There is no on track action at Indy today, due to the weather, and the US GPE site is still very much 'coming soon', so I thought I would take this opportunity to start tracking and rating the potential candidates for the USGPE race seats in 2010 and beyond.
The easiest place to start is with the list that Peter Windsor himself supplied at the press launch on Speed TV earlier this season. One must presume that the young Americans furthest up the 'staircase of talent' are closer to getting their backsides in the car than those further down. So let's start at the top and work downwards.
RIGHT NOW
1. JR Hildebrand - Firestone Indy Lights/A1GP
2009, 2 Pole Positions, 1 win (Long Beach)
After a faltering start to the season at St Petersburg, Hidlebrand proved his worth with a win on the streets of Long Beach.
2. Jonathan Summerton - Firestone Indy Lights
2009, Firestone Indy Lights Points Leader
Summerton's consistency and ability to keep his nose clean has given him a 4 point lead in the Indy Lights standings but rather worryingly, we are yet to see the consistent speed needed to win in the category. It is hard to see any driver making an impression in F1 if he cannot dominate let alone win races in the junior categories. The Floridian has already had talks with USGPE and his extensive experience in Europe could well work in his favor. He is also the only US driver to have a victory in A1GP (China 2008).
3. AJ Allmendinger - NASCAR Sprint Cup:
At the time of the USGPE launch, AJ Allmendinger had a limited Sprint Cup schedule with Richard Perry Motorsports and quite a lot of free time on his year planner. 10 races into the Sprint Cup season, new sponsors, a top 30 ranking and a contract through 2010 all mean that it will be financially tough to wrestle Allmendinger away from oval racing. Can he be bought out of any contract with RPM, of course he can?
The five time winner in Champ Car has the strongest road racing resume of any American candidate, whether he has the desire to make the late switch to the pinnacle of global open wheel racing is another matter.
4. Ryan Hunter Reay - IndyCar Series:
Ryan Hunter Reay's 3 US open wheel victories have been evenly distributed across his first six seasons of racing. All of them have been earned in machinery that would never be described as absolutely 'top level'. His performance for Vision Racing at the 2009 season opener will surely have raised some eyebrows within the USGPE brain trust and for this reason alone he has to be seen as a viable not to mention experienced and capable F1 candidate.
T5. Marco Andretti - IndyCar Series/A1GP:
Despite the extraordinary selling job by Mario during the USGPE launch on Speed TV, Marco has much to prove if he is to have any future in Grand Prix racing. He has shown sporadic flashes of speed on both street circuits and road courses over the last three seasons but certainly not enough to suggest that he can compete week-in-week-out in IndyCar let alone be competitive at the next level. The AGR A1GP program was, at best, inconclusive although we saw one or two flashes of what he may be capable of. It would make a lot of sense for him to put even more effort into that series in 2009/10. Marco's F1 test with Honda may have come too early for him and at 22 years of age he certainly still has time on his side.
T5. Danica Patrick - IndyCar Series:
Danica would be number one on this list if it was merely a gauge of revenue generation, publicity and hype. There is no way by any reasonable measure that she should be considered for an F1 seat based on her resume but the commercial considerations may well be too much to resist for Peter Windsor and his marketing men. In truth she would need at least a year of testing and a season of GP2 before she could make the transition to F1. That sort of conventional wisdom, however, may not enter into the decision making process at USGPE.
THE FUTURE
1. Alex Rossi - International Formula Master:
2008, Formula BMW Americas Champion & FBMW World Finals Winner
The 17 year old Nevada City, California native is the only driver in the rankings who is guaranteed to get seat time in an F1 car this season. He will do some demo laps in the current BMW F1 car at the 2009 World Finals as part of his prize for winning the 2008 title. In conversation with Rossi earlier this season, it became obvious that F1 is his goal and his odds of making it are vastly improved by plying his trade on the circuits of Europe. International Formula Master will become GP3 in 2010 and this year's winner will get a GP2 test at the end of the season.
2. Josef Newgarden - British Formula Ford/Formula Palmer Audi:
2009, 1 win (British Formula Ford), 2 wins (Formula Palmer Audi)
In an interview on Midweek Motorsport late last year, Josef Newgarden made it very clear that like Alex Rossi, Formula 1 is his ultimate goal and he too realizes that he must perform on some of the toughest proving grounds in the sport if he is to make it to the top. A win in the 'Kent' class of the 2008 British Formula Ford Festival was not a bad way to announce those intentions. He returned to the UK earlier this year to contest the British Formula Ford Championship and took one win in the triple-header opening weekend at Oulton Park, becoming the first American to win a round of the series since Patrick Long in 2001. In an effort to accelerate his development, Newgarden is also competing in the Formula Palmer Audi Series. FPA is a 'semi-pro' mixture of young talent and highly experienced and competent amateurs racing with turbo charged Audi power plants, slicks and wings. The 18 year old, Nashville born, Newgarden won the opening two rounds of the series and leads the standings after three races. The top three in the final standings will get a Formula 2 test at the end of the season.
3. Conor Daly - Star Mazda:
2008, Barber National Champion, Currently 3rd in Star Mazda standings
Conor Daly chose to stay in the United States to take up a fully funded season of Star Mazda racing which was the prize for winning the 2008 Barber National Series. Winning the Mazda title will earn him a full season of Atlantics in 2010 which will keep him in the USA for at least one more season. His ultimate aim is to follow his father's footsteps to Europe and he has already made his mark there by winning the 2008 Walter Hayes Trophy for Formula Ford cars. His Star Mazda season has been fraught to say the least (see video below) but despite some setbacks he is sitting third in the standings.
4. Gabby Chaves - Formula BMW Americas:
2009, Series Leader (2 wins)
16 year old Chaves arguably represents the longest term prospect of the future stars. On saying that, he has certainly taken the F BMW Americas series by the scruff of the neck so far this season, finishing no worse than second in any of the four rounds so far.
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