USA deep freeze forces Nathan to switch series
Nathan Morcom has switched from the USF2000 National Championship to the rival F2000 Championship Series – due to the weather, of all things! The extraordinarily cold USA winter literally froze the pre-season testing plans of Primus Racing, for whom the 18 year-old Sydney driver will race this year.
“The snow has been so heavy in Ohio, where Primus Racing is based, that it was almost impossible to get around,” Nathan explained. “Jon Baytos, who runs Primus, has been flat-out clearing snow away from his workshop instead of preparing the race car. But even if we’d been ready to go testing, the northern USA racetracks have only been good for snowmobiles, not openwheelers!”
Given the alternatives of turning up not fully prepared for the first four USF2000 rounds at Sebring this week and St Petersburg the following weekend, or using the intervening three weeks before F2000 began at Virginia International Raceway to acclimatise (pun intended!) the Australian rookie to his unfamiliar car and team, Baytos chose the latter.
“Racing at Sebring without having done as much testing as the other drivers would have put me at a big disadvantage, and I want to make a good impression right from the start in my first American season,” Nathan said. Not that he was unduly worried about the late change – in fact, it could turn out to be a positive move.
“Although USF2000 has a higher profile, as part of the Indy Car ‘Road to Indy’ ladder, F2000 will probably be more competitive,” he said. “Last year F2000 had more than twice as many registered drivers as USF2000, with 25-30 starters at several rounds, and it looks like being the same this year. And the circuits – VIR, Road Atlanta, Watkins Glen, Mid-Ohio, Mosport and Lime Rock Park – are among the best road courses in the USA, if not the world.
“It would be great to win the USF2000 grand prize of a paid drive in Star Mazda next year, but racing against only a dozen other drivers in that series wouldn’t be as good for my development as competing against 30 in F2000. Having said that, F2000 will be a very tough series with a mix of young drivers like myself as well as some very fast and experienced older drivers. But Jon Baytos has huge experience in this category, so I’m confident that with his help I can be competitive and give a good account of myself,” Nathan concluded.
F2000 CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES, ROUNDS 1 & 2
Virginia International Raceway (5.3km) – Alton, Virginia
Timetable (revised April 7)
THURSDAY, APRIL 7
09:15-09:45 USA Eastern Daylight Saving Time (2315-2345 Australian Eastern Time) - test session 1
11:00-11:30 USA Eastern Daylight Saving Time (0100-0130 Friday, Australian Eastern Time) - test session 2
13:35-14:05 USA Eastern Daylight Saving Time (0335-0405 Friday, Australian Eastern Time) - test session 3
15:15-15:45 USA Eastern Daylight Saving Time (0515-0545 Friday, Australian Eastern Time) - test session 4
16:40-17:10 USA Eastern Daylight Saving Time (0640-0710 Friday, Australian Eastern Time) - test session 5
FRIDAY, APRIL 8
13:30-14:00 USA Eastern Daylight Saving Time (0330-0400 Saturday, Australian Eastern Time) - timed practice session 1
18:00-18:30 USA Eastern Daylight Saving Time (0800-0830 Saturday, Australian Eastern Time) - timed practice session 2
SATURDAY, APRIL 9
10:30-11:00 USA Eastern Daylight Saving Time (0030-0100 Sunday, Australian Eastern Time) - Round 1 qualifying
16:30-17:00 USA Eastern Daylight Saving Time (0630-0700 Sunday, Australian Eastern Time) - Round 1 race
Sunday, April 10
12:45-13:15 USA Eastern Daylight Saving Time (0245-0315 Monday, Australian Eastern Time) - Round 2 qualifying
16:30-17:00 USA Eastern Daylight Saving Time (0630-0700 Monday, Australian Eastern Time) - Round 2 race
Follow Nathan's progress 'live' during practice, qualifying and racing on the F2000 Series Twitter page.
Nathan Morcom profile
Nathan Morcom
Date of Birth: April 5, 1992
Hometown: Abbotsbury, NSW
Sponsors: Rondo Building Services, Direct Plasterboard Outlets, NSW Stretch Ceilings.
Motorsport career highlights:
2010
2nd, Eastern Creek Eight-Hour Production Touring Car Race (co-driver)
5th, Race 3, Round 6, Australian F3 Championship, Eastern Creek Raceway (rookie)
10th, Australian Formula Ford Championship
11th, New Zealand Toyota Racing Series (rookie; contested six of 12 races only)
2009
Selected for the CAMS ‘Rising Star’ young driver development program
13th, Australian Formula Ford Championship (rookie)
2008
1st, Junior National Heavy class, Australian Sprint Kart Championships
1st, Junior National Heavy class, NSW Premier State Cup (karts)
2nd, Junior Clubman class, NSW Premier State Cup (karts)
Selected for the CAMS ‘Rising Star’ young driver development program
5th, NSW Formula Ford Championship (rookie)
2007 (karts)
1st, Junior National Heavy class, NSW Premier State Cup
1st, Junior National Heavy class, South Australian State Championships
1st, Junior National Heavy class, Tasmanian State Championships
3rd, Junior Clubman class, NSW Premier State Cup
2006 (karts)
1st, Junior National Heavy class, Tasmanian State Championships
3rd, Junior National Light class, NSW Premier State Cup
3rd, Junior Clubman class, NSW Premier State Cup
6th, Junior National Light class, Australian Sprint kart Championships
F2000
F2000 is a development of the FF1600 openwheel formula that has been the world’s pre-eminent ‘entry level’ openwheel category for some 40 years.
The specifications are identical to FF1600 in many respects: a tubular steel ‘spaceframe’ chassis, manual H-pattern four-speed gearbox and ‘open’ differential. The main differences are:
- more power (2.0 litre engine instead of 1.6 litre);
- more aerodynamic downforce (front and rear wings instead of no wings); and
- more traction (wider slick tyres instead of narrow slicks or treaded tyres).
Over the years F2000 has been a stepping-stone in the careers of many motor racing champions, including Ayrton Senna, Johnny Herbert, Eddie Irvine (Formula 1), Jimmy Vasser, Dan Wheldon, Sam Hornish Jnr, Buddy Rice (Indy Cars), Jason Bright and David Besnard (V8 Supercars).
Currently the formula is strongest in the USA, with two multi-State series: the USF2000 Championship Series and the USF2000 National Championship.
The 2011 F2000 Championship Series comprises 14 rounds at seven ‘double-header’ race meetings, ranging from car club level to major American Le Mans Series and Grand-Am Sports Car Series events.
MORE INFORMATION
F2000 Championship Series website
MEDIA ENQUIRIES
