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GP3 racer Jack Harvey will test for leading Indy Lights outfit Schmidt Peterson Motorsports next week as he looks to carve out a future career in IndyCar.
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..and yet another talented British driver [probably] runs out of money in Europe before heading to the MRTI.
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Nice. A very solid racer.
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A Racing Steps Foundation driver in the U.S.A. Have they done that before?Comment
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No, but it wouldn't cost them any more than GP3 for a season. Probably less now that there are only 3 ovals.Originally posted by Bezzen View PostComment
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I think as long as the Road to Indy continues to usher junior drivers up the ranks through their scholarship program I think many foreign junior drivers will also make the plunge across seas. I think for many European driver the biggest step is not joining the series itself but moving over here to the United States for the long term. I remember Neel Jani speaking of this when he was looking for a Champ Car ride and he said the biggest thing was just picking him up his things and going overseas for an extended time.
I welcome such top talent to the states and I like that he's willing to go to Indy Lights first instead of trying to buy his way in an Indycar seat."In IndyCar, no one makes money. It's just great, pure racing." - Sebastien BourdaisComment
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Career Highlights:
2009 - 7th in FBMW Europe
2010 - 2nd in FBMW Europe - 7 wins, 8 poles
2011 - 9th in British F3 - 1 win
2012 - British F3 Champion - 7 wins
2013 - 5th in GP3 - 2 wins
If he comes he would be one of the most accomplished drivers to come to Indy Lights in a long time and immediately one of the favorites for the championship in an SPM car. Considering how much experience he has, he's also only 20 years old!Comment
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Conor Daly is raising the profile of Indy Lights worldwide by his performances, IMO."It takes a special level of incompetance to make a schedule this terrible. America is possibly the greatest country in the world overall for tracks. To make a bad schedule in America takes effort. A special kind of effort. A kind of effort that only IndyCar could come up with."Comment
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Careful, we did this last year with Oli Webb and this year with Hawksworth. Let's get him in the car first before we crown him.Originally posted by drdisque View Post"It takes a special level of incompetance to make a schedule this terrible. America is possibly the greatest country in the world overall for tracks. To make a bad schedule in America takes effort. A special kind of effort. A kind of effort that only IndyCar could come up with."Comment
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Hawksworth came to Indy Lights through Star Mazda and I was pretty adamant that I thought his Star Mazda title was more car than driver. Hawksworth was also pretty good this year - 3 wins plus 3 more podiums, including winning your first Indy Lights race, isn't too shabby.
Oli Webb didn't have quite the resume that Harvey does - 3rd in British F3 in 2010, backmarker in Formula Renault 3.5 in 2011, mediocre Formula Renault and FBMW driver before that.
Also, I said "one of" the favorites, not THE favorite. If say, Gabby Chaves is back in another SPM car, I'd probably give Chaves the edge.Last edited by drdisque; 11-18-2013, 06:35 PM.Comment
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I'm not sure if it's as much Conor Daly as it is the Mazda Road to Indy and Indycar. There's an excitement about Indycar that I think is slowly being known across the pond even though it is a spec chassis series. The depth of the field and challenge of the series is probably has high as it's been for a while. In the Mazda Road to Indy there are rewards to doing well in each part of the ladder and it's been proven that it does help junior drivers move up. All this, including the fact that it's cheaper to race in American open wheel racing, makes it very tempting for any driver that has skill but doesn't have enough money to move up.Originally posted by ptclaus98 View Post"In IndyCar, no one makes money. It's just great, pure racing." - Sebastien BourdaisComment
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One thing about Harvey that makes him stand out a bit from a whole lot of junior drivers is his consistency (spelling?). He hardly ever DNF's and he was only outside of the top 10 once in the races he finished in his rookie season in GP3. With a grid of 26+ cars with banzai moves going on left, right and center that speaks volumes.Comment
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I think that the buzz created by street racing in addition to the prestige of the Indy 500 is starting to get noticed by corporate decision makers around the world. It would not surprise me if some of the financial backers for these young foreign drivers are looking at the Indycar series as a better investment than hanging out in European junior series with almost no chance for a F1 seat. Street racing events are just pure fun..period. The cities really pour it on to make these events special and it shows.. BTW, we have two cars that just need money. Euros will pay the bills just as easily as dollars
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With the current exchange rates the euros might be better.Originally posted by FM47 View PostEuros will pay the bills just as easily as dollarsComment
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true thatComment
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