successful driver development programs in the world. Comprised of USF Pro 2000 Presented by Continental Tire, USF2000 Presented by Continental Tire and USF Juniors Presented by Continental Tire

www.usf2000.com

 
 

gavin baker

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Sebastian Garzon raced to a second successive USF2000 Presented by Continental Tire victory in today’s Andersen Interior Contracting Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. Whereas on Friday he won convincingly from the pole, today, following the NTT INDYCAR SERIES headline event, the 16-year–old from Neiva, Colombia, had to come from behind to sweep the weekend and ensure an almost perfect start to the season for his DEForce Racing team.


 

Garzon’s triumph came in the 250th race since Andersen Promotions reinstated USF2000 in 2010 – at the same venue – following a three-year hiatus.


 

Eddie Beswick, from Sydney, Australia, finished second for Pabst Racing after starting from the pole, while last year’s USF Juniors champion Leonardo Escorpioni finished a fine third for the second race in a row for Zanella Racing. Brazilian Escorpioni, from Windermere, Fla., also claimed an additional championship point after securing the fastest lap of the race on the 20th and final lap.


 

Results


 

The grid for today’s second leg of the doubleheader event was determined either by each driver’s second fastest lap during the lone qualifying session on Friday morning or their best lap from Race One. Beswick claimed his maiden Continental Tire Pole Award by virtue of his qualifying effort, while the next seven on the grid owed their positions to the opening race with Beswick’s fellow Aussie teammate Brad Majman on the outside of the front row and Garzon sharing row two with fellow Florida-based Brazilian Joao Vergara.


 

Unlike on Friday, the initial start today was clean, at least at the front of the field with Beswick maintaining his advantage into Turn One while Garzon swept past Majman into second. There was contact further down the order, however, which ensured an early full-course caution. Cruelly, Exclusive Autosport teammates Anthony Martella, from Woodbridge, Ont., Canada, and Evan Cooley, from Mokena, Ill., both once again failed to complete the first lap – Martella due to a mechanical problem, while Cooley was eliminated following contact with Callahan Peter (JHDD powered by ECR), from Fishers, Ind., who was later penalized for his role in the incident. Peter also will serve a three-place grid penalty in the next race.


 

Yet another Exclusive Autosport driver, Connor Aspley, from O’Fallon, Mo., stopped before the green flag waved again to ensure another brief interruption, but the final 12 laps were clean.


 

Garzon swept past Beswick at the restart, then completed an impressive move under braking on the outside line to take a lead he was never to relinquish.


 

Beswick’s slight loss of momentum allowed Escorpioni to pounce at Turn Three, but Beswick, to his credit, lost little time in fighting back. Two laps later, the Australian maneuvered his way to the inside of Escorpioni at the same corner to retake second place under braking.


 

Escorpioni kept the pressure on his more experienced rival but had to settle for third, while Majman ensured a strong start to his campaign with another fourth-place finish.


 

Brady Golan, from Austin. Texas, capped a fine weekend for DEForce Racing by taking fifth ahead of Vergara and VRD Racing teammates Ryan Giannetta, from Redondo Beach, Calif., and Teddy Musella, from Orlando, Fla., who exchanged places on the final lap.


 

Canada’s Lucas Nanji (Pabst Racing) and Ayrton Cahan (Exclusive Autosport), from Santa Fe, N.M., rounded out the top 10.


 

The Tilton Hard Charger Award was claimed by JHDD powered by ECR’s Erik Holm, from Orebro, Sweden, who rebounded well after failing to start Friday’s race following a heavy crash in practice. Holm climbed from 24th on the grid to 16th in his very first car race.


 

David and Ernesto Martinez of DEForce Racing pocketed another PFC Award as the winning car owners.


 

The USF2000 championship will now take a short hiatus, which includes a couple of official series tests, before reconvening for a tripleheader event once again in support of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Grand Prix road course on May 7-9.


 

Provisional championship points after two of 18 races:

1. Sebastian Garzon, 63

2. Leonardo Escorpioni, 45

3. Joao Vergara, 40

4. Brad Majman, 39

5. Lucas Nanji, 29

6. Ryan Giannetta, 28

7. Eddie Beswick, 27

8. Wian Boshoff, 22

9. Teddy Musella, 22

10. Gabriel Cahan, 21


 

Sebastian Garzon (#12 Orsolon Racing/Café de Colombia-DEForce Racing Tatuus USF-22): “I started third and at the start I got second. Then there were two restarts and in the second restart I managed how to be close to P1. In Turn One I passed around the outside and then I was just trying to manage my place and learn the track because it was super greasy after INDYCAR. I am super happy to get a second win and super happy to be leading the championship.”


 

Eddie Beswick (#23 Next Level Racing-Pabst Racing Tatuus USF-22): “The race was good. Probably not as nice in the car balance as what I would have liked to have, but still obviously it’s good to come away with a trophy. I was slightly disappointed not to convert the pole position to a win, but still really happy to get my first podium with Pabst Racing.”


 

Leonardo Escorpioni (#55 USF Pro Championships/Qwilt/Peer 1-Zanella Racing Tatuus USF-22): “I had a good race. I made some moves at the start. We were able to get to P3 on the first lap and then after that I was just trying to get to the lead. I got to second and then I went for a pass in Turn Four, and it just didn't work out. I came back down to third and that's where we stayed for the rest of the race. We were the quickest car on track, and I'm really happy with the result. Our first ever race here in USF2000 for myself and the team, so not a bad way to start.”


 

 

 

Garzon Perfect in St. Petersburg USF2000 Opener

gavin baker

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Colombian teenager Sebastian Garzon drove a perfect race for DEForce Racing late this morning in the Foundation Building Materials Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. Garzon led throughout the 20-lap race around the unforgiving 1.8-mile, 14-turn street circuit to grasp an early lead in the USF2000 Presented by Continental Tire points standings and an opportunity to win a scholarship valued at $409,816 to graduate onto the next step of the USF Pro Championships ladder, USF Pro 2000, in 2027.


 

Florida-based Brazilian and USF Juniors graduate Joao Vergara impressed by taking second place for VRD Racing, while fellow countryman and 2025 USF Juniors champion Leonardo Escorpioni capped an excellent USF2000 debut for Zanella Racing in third.


 

Results


 

Garzon, 16, who claimed a fourth-place finish last year during his debut weekend in St. Petersburg, made his intentions clear in qualifying earlier this morning by grasping his first Continental Tire Pole Award. The Colombian was flanked on the grid by Canada’s Anthony Martella (Exclusive Autosport). The Pabst Racing Australian pair of Eddie Beswick and Brad Majman filled the second row of a 22-car field after a pair of JHDD powered by ECR cars were unable to take the start following incidents earlier in the day.


 

Unsurprisingly, there was drama at Turn One on the opening lap. The first corner often courts disaster as the field attempts to make a sharp right turn at the end of a long main straightaway which comprises a runway of the Alfred Whitted Municipal Airport, and this year was no exception. Garzon played it cool at the start, but behind, Martella lost control and spun, which sent the pack in all directions as drivers sought to avoid contact. Unfortunately, Martella’s Exclusive Autosport teammate, Evan Cooley, from Mokena, Ill., was unable to do so, and ended up perched atop Martella’s engine cover.


 

Vergara, who started fifth, emerged from the chaos in third, followed by Escorpioni, who qualified seventh, then the two Pabst cars of Beswick and Majman. Beswick, though, had sustained damage and was forced to the pit lane at the end of the next lap. He resumed in 20th and last.


 

The race was restarted after a couple of laps under yellow, after which it ran cleanly until its conclusion. Garzon gradually increased his pace through the first 11 laps, by which time his advantage had increased to over two seconds. He then controlled the field to masterfully secure a well-earned maiden victory.


 

Vergara and Escorpioni remained closely matched in second and third, reprising some of their tussles from last season, while Majman also was part of the fight before slipping back a little in the closing stages.


 

Majman still finished fourth, comfortably ahead of Pabst Racing teammate Lucas Nanji, from Montreal, Que., Canada, who was participating in only his second ever race weekend following an Italian F4 event last year at Monza.


 

An intense scrap over sixth place was led initially by VRD Racing rookie Colin Aitken, from Jacksonville Beach, Fla., who came under intense pressure from DEForce Racing’s Brady Golan.


 

Contact between the pair on Lap 15 allowed Exclusive Autosport’s Gabriel Cahan, from Santa Fe, N.M., through, only for South African Wian Boshoff (Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing Development) to execute a fine pass for the position at Turn One with two laps remaining.


 

Boshoff ultimately finished sixth ahead of VRD Racing’s Ryan Giannetta, from Redondo Beach, Calif., who sliced past Cahan on the final lap. Aitken and another debutant, ENVE Motorsports’ Wesley Gundler, from Holly Springs, N.C., completed the top 10.


 

Australian Liam Loiacono also drove impressively for the JHDD powered by ECR team following a fuel pump failure in qualifying which relegated him to the back of the grid. Loiacono, another USF Juniors graduate, earned the Tilton Hard Charger Award after rising from 22nd to 11th.


 

The first PFC Award of the new season went to David and Ernesto Martinez of DEForce Racing as the winning car owners.


 

The second race of the opening weekend of the season, the Andersen Interior Contracting Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, will see a green flag soon after the conclusion of the opening NTT INDYCAR SERIES race of the season at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday.


 

Provisional championship points after 1 of 18 races:

1. Sebastian Garzon, 32

2. Joao Vergara, 25

3. Leonardo Escorpioni, 22

4. Brad Majman, 20

5. Lucas Nanji, 17

6. Wian Boshoff, 15

7. Ryan Ginanetta, 14

8. Gabriel Cahan, 13

9. Colin Aitken, 12

10. Wesley Gundler, 11


 

Sebastian Garzon (#12 Orsolon Racing/Café Colombia-DEForce Racing Tatuus USF-22): “The beginning of the race was a little bit difficult because I almost went into a crash with the top two, but I could avoid it. Then I was P1 the whole race. I maintained my pace and got away from second and third and won the race. It was really good.”


 

Joao Vergara (#3 Cross/Carecode/Son Boronat/Arai-VRD Racing Tatuus USF-22): “It was a pretty decent race. I mean, of course I wanted to come out with the win but I think Sebastian was a little bit too fast today for us. I came in with a strong mentality. A couple days ago my grandpa passed away, so I wanted to do this for him and I felt he was with me today. He had the best view of the race so I'm happy to have gotten a good result for him, and good points in the championship. We'll move on from here and we'll just keep building and building.”


 

Leonardo Escorpioni (#55 USF Pro Championships/Qwilt/Peer 1-Zanella Racing Tatuus USF-22): “It was a good race. I just tried to stay clean. There's not much to do after the start. It's hard to make moves here, it's very tight. So I just tried to stay clean, finish the race and we came out P3. It was good.”

 

 

 

GAVIN BAKER

PALMETTO, Fla. – USF2000 Presented by Continental Tire kicks off a brand-new campaign this weekend on the unforgiving streets of St. Petersburg, Fla., in support of the opening round of a new NTT INDYCAR SERIES season. As has become traditional, two 20-lap races will make up the event, with the second leg of the Foundation Building Materials/Andersen Interior Contracting Grand Prix representing a milestone 250th race since the series was reinstated in 2010 following a three-year hiatus.


 

This will be the 17th consecutive year that USF2000 has raced on the 1.8-mile, 14-turn temporary circuit comprised of downtown streets and one of the runways at the adjacent Albert Whitted Airport. Coincidentally, the very first race of the modern era also was held at St. Petersburg and was won by Andretti Autosport’s Sage Karam merely three weeks after his 15th birthday.


 

Other previous St. Pete race winners who later progressed to the NTT INDYCAR SERIES include Florida natives Spencer Pigot (three times in 2011 and 2012), RC Enerson (2014), Oliver Askew (2017) and Kyle Kirkwood (2018). Current INDY NXT competitors Myles Rowe, Lochie Hughes, Nikita Johnson and Max Garcia also have won USF2000 races in St. Petersburg.


 

USF2000 is the middle step on the USF Pro Championships ladder. It stands between USF Juniors, which was introduced in 2022 as the entry point to the professional ranks of auto racing, and USF Pro 2000, the final stepping stone to INDY NXT and the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. USF Pro Championships is unique in the world of auto racing in providing scholarships for its championship-winning drivers to graduate onto the next level.


 

With the top four contenders from 2025 all graduating to USF Pro 2000 this season and several other leading contenders also moving on to new pastures, the door has been left wide open for someone to step up and claim a top prize of $409,816 to grease the path toward USF Pro 2000 in 2027.


 

Entry List


 

Nevertheless, defending champion team Exclusive Autosport boasts an extremely strong roster which includes Evan Cooley, from Mokena, Ill., who placed fifth in the 2025 title-chase and was fastest in the Fall Combine post-season test at Indianapolis last October, and Canadian Anthony Martella, who finished seventh after scoring a dominant victory at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park with JHDD.


 

Sebastian Garzon and Eddie Beswick also will be back after placing among the top 10 in 2025. Colombian Garzon, 16, who, like Cooley, impressed last year in St. Petersburg with a fourth-place finish, returns with DEForce Racing and has claimed early bragging rights after posting the fastest time among those who attended the recent Spring Training pre-season test at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Garzon, incidentally, is coached by 2023 USF2000 champion Simon Sikes.


 

Beswick, a former Formula Ford champion in his native Australia, has joined Pabst Racing which seeks to bounce back after winning the championship in both 2023 and 2024.


 

Other likely contenders will include the top three USF Juniors protagonists from last year, Leonardo Escorpioni, Liam Loiacono and Joao Vergara.


 

Escorpioni, a Florida-based Brazilian, was a clear championship winner with six wins to his name. He graduates to the next level in partnership once again with Zanella Racing, which will make its bow at this level. Australian Loiacono makes the step with Jay Howard’s team, which proudly boasts a fresh alignment with NTT INDYCAR SERIES team Ed Carpenter Racing, while Vergara, another Florida-based Brazilian, graduates with VRD Racing, which won the USF2000 Teams Championship in 2025.


 

A strong entry of 23 cars also includes the top three FRP F1600 Championship Series contenders from last year: brothers Gabriel and Ayrton Cahan, from Santa Fe, N.M., who make their debut with Exclusive Autosport, and Wesley Gundler with the new ENVE Motorsports team. Incredibly, all three were blanketed by a mere two points following their 20-race campaign.


 

The schedule for USF2000 will comprise practice, qualifying and the first race on Friday, with the green flag set for 11:30 a.m. EST. Race two will start after the headline event at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday.


 

Complete coverage can be found on the free USF Pro Championships App, YouTube channel and series website, usf2000.com.

 

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