This season has been a rollercoaster trip in lots of points, however right this moment I wish to share some highlights of my 2024 marketing campaign within the USF2000 Introduced by Continental Tire championship.
After rounding out 2023 on a powerful observe by capturing a fourth-place end on the championship finale at Portland, Michael Duncalfe and the Unique Autosport crew agreed to work with me on a restricted finances with the intent to run as many races as potential on this 12 months’s championship.
We skilled some ups and downs within the first few rounds, however the highlights included a powerful drive from seventeenth on the grid to sixth in my first-ever road course occasion in St. Petersburg, stable top-10 tempo at NOLA Motorsports Park and lacking the pole place on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Grand Prix street course by simply 0.08s.
The optimism was nonetheless there, however the funding to proceed was not, so we reluctantly skipped the following two occasions to guage and hopefully recharge for our hometown occasion on the Mid-Ohio Sports activities Automotive Course. It was a strategic choice, albeit a troublesome one, to make sure we have been totally ready for my most anticipated occasion of the season.
Throughout my downtime, I had the chance to rejoin Rice Race Prep, my former championship crew, to compete within the System Race Promotions F1600 occasion at Mid-Ohio. The weekend couldn’t have gone any higher – we achieved a clear sweep, profitable all three races.
Reflecting on this race weekend is bittersweet because it was my final race weekend with crew proprietor Greg Rice who we only in the near past misplaced. He was a fantastic man and a terrific mentor to me. Greg was a winner in each sense of the phrase and a perfectionist in making ready top-notch automobiles. His ardour for the game prolonged past victories; he was devoted to nurturing younger skills like Simon Sikes and myself, serving to us carve out our paths within the racing world. Greg’s legacy lives on by way of each lap we full as we wouldn’t be the place we at the moment are with out him.
Gavin Baker Pictures
In late June, the chance arose to hitch VRD Racing, a high crew within the USF Professional Championships paddock, for Mid-Ohio; I couldn’t flip it down.
There was an abundance of optimism because the weekend started, and whereas the climate proved difficult, we emerged quickest on the check day – a transparent indicator of the tempo we may carry by way of the occasion. The competitors was robust, however I used to be comfortable to be one in every of solely three drivers to qualify among the many high 5 for all three races.
Our performances in races one and two didn’t align with our evident tempo, however there have been moments value celebrating. The quickest lap in race two secured us the pole place for race three, igniting hopes for a powerful end.
It was an incredible race, a real spectacle for followers, and regardless of sustaining slight entrance wing injury, I managed to complete an in depth second behind my teammate, who was in a position to strengthen his bid for the championship crown. Ending the weekend on the rostrum was immensely satisfying and a sworn statement to the crew’s resilience and onerous work. I actually felt like this was the beginning of a brand new chapter in my racing profession.
Even after the encouraging outcomes at Mid-Ohio, finances constraints appeared to dim the probabilities of racing on the streets of Toronto two weeks later, however destiny had different plans. On Tuesday of the occasion, Dan Mitchell, the crew proprietor of VRD Racing, reached out with a suggestion too good to refuse. Due to his assist and the unwavering encouragement from Jeremy Shaw and the Staff USA Scholarship, one other chapter of the season started to unfold. Jeremy has been a beacon of assist all through my profession, and his help was pivotal in making this expertise a actuality.
Gavin Baker Pictures
An impromptu eight-hour drive from Ohio introduced me to Toronto in time for the monitor stroll with the VRD Racing crew. Toronto’s iconic road course, with all its character and challenges was a wholly new expertise for me. The bumps, relentless and unavoidable, added a layer of complexity.
Regardless of the formidable challenges, our true tempo constantly matched a few of the finest, and though the outcomes didn’t replicate this, it validated me specializing in turning laps and gaining expertise. I can’t wait to return to Toronto sooner or later and construct on what I do know now.
As I look again on this season, it’s clear that we’ve navigated by way of highs and lows, every section etched with classes and achievements. From the strategic choice to skip two occasions, the exhilarating podium end at Mid-Ohio, to the spontaneous and memorable race in Toronto made potential by key supporters, it’s been a season of progress and grit.
I wish to take a second to understand the superior backing from my key supporters and sponsors, Airport Electrical Service, Boys & Ladies Membership of Larger Cincinnati and the Staff USA Scholarship who’ve continued to push by way of every occasion in addition to assist me progress all through my profession.
I’m pushing in the direction of the season finale in Portland, so ensure to maintain a watch out for extra thrilling updates as I proceed my journey!
Till subsequent time,
Thomas
About Staff USA Scholarship:
This system has been offering alternatives for proficient American race automotive drivers at an early stage of their careers since 1990. Supporters embrace AERO Sustainable Paint Know-how, Doug Mockett & Firm, the Highway Racing Drivers Membership and SAFEisFAST.com, Chip Ganassi Racing, The Stellrecht Firm, Chris Locke, Josef Newgarden Racing, CoForce, Polecat Coaching Academy, PrattMiller, Dyson Racing, PitFit Coaching, RaceCraft1, Sparco USA, Speedstar Administration and Styled Aesthetic. Earlier scholarship winners embrace Jimmy Vasser, Bryan Herta, Jerry Nadeau, Buddy Rice, Andy Lally, Phil Giebler, A.J. Allmendinger, J.R. Hildebrand, Dane Cameron, Josef Newgarden, Conor Daly, Connor De Phillippi, Spencer Pigot, Trent Hindman, Tristan Nunez, Oliver Askew and Kyle Kirkwood.
For extra data, please go to www.TeamUSAScholarship.org or discover us on Twitter, Fb or Instagram.
