Scott Hargrove to test new Indy Lights car at PBIR

Scott Hargrove will be one of the first to be assessed for a drive with 8Star Motorsports in the 2015 Indy Lights Series Presented by Cooper Tires in an official test at Palm Beach International Raceway, Florida on Wednesday.

Canada’s Hargrove drove a Kart for the first time when he was 13 years old, planting the seed that would lead him to high profile successes in the US and overseas.

As a recipient of the 2013 Team Canada Scholarship, the young charger proudly represented his home nation in the prestigious Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch in the United Kingdom and acquitted himself well by finishing fourth in a super-competitive field consisting of 57 of the world’s brightest young racers.

The Canadian followed his 2013 Cooper Tires USF2000 Series championship success – he maintained his points lead for the entirety of the 14-race season by capturing four wins, nine podiums, five fastest race laps and six pole positions – by winning the Ultra 94 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Canada (Platinum Cup) and finishing second in the 2014 Pro Mazda Championship.

Wanting to become British Columbia’s next IZOD IndyCar driver, Hargrove will be one of the first candidates to be assessed for one of 8Star Motorsports’ Indy Lights seats during an official test at Palm Beach International Raceway in Jupiter, Florida on Wednesday (17 December).

An ever-strengthening 2015 Indy Lights field is forming, as several teams and drivers have already announced their intention to enter the revamped single-seater series in the New Year.

8Star planing two-car team

In an expansion of its newly-established young driver Academy, 8Star Motorsports has committed to a two-car attack on the modernized, fresh-faced Indy Lights Series and is open to testing other prospective IndyCar drivers.

The third and final step on the Mazda Road to Indy, the highly acclaimed championship has a rich history as a development platform for many of today’s top drivers, particularly as the series Champion is awarded a three-race scholarship in the Verizon IndyCar Series, including the headlining Indianapolis 500.

The IndyCar-sanctioned championship therefore ties in with 8Star Motorsports’ ongoing commitment to nurturing young talent through its flourishing ‘8Star Academy’ program.

While Brazilian Ozz Negri will be 8Star's official Indy Lights development driver, Hargrove will be the first to have his mettle tested, with the view of potentially filling one of the Florida-based team’s two race seats in 2015.

“To be one of the first drivers to test the new Indy Lights car is exciting and doing it with 8Star Motorsports is going to be a lot of fun,” said Hargrove. “The team has its roots in sportscar racing but a lot of its personnel are very experienced with open-wheelers, so it’s going to be fun to branch out and see what the team can do with the new Dallara IL-15. I’m really looking forward to 2015 and we’ll see where the test takes us.”