The biggest story of the Mazda Road to Indy offseason has been the brand new Indy Lights car, with the light and nimble Dallara IL-15 chassis mated to the AER-built Mazda MZR engine breathing new life into the top rung of the ladder. While the field may not be as large for the first race as some may have predicted/hoped (13 cars on the entry list), the signs of progress are there. Carlin Racing, a powerhouse European junior formula team, has come stateside while 8Star Motorsports, a sports car team, has shifted their focus to Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires competition. The series is definitely on its way up, so let’s take a look at what changed this year and answer a few important questions.

What are the major changes for 2015 in Indy Lights?

As touched on above, the most obvious change is the brand new car. The Dallara IL-15 comes in as a lighter, smaller, more agile, and more suitable dual-purpose machine intended to race on both road courses and ovals. Now equipped with paddle-shifters and the new Mazda MZR engine, bringing 450 horsepower in addition to a push-to-pass button that delivers an extra 50 horsepower, the car is now more in-line with the Dallara DW12 chassis. Thus, the series will be an even more appropriate training ground for the future starts of the Verizon IndyCar Series.

Also, new teams in Carlin Racing and 8Star Motorsports have joined the series, while Juncos Racing has returned to the series after solely competing in the Pro Mazda Championship Presented by Cooper Tires the past few seasons. There are also eight rookies in the field (more on them later), joined by five sophomore drivers. There are a few subtractions, as gone is Fan Force United, who ran Scott Anderson last year. Bryan Herta Autosport has also left the series (for now), and a few other rumored entries from McCormack Racing have failed to materialize. Team Moore Racing, who in 2014 campaigned Canadian Zack Meyer alongside several different drivers, have two cars and two new engineers ready to go, but failed to complete a deal with a driver before the season opener. TMR is hopeful of returning to the series by the next round in Long Beach.

Who will be the champion?

Unlike with Pro Mazda and USF2000, this question is significantly harder to answer because two would-be championship protagonists are only on one-race deals so far. Scott Hargrove of 8Star Motorsports and Matthew Brabham of Andretti Autosport, the 2013 USF2000 and Pro Mazda champions, respectively, have both been unable to lock down the funding necessary to compete in the full championship. Hargrove has shown considerable speed in pre-season testing, while Brabham has yet to run in the new car but was a fixture towards the front his rookie campaign in 2014.

Of the confirmed full-time entrants, the three who appear to be contenders are Carlin Racing’s Ed Jones, Juncos Racing’s Spencer Pigot, and Schmidt Peterson Motorsports’ 2014 runner-up Jack Harvey. Pigot, the 2014 Pro Mazda champion, has always shown he has the speed necessary to win—no matter what he drives. Jones, the Dubai-based driver, was the 2013 European F3 Open champion while also claiming several wins in the British F3 National class. Harvey, of course, came on strong late in 2014 to finish tied with Gabby Chaves atop the standings, only to lose out on the title through the tiebreaker process. While Harvey and SPM haven’t quite had the front-running pace in testing, expect the multiple championship-winning team to figure out the new cars before long and get their four-car team closer to the front. Between the three, I lean towards Pigot. His vast experience on the circuits comprising the championship combined with the new car seemingly suiting his style gives him a slight early edge. Of course, this all changes should Hargrove and Brabham compete in the full championship.

Who will be the top rookie?

Here are the rookies in the field this year: Felix Serralles (Belardi), Scott Hargrove (8Star), Ed Jones (Carlin), Spencer Pigot (Juncos), Ed Jones (Carlin), Max Chilton (Carlin), Kyle Kaiser (Juncos), Shelby Blackstock (Andretti), Ethan Rignel (SPM).

Again, Rookie of the Year is hard to predict accurately based on a lack of definite knowledge of the plans for all the drivers who may not run the whole championship (Hargrove and Chilton, who is signed for Nissan’s LMP1 program which kicks off at Le Mans). What I do know is that all are very talented and have a lot to prove this season. Chilton, coming off two years in F1 with Marussia, is ready to prove he can still win and potentially take Carlin up into IndyCar in 2016. Serralles wants to return Belardi to the top step of the podium on his return to North America. Hargrove is hungry for a full-season drive. Jones wants to best his experienced teammate and prove he belongs at the top of the motorsports food chain. Kaiser is ready to show he can compete for a podium on a consistent basis. Shelby Blackstock wants to demonstrate he can be a serious contender. Ethan Ringel is ready to take on a bigger challenge and gain some big-time experience. All could be the top rookie at the end of the year, but I’m going to keep a close eye on Ed Jones. Carlin wouldn’t have tapped him for this drive if they didn’t have faith in his abilities, and he has been impressive in testing as he has gotten more comfortable in the car.

Who will surprise the most?

I think Shelby Blackstock will be the most surprising driver of the year. Blackstock has claimed a win in Pro Mazda and been competitive in his sports car outings, but this is his time to shine. With the full might of Andretti Autosport behind him in Indy Lights this year (again dependent on Brabham’s full-season plans), he truly needs to prove this season that he can be at the front consistently and be deserving of a future IndyCar ride. He’s had top equipment and been near the front, but the consistency has been a little spotty. This could be the year he puts it all together and makes some serious progress, and could even be a surprise winner and grab a number of podiums across the 14-race championship.

The 2015 Indy Lights Field (as of St. Petersburg and very subject to change through the year)

Belardi Auto Racing
Felix Serralles
Juan Piedrahita

Schmidt Peterson Motorsports
RC Enerson
Jack Harvey
Scott Anderson
Ethan Ringel

Carlin Racing
Ed Jones
Max Chilton

8Star Motorsports
Scott Hargrove

Andretti Autosport
Shelby Blackstock
Matthew Brabham

Juncos Racing
Spencer Pigot
Kyle Kaiser

That concludes our 2015 Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires preview. There are still a lot of unknowns as we enter a new era of Indy Lights competition, but that picture will become clearer as the weekend and the year progresses. The doubleheader format continues in 2015 on the road courses, and this weekend for the Mazda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg the field will again compete in a 40-minute sprint race and a 60-minute feature race immediately prior to the IndyCar race.