Category Archives: Road to Indy

Rasmus Lindh Joins Juncos Racing for 2019 Indy Pro 2000 Season

Indianapolis, Indiana (February 14, 2019) –  Juncos Racing announced today Rasmus Lindh would join the team for the 2019 Indy Pro 2000 Presented by Cooper Tires Championship. Lindh is the first driver announced to the reigning 2018 Indy Pro 2000 (former Pro Mazda) champions line-up.

Rasmus Lindh (Gothenburg, Sweden) made his first appearance with Juncos Racing this past fall at the Chris Griffis Memorial test at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

“I’m very happy to have the opportunity to go to the next step in the Road to Indy program with a championship winning team,” said Lindh. “I really enjoyed working with Juncos Racing this past fall, so I am happy that we are back together for the 2019 season.”

Lindh joins Juncos Racing after an impressive rookie season in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship where he earned five podiums and three poles. The young Swedish native would go on to claim second in the championship.

Team Owner Ricardo Juncos said, “We are very happy to announce our first Indy Pro 2000 driver for the 2019 season. Rasmus (Lindh) has a lot of talent which he showed us this past fall during the Chris Griffis test. We are very excited to begin our work with him and are looking forward to another successful season. I would like to thank Rasmus, his family, and sponsors for the opportunity to have him a part of our Indy Pro 2000 program.”

About Juncos Racing

Juncos Racing is a championship-winning team currently fielding multiple cars in the Pro Mazda Championship, the Indy Lights Series, and the NTT IndyCar Series.

In the fall of 2018 Juncos Racing announced their expansion to the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and will field one Cadillac DPi-V.R entry in the 2019 season.

Ricardo Juncos established Juncos Racing in 1997 as a small formula car race program based in Buenos Aires, Argentina. After times became financially tough, Juncos relocated to the United States in 2002 where he worked as a mechanic for a small karting team based in Florida. Juncos was then able to open the doors to his own shop and run in karting series throughout the United States.

In 2009, Juncos Racing entered in the former Star Mazda Championship (now the Pro Mazda Championship presented by Cooper Tires), where the team had great success in its maiden season, finishing second in the driver’s championship and third in the team championship. The following year, the team captured its first championship in the series with Indiana native Conor Daly. Fast forward to 2015, where Juncos Racing had its most successful season capturing the Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires driver’s championship with current Verizon Indy Car Series driver Spencer Pigot and also claimed the Pro Mazda team championship.

In 2017, Juncos Racing announced they would enter the Verizon IndyCar Series and compete in the 101st Running of the Indianapolis 500. The rookie team would go on to finish a respected 15th with Sebastian Saavedra and 18th with Spencer Pigot. Juncos Racing also captured the Pro Mazda Championship and Indy Lights Championship, as the only team to win both series in the same year in the Mazda Road to Indy history.

Most recently the team finished off the 2018 season winning the Indy Pro 2000 (former Pro Mazda” Driver and Team Championship with rookie driver Rinus VeeKay. The team also competed in 12 of the 19 Verizon IndyCar Series events with three drivers sharing the No. 32 entry including the 2017 Indy Lights Champion Kyle Kaiser, Rene Binder, and Alfonso Celis Jr.

The mission of Juncos Racing is to develop young drivers from around the world into the next level of their racing careers through the Juncos Racing Driver Development Program. Through this program, the team not only works with drivers on track to improve their skills behind the wheel, but also gives them the tools needed to understand the engineering and mechanics of the race car. Drivers who have participated in the program and have gone on to compete in the next level include Connor de Phillippi, Nicolas Dapero, Tatiana Calderon, Peter Dempsey, Conor Daly, Spencer Pigot, Will Owen, Victor Franzoni, Kyle Kaiser and Rinus VeeKay.

For more information, please visit www.juncosracing.com.

Contact: Abby Carter

Email: abby@juncosracing.com

Rasmus Lindh Ready for Road to Indy Test at Homestead

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (Nov. 30, 2018) – Swedish Road to Indy driver Rasmus Lindh will travel to Homestead, Florida for the Road to Indy Open Test on December 3-4, reuniting with Pabst Racing. The test will mark Lindh’s second time testing a Pro Mazda car and the first time for the Wisconsin-based outfit.

Returning to the same team he competed for in the 2018 USF2000 season, Lindh is excited for the upcoming test.

“It will be a lot of fun to be back in a Pro Mazda car again,” commented Lindh, who captured five podium finishes and nine top-five results in his rookie USF2000 season en route to finishing second in the championship. “I learned so much during the Chris Griffis test at IMS [Indianapolis Motor Speedway] and I can’t wait to get to Florida to keep developing. It will also be nice to be reunited with Pabst Racing again. We had a lot of success in USF2000 this year and it will be great to work with them again. It feels like a long time since I was last in a car so I’m extremely excited.”

In September, Lindh got his first taste of Pro Mazda machinery at the Chris Griffis Memorial Test with Juncos Racing. The talented Swede finished in the top-three every session and topped the charts in the second session. Lindh has his sights set on competing in the Pro Mazda Championship in 2019.

The Road to Indy will utilize the 2.25-mile 11-turn road course at Homestead-Miami Speedway.  Pro Mazda testing begins on Monday, December 3rd at 9:50 a.m. ET and will conclude on Tuesday, December 4th at 4:10 p.m.

Rasmus Lindh Caps Off 2018 Season With Pro Mazda Debut at Chris Griffis Open Test

INDIANAPOLIS, IN. (September 25, 2018) – Three weeks after concluding his rookie Cooper Tires USF2000 Powered by Mazda season, Swedish phenom Rasmus Lindh has already sampled the next rung on the Road to Indy ladder. This past weekend, the 17-year old tested a Pro Mazda car for Juncos Racing at the Chris Griffis Open Test at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

“I’m very happy with my first year driving open-wheel cars,” commented the teenager who finished fifth in the World Karting Championship last year and ended up Vice-Champion as a rookie in USF2000 this year. “It was a steep learning curve for sure, but towards the end of the year we really found the speed and we were always contending for the top step of the podium. The USF2000 car fit me very well so I was able to learn quite quickly.”

With three pole positions and five podiums in his rookie USF2000 effort, Lindh is already looking towards the 2019 season, eyeing up the Pro Mazda Championship. In his first test in a Pro Mazda car, Lindh topped one session and ended all sessions at the Chris Griffis Open Test inside the top three.

“I learned a lot with the additional downforce, bigger tires and more horsepower,” said Lindh. “I kept improving and made a big leap for the second day. I really like the Pro Mazda car and hope to be racing on the next step of the Road to Indy next year. I really like how the ladder system works here so I am excited for next year.”

While Road to Indy teams would have only taken notice of Lindh this year, Formula 1, IndyCar and Le Mans legend Stefan Johansson spotted the talented Swede many years ago.

“I’ve been following Rasmus ever since he beat me in a video game when he was seven years old,” said Johansson, who also manages five-time IndyCar Champion, Scott Dixon. “He’s one of the few drivers that has come through with huge talent and he’s done a fantastic job already. He’s got a very calm and calculating demeanor and I view him as a protege more than anything. He’s well prepared for what comes next.”

Off-season preparations will now continue for Lindh as he sets his sights on the 2019 Pro Mazda Championship. Announcements regarding exact plans will follow.

About Rasmus Lindh
Rasmus Lindh burst onto the American racing scene in 2018 with an impressive European karting resume. From 2010 through 2017, the Swede captured two National championships, won the WSK Series in Mini 60 and finished fifth in the World OK Senior Championship. In 2018, the teenager made the move to North America and his first season of open-wheel racing. In his debut USF2000 season, the youngster went on to score three pole positions and five podiums en route to second place in the championship. For 2019, the 17-year old aims to move up to the next rung on the Road to Indy ladder, Pro Mazda.