Team USA Scholarship

Team USA Scholarship

Founded	1990
Team principal(s)	Jeremy Shaw Bryan Herta John Hildebrand Steve Horne Doug Mockett[1]
Current series	Formula Ford Festival Walter Hayes Trophy Mazda Road to Indy Shootout
Former series	Formula Palmer Audi EFDA Nations Cup Formula 3 New Zealand Formula Ford
Drivers' Championships	1998 EFDA Winter Series (Edwards) 1999 Formula Palmer Audi Winter Series (Edwards) 2000 Formula Palmer Audi Winter Series (Giebler) 2006 Formula Palmer Autumn Trophy(Cameron) 2008 Formula Ford Festival(Newgarden) 2008 Walter Hayes Trophy(Daly) 2009 Walter Hayes Trophy(De Phillippi) 2012 Walter Hayes Trophy(Nunez) 2016 Mazda Road to Indy Shootout (Askew)

The Team USA Scholarship is a scholarship program which allows young American racecar drivers to compete outside of the United States. Each year, a competition is used to select the best young racecar drivers in the United States, then they are entered in highly competitive automobile racing events in an international racing environment (typically in Europe).

History

Formula Ford Festival (part 1)

Winner of the 1991 scholarship, Bryan Herta.

The Scholarship was launched late in the 1990 racing season by the prominent automobile racing journalist Jeremy Shaw. The Scholarship was set up with initial support from IndyCar Series team owner Rick Galles, gentleman racer and business owner Jonathan Holtzman and Ford Special Vehicle Operations.^[2]

Canadian Formula Ford 2000 graduate Jimmy Vasser and USAC Sprint Car champion Jeff Gordon were selected to compete at the Formula Ford Festival. As Gordon had prior commitments in midget racing, so only Vasser made the trip to Brands Hatch. Vasser raced a Lanan 1604 chassis. The young American was involved in a crash with Steffan Nielsen in the heat race which ended is Festival.^[3] The following year the Scholarship again partnered with Lanan Racing, now racing a Reynard chassis.^[4] Herta qualified for the final race in 15th place and worked his way up to eleventh place.^[5] For 1992 two drivers were chosen to compete, Tony Ave and Ashton Lewis. The racers were selected after a test session at Snetterton.^[6] Primus Racing/John Village Automotive entered three Van Diemen RF92 chassis. Two were driven by Ave and Lewis, a third was driven by Geoff Boss as a guest driver.^[7] Boss was the fastest American driver qualifying fourth, but as his car did not pass technical inspection he had to start from the back of the grid.^[8] Lewis was the best Team USA Scholarship driver in the 1992 Formula Ford Festival finishing fifteenth. Boss was unable to advance after starting last in his heat race. Ave collided with John Oxborrow in his heat race and failed to finish.^[9] Jerry Nadeau was the sole driver selected for the Team USA Scholarship for 1993. The North Carolina native qualified on pole position for his heat race, winning the race in his year old Van Diemen RF92. He won the race with an advantage of over 26 seconds over Jan Neumann.^[10] After a second place in the semi-final race, Nadeau started the final in third. Racing with other young talents such as Craig Lowndes and Jan Erik Löfgren Nadeau had to settle for fourth place.^[11] In 1994, Mike Borkwoski and Clay Collier were selected to race in the Formula Ford Festival Zetec class. The Festival was unsuccessful for both drivers with neither progressing into the final race.^[12]

International F3 Trophy

For 1995 Team USA Scholarship had an agreement with Dick Bennetts, team owner of West Surrey Racing to field a Mugen-Honda powered Dallara F395 for a selected driver in the International Formula 3 Trophy. The race was run at Donington Park on 22 October 1995.^[13] Memo Gidley was selected and qualified the car in 16th position. Gidley finished the race in eleventh place after lengthy battles with Marc Cramer and Thomas Schwister.^[14] Owen McAuley won the race with Jason Elliott and Scott Lakin completing the podium.^[15]

EFDA Nations Cup

With Formula 3 deemed to expensive, the Team USA Scholarship returned to more affordable racing. The EFDA Nations Cup was selected, being a one-make series all drivers raced equal material. The cars were Reynard Formula Opel Lotus single seaters. Tony Renna was selected out of six finalists.^[16] Jerry Nadeau racing in the 1996 European Formula Opel Lotus championship, joined Renna in the Nations Cup event.^[17] After two races the team placed second in the overall standings of the 1996 EFDA Nations Cup, scoring the silver medal.

The team returned to the Nations Cup in 1997 with Buddy Rice and Matt Sielsky.^[18] Paul Edwards was selected as a third driver, racing in the Formula Ford Festival. Edwards started fifth in the Festival race and worked his way up to third. Unfortunately, a run in with Robert Lechner caused Edwards to retire. In the Nations Cup Rice and Sielsky struggled in qualifying with the setup and the team had to settle for fifth.^[19]

In 1998 Team USA Scholarship supported Paul Edwards in the final three rounds of the Formula Opel Euroseries and the EFDA Formula Opel Lotus Winter Series. His best finish was a fifth place at the Nürburgring with a Team USA Scholarship supported Motaworld Racing entry.^[20] In the Winter Series Edwards raced with Team Meritus. Edwards won at Donington Park and placed second at the Hockenheimring. Leading the championship into the final round, again at the Hockenheimring, Edwards won the championship by default as the final was canceled. Freezing winter conditions caused the organisation to abandon the final event. Edwards won the championship over other contenders such as Richard Lyons and Takuma Sato.^[21]

Formula Palmer Audi (part 1)

For 1999 Team USA Scholarship shifted focus to the Formula Palmer Audi Winter Series. A series set up by former Formula 1 driver Jonathan Palmer featuring one-make Van Diemen chassis powered by 1.8L Audi engines.^[3] Three drivers were selected to compete, Paul Edwards, Andy Lally and Jeff Simmons were selected to compete.^[22] Edwards won three out of four races (at Snetterton and Brands Hatch), with Paul Munn winning the fourth race. Edwards won the championship with an 8-point advantage.^[23] Lally finished fifth, Simmons eighth.^[24]

Phil Giebler and Joey Hand were selected for Team USA Scholarship for the 2000 Formula Palmer Audi Winter Series.^[25] Giebler scored three podiums and a win at Brands Hatch to claim the title. Hand scored a single podium finish, a second place at Snetterton, to settle for sixth in the championship.^[26]

New Zealand Formula Ford

In November 2001 twelve drivers were selected for a shootout style event at the Jim Russell Racing Driver School. A. J. Allmendinger and Bryan Sellers were selected for the 2001 Team USA Scholarship.^[27] Due to the relative inexperience with single seaters, Team USA Scholarship returned to Formula Ford, in New Zealand.^[3] The duo raced a partial season, with successes. Sellers won two races, both at Timaru, and placed ninth in the series championship.^[28] Sellers and Allmendinger placed second and third at the New Zealand Grand Prix, behind Fabian Coulthard.^[29] For 2003, three drivers were selected for the six race New Zealand International Formula Ford Series. Joe D'Agostino, Charlie Kimball and Ryan Millen. Millen, who is of New Zealand ancestry, is the nephew of 1980 New Zealand Grand Prix winner Steve Millen.^[30]

Representatives (Scholarship Winners)

Year	Event(s)	Scholarship Winner(s)	Notes
1990	Formula Ford Festival	Jimmy Vasser
1991		Bryan Herta
1992		Ashton Lewis Tony Ave
1993		Jerry Nadeau
1994		Mike Borkowski Clay Collier
1995	F3 International Trophy	Memo Gidley
1996	EFDA Nations Cup	Jerry Nadeau Tony Renna
1997		Matt Sielsky Buddy Rice
1998		Paul Edwards
1999	Formula Palmer Audi Winter Series	Paul Edwards Andy Lally Jeff Simmons	Edwards won the 1999 Formula Palmer Audi Winter Series
2000		Phil Giebler Joey Hand	Giebler won the 2000 Formula Palmer Audi Winter Series
2001	New Zealand Formula Ford	A. J. Allmendinger Bryan Sellers
2002
2003		Joe D'Agostino Charlie Kimball Ryan Millen
2004		Slade Miller
2005		J. R. Hildebrand
2006	Formula Palmer Audi Autumn Trophy	Robert Podlesni Dane Cameron	Cameron won the 2006 Autumn Trophy
2007		Joel Miller Patrick Barrett
2008	Formula Ford Festival and Walter Hayes Trophy	Josef Newgarden Conor Daly	Newgarden won the 2008 Formula Ford Festival (Kent class) Daly won the 2008 Walter Hayes Trophy
2009		Brett Smrz Connor De Phillippi	De Phillippi won the 2009 Walter Hayes Trophy
2010		Felix Serralles Spencer Pigot
2011		Spencer Pigot Trent Hindman Neil Alberico
2012		Tristan Nunez Jack Mitchell, Jr. Matthew Brabham	Nunez won the 2012 Walter Hayes Trophy
2013		Neil Alberico Jake Eidson Joey Bickers
2014		Aaron Telitz Michai Stephens
2015		Michai Stephens Dakota Dickerson
2016	Formula Ford Festival Walter Hayes Trophy Mazda Road to Indy Shootout	Oliver Askew Kyle Kirkwood Neil Verhagen	Askew won the 2016 Mazda Road to Indy Shootout
2017		Aaron Jeansonne Jonathan Kotyk
2018		Jake Craig Colin Mullan	Braden Eves was originally chosen as a winner but was unable to compete due to a surgery.
2019	Formula Ford Festival and Walter Hayes Trophy	Josh Green Scott Huffaker
2020		Bryce Aron Jackson Lee Simon Sikes
2021		Andre Castro Max Esterson	Esterson won the 2021 Walter Hayes Trophy
2022		Elliott Budzinski William Ferguson Thomas Schrage
2023		Ayrton Houk Jack Sullivan
2024	USF2000 Championship	Ayrton Houk Thomas Schrage

Representatives by state¹

No.	State
22	California
11	Florida
5	Illinois
3	Colorado Indiana New York
2	Connecticut Georgia North Carolina Ohio
1	Arizona Louisiana Michigan Nevada New Jersey Oklahoma Tennessee Texas Virginia Wisconsin

Notes

^1 State as listed on the Team USA Scholarship website.^[31]

Other finalists

Year	Driver
1992	Greg Tracy[32]
1992	Chris Simmons[32]
1992	Geoff Boss[32]
1992	Ernest Sikes[32]
1996	Alex Barron[33]
1996	Derek Hill[33]
1996	Steve Knapp[33]
1996	Allen May[33]
1996	Bryan Selby[33]
1997	Jeff Shafer[18]
1997	Rocky Moran Jr.[18]
1997	Chris Menninga[18]
1997	Mikel Miller[18]
1999	Aaron Justus[22]
2000	Tom Dyer[25]
2000	Ryan Hunter-Reay[25]

• Danica Patrick and Patrick Long declined to compete for the 2000 Team USA Scholarship.^[25]

References

1. "Management". Team USA Scholarship. 2017-11-15.
2. "Vasser For FF Festival". Team USA Scholarship. Retrieved 6 November 2017.
3. "History". Team USA Scholarship. Retrieved 6 November 2017.
4. "Herta to Represent U.S. in World Cup". Team USA Scholarship. 1991-10-19. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
5. "Interview -- Bryan Herta". Motorsport Magazine. December 1, 1991. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
6. "Ave and Lewis to Represent U.S. in Formula Ford Festival". Team USA Scholarship. September 11, 1992. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
7. "Team USA Impresses in Shakedown Test". Team USA Scholarship. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
8. "Team USA Out of Luck in Qualifying". Team USA Scholarship. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
9. "Lewis Finishes Fifth at Brands Hatch". Team USA Scholarship. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
10. "Nadeau Scores Stunning Victory in Fastest Heat Race". Team USA Scholarship.
11. "Nadeau Claims Fighting Fourth in Thrilling Festival Finale". Team USA Scholarship.
12. "Team USA Shut out in Formula Ford Festival". Team USA Scholarship.
13. "Vasser, Herta Confirm Worth of Team USA Scholarship". Team USA Scholarship. 2017-11-15.
14. "Gidley Displays His Racecraft on F3 Debut". Team USA Scholarship. 2017-11-15.
15. "The month in Motor Sport". Motorsport Magazine. 2007-11-15.
16. "Tony Renna Wins 1996 Team USA Scholarship". Team USA Scholarship. 2017-11-15.
17. "Nadeau to Represent America in Nations Cup VII". Team USA Scholarship. 2017-11-15.
18. "Rice, Sielsky Win 1997 Team USA Scholarships". Team USA Scholarship. 2017-11-15.
19. "Team USA Places Fifth; Edwards Stars in World Cup". Team USA Scholarship. 2017-11-15.
20. "Formula Opel Euroseries". The GEL Motorsport Information Page.
21. "Cancellation Ensures Edwards' Championship". Team USA Scholarship. 2017-11-15.
22. "Team USA Scholarship Expands to Three-Car Effort". Team USA Scholarship. 2017-11-15.
23. "Formula Palmer Audi Winter Series (1998-2008)". Motorsport Winners. 2017-11-15.
24. "Formula Palmer Audi Winter Series 1999 standings". DriverDB.com. 2017-11-15.
25. "Six Young Americans Selected for Scholarship Shootout". Team USA Scholarship. 2017-11-15.
26. "Formula Palmer Audi Winter Series 2000 standings". DriverDB.com. 2017-11-15.
27. "Allmendinger, Sellers Earn 2001 Team USA Scholarships". Team USA Scholarship. 2017-11-15.
28. "2001-02 Talley's Formula Ford Championship". DriverDB.com. 2017-11-15.
29. "P&O Nedlloyd New Zealand Grand Prix". Motorsport New Zealand. 2017-11-15. Archived from the original on 2002-02-25.
30. "Three American Youngsters Set To Contest New Zealand Formula Ford Series". Team USA Scholarship. December 17, 2003.
31. "Alumni". Team USA Scholarship. Retrieved 6 November 2017.
32. "Team USA Scholarship Hopefuls Try out in England". Team USA Scholarship. 1992-08-18.
33. "Seven 1996 Finalists Survive All-Star "Grilling"". Team USA Scholarship. August 15, 1996. Retrieved November 8, 2017.

External links

• Official website