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The Road To Indy
Starring The Ladies Of Speed

Few drivers are able to collect their high school diploma, yawn, scratch the back of their arm, and drop lazily into an open-wheel race car.  There are multiple paths that can be travelled, and one of the more high-profile routes here in the United States is that of the Mazda Road To Indy, an open-wheel championship series designed to prepare competitors for full-on IZOD IndyCar Series.

In ascending order, the levels are:

1. US F2000 National Championship
2. Star Mazda Series
3. Firestone Indy Lights
4. IZOD IndyCar Series

To get you quickly up to speed, here are the engines for each respective series:

1. Mazda MZR 2000cc 4-cylinder engine / 150hp (National) or 170hp (Championship)
2. Mazda Renesis 1300cc Wankel Rotary engine / 260hp
3. Infiniti 3500cc V8 engine / 420hp
4. 2200cc twin-turbo V6 engine / 550-750hp

All racers compete over a combination of permanant road courses, street circuits, and oval tracks, including the famed Indianapolis 500 weekend on May 27.  For the 2012 open wheel season, Eau Rouge will be following Collette Davis (US F2000), Shannon McIntosh (US F2000), Ashley Freiberg (Star Mazda), and Katherine Legge (IZOD IndyCar).

A few notes on each driver:

Collette Davis – Adjusting to the new chassis after last season’s Pro Challenge Mustang events.  Placed 7th and 11th at Sebring on 3/15 and 3/16.

Shannon McIntosh – Sophomore year in F2K.  Still working to overcome her overdriving habits from dirt racing.  Placed 15th and 23rd at Sebring on 3/15 and 3/16.

Ashley Freiberg – First open wheel road series.  Getting used to the new levels of downforce and massive grip from the slick tires.  Debut race on 3/24 at St. Petersburg.

Katherine Legge – First time behind the wheel of an open wheel car since her Champ Car season in 2007.  First seasonal race on 3/24 at St. Petersburg.

In addition, we will be keeping tabs on Shea Holbrook in the Pirelli World Challenge Series, Beth Chryst and Emilee Tominovich in the Mazda MX-5 Cup Series, and Rahel Frey in this year’s DTM season with the new Audi A5 platform.

We wish every one of these ladies the very best in 2012!  Stay tuned for coverage of the Grand Prix Of St. Petersburg this weekend with Collette, Shannon, Ashley, and Katherine.