Who will be champion?
This question is a lot tougher to answer than in USF2000, where you can safely put money on a Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing driver claiming the title. In Pro Mazda, the title is a ping-pong across the top teams. Since 2010, the championship-winning teams have been: Juncos Racing, JDC MotorSports, Team Pelfrey, Andretti Autosport, and Juncos Racing again. Taking a look at the field this year, only one driver immediately stands out as a title contender. Neil Alberico, who was third in 2014 with Cape Motorsports, returns to the team for his third season. Alberico experienced abysmal luck in 2014 but still demonstrated his blinding race pace on numerous occasions despite not winning a race. With Cape Motorsports now in their second season in Pro Mazda and Alberico’s growing experience and sheer pace, it’s hard not to list him as a favorite.
Beyond Alberico, it gets incredibly murky to predict. Weiron Tan of Andretti Autosport closely battled Team Pelfrey’s Jack Aitken in the preseason Cooper Tires WinterFest but came up one point short of the championship. If Tan and Andretti can consistently carry that speed throughout the season, they could be legitimate championship contenders. With Aitken returning to Europe to compete in Formula Renault 2.0, Team Pelfrey have brought in Santiago Urrutia and Pato O’Ward in for the season. The two are an unknown commodity, but if either can replicate the results of Aitken, they stand a good chance at competing for a title. Beyond them, too many uncertainties remain in the rest of the would-be contenders. Juncos Racing’s four-car squad could be in the mix, but all four drivers either lack experience or have yet to demonstrate the consistency necessary to be legitimate contenders. JDC also has four drivers, but with two rookies it’s hard to say. 2014 USF2000 champion Florian Latorre moves up with Cape, but can he beat Alberico’s pure speed? In the end, my money is on Alberico to take the big check to an Indy Lights team in 2016.
Who will be the best rookie?
Ten rookies to choose from and it’s a tough call. Tan, O’Ward, and Urrutia all stand out at first, but then you also have to add in Daniel Burkett and Florian Latorre of Cape as contenders to be the best rookie. I like all of them, but there is one name I am consistently drawn back to: Pato O’Ward. O’Ward first appeared in the post-season test at IMS and was quick straight away. Despite not competing in the WinterFest activities, when you consider Team Pelfrey’s knowledge and setup data from Aitken at NOLA and Barber and those are two of the first three races on the schedule, I can easily see O’Ward collecting a pile of points and a lot of confidence early in the season. Will that propel him to a championship? Probably not. Can it get him Rookie of the Year honors? Absolutely.
Who will surprise the most?
World Speed Motorsports has been a west coast junior formula stalwart for a number of years, but has been unable to replicate their regional success on the national stage since moving up to Pro Mazda. This year, though, they have a very talented young Anglo-Italian driver in Alessandro Latif who could propel them to new heights. It could take him a while to settle in, but Latif could give WSM a few podiums before the year is out. Also keep a close eye on the JDC MotorSports foursome of Raoul Owens, Parker Nicklin, Michael Johnson, and Kyle Connery. Connery was quick in a partial season effort last year, Nicklin has shown flashes of brilliance, Owens is a wildcard, and Johnson is in his second year in Pro Mazda. Those four—and the JDC organization—have a lot to prove that they can be frontrunners. A final surprising look at Expert Class entrant Bobby Eberle of World Speed Motorsports. While Eberle may be a “gentleman driver,” he has taken his craft seriously and has consistently improved his pace. Eberle now stands a threat to the back of the grid and can challenge the “professional” youngsters.
The 2015 Pro Mazda Field
Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing
Daniel Burkett
Neil Alberico
Florian Latorre
Juncos Racing
Garett Grist
Timothe Buret
Jose Gutierrez
Will Owen
World Speed Motorsports
Bobby Eberle (E)
Alessandro Latif
JDC MotorSports
Raoul Owens
Parker Nicklin
Michael Johnson
Kyle Connery
Andretti Autosport
Weiron Tan
Dalton Kellett
M1 Racing
Jay Horak (E)
Team Pelfrey
Santiago Urrutia
Pato O’Ward
And that does it for your look at the 2015 Pro Mazda Championship Presented by Cooper Tires. Soon we will find out just how wrong I am. The Pro Mazda field takes to the streets of St. Petersburg Friday for practice sessions at 8:45 a.m. EDT and 2:45 p.m. EDT, and the answers will start to come forth.
IMS Photography
