Douglas leaves Ohio with eyes forward following mixed round

By: Velocity News
July 6, 2023

Jacob Douglas has his eyes forward following a mixed weekend at Mid-Ohio in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship.

The Kiwi teenager had started the weekend well in testing, with a P6 and P3, before qualifying tenth for Race 1 and sixth for Races 2 and 3.

An early charge in the opener saw him move up to seventh, before an unfortunate incident saw him forced to retire.

Fortunes changed in the second race, with Douglas showing similar pace to that which had seen him podium on debut with Pabst Racing just last round. Two Safety Cars during the race limited his chances of moving forward, however, resulting in a P6 finish.

“I got back out there in Race 2 but didn’t make the most of the start and the restarts,” said Douglas. “I started P6 and finished P6.”

Misfortune struck in Race 3, with a mechanical difficulty putting him a lap down and removing him from contention.

Despite two tough races, Douglas leaves Ohio looking at the positives and sees the round as a learning experience.

“Overall, we were definitely closer on pace in Mid-Ohio than we were at Road America,” he said. “I’m getting more used to the car, as it’s quite different to my previous one.

“We’ve definitely learnt a lot this past weekend driving wise, working more with the team and getting a good feel for the car. I’m always learning, but overall we just need to make sure we’re capitalizing on what’s going on in front, because I didn’t do that when I was out there in Race 1 and Race 2.”

History is also on the side of Douglas as the series returns to the Streets of Toronto next month, with the Kiwi having qualified as high as fourth and finished fifth and seventh over two races in his rookie season last year.

“I’m looking forward to Toronto and heading out there,” he adds. “It was probably our strongest track last year, so I’m really looking forward to that.

“I’m definitely looking to repeat that now I’ve had two weekends with the new team. I’m wanting to take a big step forward pace-wise and challenge at the front, because that’s the goal and what we want to be doing.”

USF2000 returns for two races in Toronto over the weekend of July 14-16.