Exclusive Autosport’s Billy Frazer Scores First Road To INDY Podium

Exclusive Autosport’s Billy Frazer Scores First Road To INDY Podium

For Immediate Release: March 2, 2022

Australian runner-up at USF2000 season opener to set second in championship

ST.PETERSBURG, FL (February 27, 2022) – Exclusive Autosport returned to the 1.8-mile, 14-turn street course of St. Petersburg, Florida for the Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires season opener this past weekend and scored multiple podiums across their Indy Pro 2000 and USF2000 programs. The team welcomed back New Zealand’s Billy Frazer for his second year in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship series, while adding another Kiwi to the squad in 16-year-old Jacob Douglas. Coming into the weekend knowing that EA has the data from winning the last three USF2000 races on the Streets of St. Petersburg, the entire team was extremely confident unloading off the trailer Wednesday afternoon. When the dust had settled, Frazer left with his first career series podium and a pair of top-five finishes to sit second in the championship standings. Douglas logged crucial track time and experience, although his weekend was cut short in the second race of the doubleheader when he was caught in an incident due to a blocked track.

 

“I am thrilled that Billy, in the #92 Corpay Exclusive Autosport car, was able to collect his first podium finish in the USF2000,” said Michael Duncalfe, Team Principal. “He showed his veteran skills as he navigated the carnage in Race 1 to end up on the podium and exit the weekend second in the overall championship. Jacob Douglas had an unfortunate incident in race 2 as he was innocently collected in a large wreck. It was really disappointing to see his day cut short, but he gained valuable track time and knowledge. I’m really looking forward to returning to racing at Barber at the end of April.”

 

Track activities got underway on Thursday afternoon with the drivers’ only practice session of the weekend. Unfortunately, two laps into the practice, Jacob made a slight error that caused damage that could not be fixed in time to get any true laps on the track. Billy had an engine, so his track time was cut short during practice. Friday morning brought on the only qualifying session of the weekend. The EA drivers both knew they had a big task ahead due to the lack of track time and both pushed hard. In the end, Frazer set a lap that put him sixth on the grid in Race 1, while Douglas found speed and was 13th on the timesheet.

Late in the afternoon on Friday, the opening race of the USF2000 doubleheader took place under the hot sun. Frazer got a strong start, lunging himself from sixth to third on the opening lap. At the halfway point, he fell one position to fourth and while still pushing to advance, he was cognizant of the heated action ahead of him and kept his eyes open. On the final lap, the drivers in first and second came together in huge fashion, just as Billy had predicted, giving him the opportunity to capitalize on this event. After avoiding the wrecked cars and emerging from the chaos, he came across the start-finish line in second to score the first podium of his Road to Indy career. Douglas used this race to gain his first wheel-to-wheel experience in the USF2000 Tatuus USF-22, learning how to race with his new competitors. Jacob drove hard to keep his 13th position while avoiding some of the on-track action in front of him.

The EA drivers had Saturday off to support their Indy Pro 2000 teammates, but they were back on-track on Sunday just prior to the NTT INDYCAR race. Neither driver had ideal starting spots, so they both knew they had to fight hard and move forward. The start was called off three times due to a car being stuck on the track. When it finally went green, the drivers only made one lap before their first full-course caution. Billy and Jacob had positioned themselves in the 10th and 12th positions for the restart. The race went back to green, but at the halfway mark a huge crash occurred in front of both drivers and although Billy was able to find a way through unscathed, Jacob had nowhere to go and hit one of the stalled cars. His race would end there. The accident moved Billy up to the sixth position, where he finished the race. Frazer leaves St. Petersburg second in the championship standings.

The team will now head back to the shop and prep the cars for the series test at Barber Motorsports Park on March 21-22, before returning for Rounds 3 and 4 of the series at the end of April.

Exclusive Autosport is pleased to be able to partner with a great company – Corpay Cross-Border Solutions (https://cross-border.corpay.com/exclusive-autosport/) – who specialize in helping companies of all sizes power their international payments, execute plans to manage their currency risk and support their growth around the world.

 

Race Recap of the Canadians at the GP of St.Petersburg 2021

Race Recap of the Canadians at the GP of St.Petersburg 2021

Here’s a quick recap of where the Canadians that were involved in the race weekend at St.Petersburg placed in their respective series.

First up is the NTT IndyCar series with James Hinchcliffe and Dalton Kellett participating. James finished in 18th place one lap down on the race winner Colton Herta, while Dalton Kellett’s car came to a stop in the area between pit out and Turn #2 on Lap 67 and finished in 23rd position.

Next up for the NTT IndyCar series is the double race weekend at Texas Motor Speedway on April 30-May01.

Below are the results from the Road to Indy series races.

 USF2000

Race #1  Start Position in ()

1st (1st) #44 Christian Brooks Executive Autosport

2nd (2nd) #92 Matt Round-Garrido Executive Autosport

4th (8th) #91 Billy Frazer Executive Autosport

11th (14th) #2 Thomas Nepveu Cape Motorsports

12th (25th) #90 Grant Palmer Executive Autosport

 

USF2000

Race #2  Start Position in ()

1st (2nd) #44 Christian Brooks Executive Autosport

4th (3rd) #92 Matt Round-Garrido Executive Autosport

7th (9th) #2 Thomas Nepveu Cape Motorsports

12th (18th) #91 Billy Frazer Executive Autosport

17th (21st) #90 Grant Palmer Executive Autosport

 

PRO2000

Race #1  Start Position in ()

1st (1st) #91 Braden Eves Exclusive Autosport

4th (3rd) #42 Artem Petrov Exclusive Autosport

 

PRO2000

Race #1 Canadian Start Position in ()

6th (1st) #91 Braden Eves Exclusive Autosport

8th (3rd) #42 Artem Petrov Exclusive Autosport

 

IndyLights

Race #1  Start Position in ()

12th (3rd) #17 Devlin DeFrancesco Andretti Steinbrenner Autosport

7th (9th) #11 Antonio Serravalle Pserra Racing/AS Promotions

 

IndyLights

Race #2  Start Position in ()

5th (3rd) #17 Devlin DeFrancesco Andretti Steinbrenner Autosport

10th (10th) #11 Antonio Serravalle Pserra Racing/AS Promotions

 

 

Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Rescheduled Date Announced

(Photo : Ray MacAloney)

GPSP Release:

ST PETERSBURG, Fla. (May 13, 2020) – The Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg has been rescheduled to October 23-25, 2020, officials from the City of St. Petersburg, Green Savoree St. Petersburg, LLC (GSSP) and INDYCAR confirmed today. The event will now feature the crowning of the 2020 NTT INDYCAR SERIES champion on Sunday, Oct. 25 since the original March 13th-15th weekend was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The City of St. Petersburg stands ready to welcome back the fans of INDYCAR, drivers, teams, and sponsors in October,” said City of St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman. “I want to thank our partners at Green Savoree Racing Promotions for believing in this race and giving the residents of the Sunshine City something to look forward to. I am confident that the race will occur in a manner that puts public health at the forefront.”

“We greatly appreciate the efforts of Green Savoree Racing Promotions, INDYCAR, Mayor Kriseman and the City of St. Petersburg to find a new date for the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg,” said Lisa Boggs, director of motorsports, Bridgestone Americas, with its Firestone brand as the event’s title sponsor. “Coming back to the streets of St. Pete to close the 2020 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season is a great way to thank the incredible fans in this area for their support. While we couldn’t kick off the season with them as planned, we now look forward to crowning the 2020 INDYCAR Champion together in October.”

“The streets of St. Petersburg will make for a fitting and action-packed finale in a venue and city that our entire INDYCAR community holds dear,” Penske Entertainment Corp. President and CEO Mark Miles said. “We extend our thanks and gratitude to Mayor Kriseman, Green Savoree and Firestone for working with us to find a new date for the event. It’s going to be a fantastic weekend of INDYCAR action, and I know our drivers will have race day in St. Pete circled on their calendars.”

This will be the first time the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg will serve as the exciting series finale, as the event traditionally has started the INDYCAR season.

“Having a rescheduled date for the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg is a very positive development. This could only happen because of our partners’ commitment and support at the City of St. Petersburg, INDYCAR and Firestone,” said Kim Green, co-owner, chairman and CEO of GSSP, organizers of the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. “We hope this offers both Floridians and our race fans something to look forward to later this year as we navigate through these unprecedented times for us all.”

Previously purchased tickets to the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg will be valid on the corresponding days of the postponed event. Ticket purchasers on file will receive instructions via email. Additional event information and customer FAQs will be posted at gpstpete.com.

“Thank you to our fans for their patience and understanding as we’ve worked through this process with Mayor Kriseman, City Council, the City of St. Petersburg’s event team, INDYCAR and Firestone,” said Kevin Savoree, co-owner, president and COO of GSSP. “It’s been a terrific team effort by all, and we appreciate the opportunity to host the event again this fall in one of the most fantastic settings in downtown St. Petersburg.”

Additionally, the MBA 5K Run on the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg track, originally set for Friday, March 13, is rescheduled to Friday, Oct. 23. Previously purchased registrations will be valid and honored on the new date. Additional information will be released soon on gpstpete5k.com to confirm the status of an existing registration or for new sign ups.

The rescheduled event now set for October 23-25, 2020 will be subject to the ongoing guidance and mandates of national, state and local authorities regarding public gatherings. The health and safety of all associated with this event will remain the priority of the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.

IndyCar entry list for this weekend’s Grand Prix of St. Petersburg 2020

Here is the current entry list for this weekend’s IndyCar Grand Prix of St. Petersburg

  • 1 Josef Newgarden Team Penske
  • 12 Will Power Team Penske
  • 22 Simon Pagenaud Team Penske
  • 4 Charlie Kimball AJ Foyt Racing
  • 14 Sebastien Bourdais AJ Foyt Racing
  • 5 Pato O’Ward ARROW McLaren SP
  • 7 Oliver Askew (R) ARROW McLaren SP
  • 8 Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing
  • 9 Scott Dixon Chip Ganassi Racing
  • 10 Felix Rosenqvist Chip Ganassi Racing
  • 15 Graham Rahal Rahal Letterman Lannigan Racing
  • 30 Takuma Sato Rahal Letterman Lannigan Racing
  • 18 Santino Ferrucci Dale Coyne Racing with Vasser Sullivan
  • 55 Alex Palou (R) Dale Coyne Racing with Vasser Sullivan
  • 20 Conor Daly Ed Carpenter Racing
  • 21 Rinus Veekay (R) Ed Carpenter Racing
  • 24 Sage Karam Dreyer & Reinbold Racing
  • 26 Zach Veach Andretti Autosport
  • 27 Alexander Rossi Andretti Autosport
  • 28 Ryan Hunter Reay Andretti Autosport
  • 88 Colton Herta Andretti Autosport
  • 98 Marco Andretti Andretti Autosport
  • 31 Felipe Nasr (R) Carlin
  • 59 Max Chilton Carlin
  • 60 Jack Harvey Meyer Shank Racing
  • 81 Ben Hanley (R) DragonSpeed Racing