JAY HOWARD’S MOTORSPORTS DRIVER DEVELOPMENT MID-SEASON REVIEW

In between racing duties at the 101st running of the Indianapolis 500, Jay Howard continued to build, improve and manage his Motorsports Driver Development program (MDD). In only their third year of existence, 2017 has been good to Jay and his Indiana based company has secured national race wins in karting, launched one the series best Formula 4 programs and manages the MDD Sprint Kart Championship at NOLA Motorsports Park.

“2017 has been very busy but I would not have it any other way,” explained Howard. “The MDD karting program has grown tremendously on both the regional and national level and my F4 program has been very successful. Now halfway through the season, we are looking to finish 2017 strong as we already have begun plans for 2018.”

With the debut of the F4 program, three of the MDD supported drivers were able to qualify in the top-eight in a strong field of 33 cars. In wheel-to-wheel competition, MDD drivers secured the first and second fastest times at the first event weekend held on the road course of the Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Florida.

Howard continued, “We were able to promote from within the MDD karting program and advance Braden Eves into an F4 car for his first ever open-wheel event. With only one day of practice, he was able to qualify on the front row and drive to a very impressive second place performance.”

In karting action, Indiana driver Elliot Cox was able to secure the IAME Micro Swift SuperKarts! USA (SKUSA) WinterNational race win at NOLA Motorsports Park aboard his MDD prepared Vemme Kart. At the very next SKUSA Pro Tour event, IAME X30 Senior pilot Eves and his Vemme chasiss scored an impressive victory to stand atop the box at the Simraceway Performance Karting Center in Sonoma, California. The World Karting Association (WKA) Manufacturers Cup has been good to MDD drivers with pole positions, podium results and wins for both Colin Neal in Junior competition and Eves in the Senior ranks.

The MDD Sprint Kart Championship program at NOLA Motorsports Park continues to grow. With more entries with each passing round, the program that was put in place and promoted by Howard himself, looks to advance drivers into the national level and onwards with their careers.

Howard added, “One of the coolest elements to the MDD program for me was not only my participation in the 2017 Indianapolis 500, but the fact that I was able to have some of the young karters and competitors under the MDD banner with me at the track during practice, qualifications and the race weekend. These lucky drivers were able to see all the action behind the scenes and have a VIP experience at the world’s largest single day sporting event.”

Jay Howard and MDD would like to thank everyone involved in making the F4 debut a success: the crew, drivers and sponsors including Team One Cure, Lucas Oil, NOLA Motorsports Park and Green 1. The team would also like to thank the F4 Championship, SCCA Pro Series, Honda HPD, Pirelli and Onroak for a great season to date.

For more information on Jay Howard’s Motorsports Driver Development program, please contact him via e-mail to Jay@JayHoward.com or visit him online at www.JayHoward.com.