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March 24. Tony George and the Indy Racing League formed the
current Menards Infiniti Pro Series in 2001. The purpose of this Series was to
develop drivers for the IndyCar Series. In addition, the IRL touts the Pro
series as, "the fast track to Indy." To
help make the case for the "fast track", five previous Pro series drivers
qualified for and drove in last year's Indianapolis
500 race. (A. J. Foyt, Ed Carpenter,
Marty Roth, Mark Taylor and Jeff Simmons.)
The Menards Infiniti Pro Series is a great idea, and it's
exciting to watch. Yet it is perhaps one of the most under
publicized major open wheel racing series in the U. S., despite tape delayed ESPN2
coverage.
Case in point: last Sunday my local newspaper ran a lengthy
above the fold article on the results of the Phoenix IndyCar race the previous day.
It was an excellent article. Under the
title was the banner, "IRL IN ARIZONA."
But there was not a word about the Pro race that took place first! This additionally illustrates that the
Menards Infiniti Pro Series needs more promotion.
With this in mind, and our commitment to promoting open
wheel racing, we are making a special effort to showcase the Menards Infiniti
Pro Series and its drivers. Additionally,
we will use the blog format to follow a single driver over the entire race
season.
 This year we have chosen Wade Cunningham. Why Wade?
Wade was an integral part of our story about Indy car legend Rick
Mears,
and that tweaked our interest in finding out more about him. (See
"Rick Mears: Driver Coach," Part 1,2.) What is life like for a
rookie coming into the Pro series?
A 21 year old from New Zealand, Wade drives for Brian
Stewart Racing. In 2003 Wade became the first New Zealander to win the
World
Karting Championship. Last year he drove
in the Cooper Tires Formula Ford 2000 Zetec Championship. He
received their Rising Star award for
winning four poles and having seven podium finishes. In January
of this year, in one of the Toyota
Racing Series races, he was the fastest qualifier and the
winner.
.
"The Test in the West" was the first time Wade drove on an
oval track. Yet, three and a half weeks
later, he set the fastest race lap time and finished fourth in the season
opening race on the Homestead
oval track. In the next race in Phoenix, Wade had a third
place podium finish. So keep your eye on
this talented guy and pay particular attention to the Menards Infiniti Pro Series,
which is a venue for future Indy 500 winners.
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