Ayrton Houk: Off to a Great Start

A new Sparco suit for the new season (Gavin Baker photos).

McCORDSVILLE, Ind. – The 2025 racing season is off to a great start for me and the brand new Benchmark Autosport team. After a solid debut in the USF Pro Championships Presented by Continental Tire USF2000 series last year, where I finished 11th in the standings and earned a best finish of fourth, I’m excited to be back for my second season; this time with a new team set up by my father, Kevin Houk.

After my rookie season, I’m feeling more confident and ready for the challenges ahead. Benchmark Autosport has partnered with Don Conner of DC Autosport, who has been instrumental in helping get the team off the ground. With his support and the team’s commitment to building a competitive program, we’re ready to make some noise this year.

Spring Training was productive for us as a new team.

Our preparations kicked off with a solid test at NOLA Motorsports Park in mid-February as part of the YACademy Winter Series. It was a great way to shake off the winter rust, and I felt like I was able to get a good feel for the car and work on our setup. We had a lot of on-track time to try different setups and really focus on getting the car dialed in.

We returned to NOLA Motorsports Park a couple of weeks later for the USF Pro Championships Series’ Spring Training test. We got some laps in and the team worked out some mechanical bugs. Unfortunately, the second day of testing was cut short due to rain, but overall, it was a productive couple of days.

We met tons of excited fans at the Party in the Park.

Then we headed to the first race of the season, the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in conjunction with the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. I was honored to have been invited to represent the USF2000 series at the Party in the Park, the kick-off event to the weekend of racing in St. Pete. It was awesome to meet some fans and make new connections with people in the racing world. The energy around the Grand Prix was incredible, and I couldn’t wait to get on track and start racing.

The first two rounds of the USF2000 provided a fantastic experience. In Race 1, I started P15 and made my way up to finish P9. It was a solid result. Race 2 was a bit more challenging, as I started from P13 and finished in the same position. Despite that, it was a great start to the season. I’m thrilled with how the team performed, and happy to have brought the car back in one piece from the concrete canyon! A top-10 finish in the opening race was a big step forward, and it sets us up well for the rest of the year.

Racing hard on the Streets of St. Petersburg.

Now that St. Pete is behind us, we’re looking forward to the next rounds of the USF Pro Championships at NOLA Motorsports Park in April. I’m really excited about the opportunity to race there again, as it’ll give us a chance to show what the team and I are capable of. We’ve got a lot of momentum going into the next races, and I’m confident we’ll be able to take another step forward.

I’m incredibly grateful to be a part of Benchmark Autosport. The team is focused on building something special, and I’m excited to see where the rest of the year takes us. Thank you for all the support; we’re just getting started! Keep an eye on us as we head into the rest of the season.
-Ayrton