Candidates Await Results After the Selection Process Moves Forward

Indianapolis, Ind. (August 17, 2013) – High octane and high stress was the theme of the recent INDYCAR weekend at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The action began on Friday with a selection of Team USA Scholarship candidates being interviewed by a prestigious panel of judges and concluded on Sunday afternoon when 2003 scholarship winner Charlie Kimball claimed his first-ever IZOD IndyCar Series victory aboard Chip Ganassi Racing’s No. 83 NovoLog FlexPen Dallara DW12.

Eight young hopefuls had been tabbed from a variety of racing series: Joey Bickers, 21, from Moorpark, Calif.; Jake Eidson, 18, from Littleton, Colo.; Sean Rayhall, 18, from Winston, Ga.; Skylar Robinson, 17, from Augusta, Ga.; Elliott Skeer, 18, from Carlsbad, Calif.; Madison Snow, 17, from Pleasant Grove, Utah.; Adrian Starrantino, 18, from Simi Valley, Calif.; and Aaron Telitz, 21, from Birchwood, Wis. All were anxiously seeking to follow in the footsteps of  an illustrious list who have secured scholarship honors since the program’s inception in 1990.

“Being a part of the Team USA Scholarship is quite the honor,” said Starrantino, who is currently second in the F1600 Championship Series with three wins driving for Bryan Herta Autosport. “Looking at the list of past scholarship winners and knowing what most all of them have achieved is a good feeling to know that I am going through the same program.”

One-by-one each candidate stepped out of the Pro Mazda/USF2000 series trailer to sit before the panel of judges to carefully answer their questions knowing every response could affect their candidacy. This part of the interviewing process allowed each driver a chance to describe their backgrounds, their racing careers to this point and their future goals.

“Having the chance to interview at Mid-Ohio in front of the well-known judges was an excellent experience and very humbling,” said Rayhall, who leads the Cooper Tires Prototype Lites Championship Powered by Mazda. “I’m looking forward to what is next in the Team USA process.”

The panel of Team USA Scholarship judges represented  a wide array of backgrounds, which allowed them to interview and score the candidates from many different perspectives. The panel included past scholarship winners Bryan Herta, Kimball, J.R. Hildebrand, Joel Miller, Conor Daly, Josef Newgarden, and Spencer Pigot as well as industry leaders Tim Cindric (Penske Racing), Mike Hull (Target Chip Ganassi Racing), John Doonan (Mazda Motorsports), Brad Kettler (Audi Sport), Derrick Walker and Jason Penix (INDYCAR), Dan Andersen (Pro Mazda/ USF2000), Nigel Tuckey (Pelfrey Performance), Dr. Jacques Dallaire (Performance Prime), Jim Leo (PitFit Training), Billy Deakins (Sparco USA), Kelly Jones (RaceCraft1), Indy Lights winner Peter Dempsey, NBC Sports Network TV announcer Leigh Diffey, Townsend Bell and Kevin Lee, and RACER contributor Marshall Pruett.

“I had competed in a few shootouts in the past, but none that had judges of that quality in such high numbers,” said Skeer, who in 2011 was the youngest winner of Mazda’s MX-5 Cup Shootout, at age 17. “The first time I saw the list of judges, I was starstruck by all of the names on it. Not only were the other candidates talented drivers, but all of the judges were highly respected individuals in the racing industry. All in all, it was one of the best nights I’ve ever had at a racetrack. I can’t thank Jeremy Shaw, founder of Team USA Scholarship, and everybody involved in Team USA enough for this opportunity.”

Once the selection process has been completed, two of the contestants will be selected to represent Team USA in England at the Formula Ford Festival and Walter Hayes Trophy Events later this year.