Andretti Autosport Signs Pigot as Second USF2000 National Championship Entry for 2011

Indianapolis, Ind. – Andretti Autosport announced it has signed Spencer Pigot as the team’s second entry in the 2011 USF2000 National Championship. Pigot will pilot the #8 car for Andretti Autosport.

Pigot, a 17-year-old born in Pasadena, Calif. and currently residing in Windermere, Fla., captured the 2010 BFGoodrich/Skip Barber National Presented by Mazda title with three wins, five poles and 11 podium finishes.

Pigot won his first karting championship title at age 10 and took his first national title just one year later. His success continued with several prestigious series and race wins, eventually leading to an entry into the Skip Barber National series as a MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development Driver. Pigot was also named a Team USA Scholarship winner in 2010 and recently competed in the Formula Ford Festival, qualifying on pole for his heat, finishing fourth in the final, and setting fastest race lap.

Sanctioned by INDYCAR, Cooper Tires Presents the USF2000 National Championship Powered by Mazda is one of two series part of both INDYCAR’s Mazda Road to Indy ladder system and the MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development driver program. The 2011 USF2000 season will begin March 17 at Sebring International Raceway in Sebring, Fla.

For more information, please visit www.AndrettiAutosport.com or www.USF2000.com.

MICHAEL ANDRETTI, CHAIRMAN, PRESIDENT AND
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, ANDRETTI AUTOSPORT:
“We’re really excited to have Spencer join us. It’s always great to have a champion from another formula come in to our family, so he’s definitely a proven winner. Now our goal is to get him another championship. Hopefully he’ll be able to get through the ladder system, and hopefully he’ll be doing that with us here at Andretti Autosport.”

J-F THORMANN, EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT AND
CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER, ANDRETTI AUTOSPORT:
“We’re thrilled that we were able to make a deal with Spencer. I think we have a fantastic USF2000 driver lineup with Spencer being a champion of the Skip Barber National Series and Zach Veach returning to the team. To have Spencer joining with his successes in go-karting and with how well he did at the Formula Ford Festival, we’re definitely looking forward to a good year.”

JOHN DOONAN, MAZDASPEED TEAM DEVELOPMENT MANAGER,
MAZDA NORTH AMERICAN OPERATIONS:
“Spencer is an impressive young man, both on and off the track. We were impressed with him when he won the Mazda-Skip Barber karting shootout last year and our appreciation has grown throughout the year. We’re proud to have Spencer as a part of the MAZDASPEED Ladder and Mazda Road to Indy.”

SPENCER PIGOT, DRIVER:
“The opportunity to drive for Michael Andretti is something I didn’t think could happen until much later in my career. It’s an honor to be associated with Andretti Autosport, and I’m really looking forward to driving for the team next year in the USF2000 series. My main goal is to become an IZOD IndyCar driver, so there is no better place for me than with this team. With all of the knowledge and experience of Andretti Autosport, I’m very excited to be a part of the family. I learned a lot last year in the Skip Barber National Championship that prepared me very well for the upcoming season. I have to thank everyone at MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development, Skip Barber and Andretti Autosport for giving me the opportunity to move up to the first step in the Mazda Road to Indy program.”

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About Spencer Pigot
Spencer Pigot, winner of the 2010 Skip Barber National title and Team USA Scholarship, is widely regarded as one of the rising stars in American formula car racing. The Windermere, Fla. native first came to the forefront in 2003, capturing his first karting state championship title at the age of 10. Earning his first national title one year later, Pigot rapidly became a presence in the national karting scene. Over the next four years, he added five more series titles and several prestigious race wins to his resume. In 2009, Pigot first got behind the wheel of a race car with an entry into selected races of the Skip Barber Regional series. As a 15-year-old rookie, he immediately impressed, scoring a victory at the famed Sebring International Raceway road course in only his second-ever Skip Barber race. Continuing his winning ways, the talented American won four of the six races that he contested in the Skip Barber Summer Series, finished on the podium in his Skip Barber National debut, and won his class in an SCCA Club Racing 13-hour endurance race at Virginia International Raceway. The 2009 season also brought a major win in the “Skip Barber Karting Shoot Out”. For more information, please visit www.SpencerPigot.com.

About Andretti Autosport
Based in Indianapolis and led by racing legend Michael Andretti, Andretti Autosport fields multiple entries in the IZOD IndyCar Series. Andretti Autosport also campaigns multiple cars in Firestone Indy Lights, the Star Mazda Championship and in the USF2000 National Championship. The company boasts three IZOD IndyCar Series championships (2004, 2005 and 2007), two Firestone Indy Lights titles (2008 and 2009), one USF2000 championship (2010) and has won the Indianapolis 500 twice (2005 and 2007). For more information, please visit www.AndrettiAutosport.com.

About the Cooper Tires Presents the USF2000 National Championship Powered by Mazda
Many top drivers in the IZOD IndyCar Series and endurance sports car racing honed their skills in F2000, and the Cooper Tires Presents the USF2000 National Championship Powered by Mazda is an important training ground for rising stars. Debuting in 2010, it is the revival of the very popular USF2000 series of 1990 through 2006. Sanctioned by INDYCAR, it is the first step on its Mazda Road to Indy ladder system, preceding Star Mazda and Firestone Indy Lights. It is also part of the prestigious MAZDASPEED Motorsports driver development program. The top driver in the series’ Championship class earns a scholarship package from Mazda valued at $350,000 to help him or her advance to Star Mazda the following season. USF2000 races are contested on road courses, street courses and ovals in order to give the series’ drivers experience on all the different types of tracks they will face as they proceed up the ladder. For more information visit www.USF2000.com.

About Mazda Road to Indy
The Mazda Road to Indy is INDYCAR’s official developmental system consisting of the IZOD IndyCar Series, Firestone Indy Lights, Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear and the Cooper Tires presents the USF2000 National Championship powered by Mazda. Launched in December 2009, it is a defined path for career-minded race drivers who want to compete in the IZOD IndyCar Series and Indianapolis 500.