Road to Indy

Since its launch in 2010, the Road to Indy ladder system has attracted competitors from around the globe. Drivers from Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Finland, France, Ireland, Korea, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Philippines, Spain, United Kingdom, Venezuela and Zimbabwe have been part of the grids, showcasing their talents at premier venues on a mix of road courses, temporary street circuits and ovals.

From “The World’s Fastest Spring Break Party” in St. Petersburg, Fla., to the famed Brickyard – the Indianapolis Motor Speedway – drivers compete on the NTT IndyCar Series stage in front of large crowds and television cameras as well as team owners, sponsors and media.

Sanctioned by INDYCAR, the Road to Indy provides drivers, teams and sponsors an opportunity to gain valuable experience on and off the track while following a clear-cut path of progression through three development series: Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship, the Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires and Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires.

Spencer Pigot, 25, exemplifies the success of the Road to Indy platform.

Pigot, who began karting at age 9, made the move into car racing in 2009, winning the Skip Barber Shoot-Out Top Scholarship Award and a season of competition in the 2010 BFGoodrich/Skip Barber National Series Presented by Mazda as an official Mazda Development driver. He claimed the title as a rookie to secure another Mazda scholarship prize and ensure his graduation onto the first step of the Road to Indy, the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship, in 2011.

After consecutive runner-up finishes in the USF2000 title-chase, Pigot capped another two years in the Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires by winning the crown and another scholarship prize in 2014 which enabled him to move on to Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires in 2015.

Pigot earned his fourth scholarship – a prize valued at $1M with a guaranteed three-race program in IndyCar including the Indianapolis 500 – by claiming the 2015 Indy Lights title and made his NTT IndyCar Series debut with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing and Ed Carpenter Racing in 2016. He now drives full-time for Ed Carpenter Racing.