As it's almost time to light this candle!
This year's influx of rookie IndyCar drivers
has to be the largest in many years, or at least that I can remember. With a
total of 9 - if I've done my ryth-Muh-tickin' correctly? Number Nine? No. 9,
Numeral Nein?
Yet as Yuhs know,
two are waiting in the Wings, and will take Thar Curtain Calls at Phoenix,
albeit they're part of a rotating cast 'O seven...
But only three are currently set to contest
the full season, and hence most likely one of these three will become the 2018
Rookie Of the year. (ROY)
AJ
Foyt Enterprises
Engine: Chevrolet
Engine: Chevrolet
#4) R-Matheus
Leist, Brazil
Age:
19
Career Highlights
Matheus,
albeit I wanna call him Maverick, presumably since I
think of Maverick "top Gun" Vinales when Lucy', my ARSE-Steamed
Screen Reader reads his name, faux-netically sounding very similar; but I
digress...
As the young Brazilian began Go Karting at
age 11 in 2009 before finishing runner-up in the 2013 Petrobras Karting
Championship.
. He made his Single Seater debut in 2014 and
in only his third season won the BRDC Formula 3 title with Double R Racing, who
were originally formed by Kimi Raikkonen and Steve Robertson.
Leist tested
for multiple GP3 teams in the fall of 2016 before signing with Carlin to
contest the 2017 Indy Lights series. As his biggest accomplishment was winning
the coveted Freedom 100.
While the Brazilian teenager notched a total
of three Lights victories en route to fourth overall, one place ahead of
Zachery Claman DeMelo.
Matheus
takes over the seat previously held by Conor Daly for
A.J. Foyt's team this year, where he'll partner the series "elder
Statesman," his countryman TK' Follow-your-Schnoz! Kanaan.
Andretti
Autosport
Engine:
Honda
#26)
R-Zach Veach; USA
Age:
23
Career Highlights
Zach began Go Karting with his father before
reportedly being discovered by Sarah Fisher's father Dave in '09, making the transition
to Single Seaters when testing a Formula BMW racecar.
Veach latched onto Andretti Autosport
beginning in 2010, where he contested the majority of that season's U.S. F2000
series, before winning the 2011 U.S. F2000 Winterfest title ahead of then
Andretti team-mate Spencer Pigot.
After a second season in U.S. F2000, he moved
up to the then Star Mazda series, where he finished 10th overall. Next he moved
up to Indy Lights in 2013, and finished seventh overall.
Veach contested a second Lights season with
Andretti in 2014, where he finished third overall,
while winning three races.
Next he sat out the 2015 season after having
surgery on his hand before returning to Lights with Balardi Auto Racing. And
once again he mirrored his 2014 season results, scoring another three W's' en
route to third overall.
In 2017 Veach was summoned to deputize for
the injured J.R. Hildebrand at Ed Carpenter Racing at thee Oh, So Booty-full Barber's
Grand Prix of Alabama, finishing 19th before contesting his maiden Indy 500 for
A.J. Foyt enterprises in their third entry, finishing P26 after retiring on
Lap-155.
Schmidt
Peterson Motorsports
Engine: Honda
Engine: Honda
#6)
R-Robert Wickens, Canada
Age:
28
Career Highlights
As I've prattled on here on No Fenders from
time-to-time, Robert will forever be known as "thee Young Wicky" to
Mwah, which ironically his SPM B-I-G BOYZ' teammate thou Mayor 'O Hinchtown nicknamed
him way back during their Champ Car Atlantic days.
And perhaps Messer Wickens, who'll celebrate
his 29th birthday two days after his maiden IndyCar race will score a Top-10
finish as a present to himself? Although I'm not trying to place too much
pressure on him.
Wickens CV is simply amazing, and out of this
trio of IndyCar Drivers has the most impressive results, and simply is a total BAD
ARSE!
Robert, or robby as James Hinchcliffe seems
to be calling him these days, began as a multi-times Go Karting champion Up
North Eh! Since he also resides from Toronto.
Then he began a stellar Single Seater career
in Formula BMW USA in '05, finishing third overall and best Rookie finisher. He
returned for a second season, now as a Red Bull Junior member and won the
Formula BMW USA title at "Sweet 16!"
Then, when I learned of him Wayback in '07 during
his move up to Champ Car Atlantic, where I witnessed him win at Portland, he
finished third overall, one place ahead of his buddy Hinch', before moving to
Europe.
Wickens finished third overall for Carlin in
the then World Series by Renault, before finishing runner-up in the short lived
three-year iteration of FIA Formula 2, run by Dr. Jonathan Palmer.
He continued his Bridesmaid routine next
during his GP3 campaign, behind Esteban Gutierrez, who'd
become a Sauber and Haas F1 driver in the future.
In 2011 he returned to the Formula Renault
3.5 series, where he took the title ahead of his team-Mate Jean-Eric Vergne and
somebody named Alexander Rossi! As the latter Duo would also graduate to Formula
1.
Wickens became a reserve driver for Virgin F1, and somewheres along
the way I believe he also became a Mercedes Junior Driver, ultimately leading
to his racing in the Deutshce Tourenwagen Masters, (DTM) winning six times.
Yet with Mercedes pulling the plug upon its
involvement in DTM at the end of this year, he began looking around for new opportunities,
being allowed to fill-in for another past Formula Renault 3.5 series champion
named Mikhail Aleshin.
As Aleshin, driving for Schmidt Peterson Motorsports
last year, was apparently having Visa issues difficulty over the road America weekend,
where Wickens stood by, yet only got to drive in Friday practice, before
Mikhail arrived from Le Mans to race that weekend at Elkhart Lake.
As Wickens & Hinchcliffe will
unofficially form Team Canada 2.0, after the Team Players Days, and with fellow
Hoser Zachary Claman DeMelo lining up at St Pete, the grid will swell to three
Hosers for the first time in years!
