Deep Throttle
American Driver
Prospects Ranking
For Open Wheel Road Racing
November 4, 2008
The 2008 final ranking features the top 15 American driver prospects for open wheel road racing. Here is the press release for this month's ranking. The 2009 rankings will begin in March.
| |
Driver |
Last Month |
| 1 |
Jonathan Bomarito (Atlantic)
Finished second in the championship with three wins, a second, and three poles. Got hot and cold with racing luck and results. |
1 |
| 2 |
Jonathan Summerton (Atlantic)
Third place in the points with two wins, two seconds, a third, and a pole. |
2 |
| 3 |
Richard Antinucci (Indy Lights)
Completed the season with two victories, four seconds, two thirds, one pole, tied for the lead with most top five finishes (9), and finished 14 out of 16 races. |
3 |
| 4 |
John Edwards (Star Mazda)
Another victory (Road Atlanta) and second place (Laguna Seca) propels him to the series championship with four wins, two seconds, a third, and four poles. |
4 |
| 5 |
Joel Miller (Star Mazda)
Earned runnerup status in the series with a win, four seconds, three thirds, two poles, and only twice finished out of the top four in 12 races. |
5 |
| 6 |
J.R. Hildebrand (Indy Lights)
Finished the season fifth in the final standings with one win, one second, eight top five finishes, and completed 14 out of 16 races. |
6 |
| 7 |
Conor Daly (Skip Barber National)
After winning the championship with five victories, went to England and did what no American has ever done -- win the Walter Hayes Trophy. |
8 |
| 8 |
Josef Newgarden (Skip Barber National)
After a runnerup performance in the series with three wins, went to England and did what no American has ever done -- win the Formula Ford Festival. |
11 |
| 9 |
Carl Skerlong (Atlantic)
Missed the last race due to injury, and thus wound up sixth in the standings. Had one win, two seconds, a third, and two poles. |
9 |
| 10 |
Dane Cameron (Atlantic)
Finished seventh in points but with no victories. Got a second, a third, and a pole. Made a guest appearance in a Las Vegas Pacific 2000 race, and dominated the field for a win from pole. |
10 |
| 11 |
Jeff Westphal (Pacific F2000)
Won the last race of a season of domination, but losing to guest driver Cameron drops him down in the rankings. |
7 |
| 12 |
Alexander Rossi (FBMW)
Again won a pair of races, this time at Interlagos. Yet, once again the field was thin. Will be very interesting to see how Rossi fares against a tougher field in a different series next year. |
12 |
| 13 |
Alex Ardoin (Star Mazda)
Remained in fourth place in the final standings with two seconds, two thirds, and one pole. |
13 |
| 14 |
Robert Podlesni (Pacific F2000)
Wrapped up the Pacific F2000 season with a second place which was also his position in the standings with one win for the year. |
14 |
| 15 |
Sean Rayhall (Skip Barber National)
Didn't fare as well in his second Skip Barber National appearance, but still a driver to keep on your radar. |
15 |
| Dropped out: No one. |
Copyright © 2008 by Russell Jaslow and Deep Throttle. All Rights Reserved. Any reprint of this ranking must be done in its entirety and mention Deep Throttle as the source. Any online reprint of this poll must provide a link to the Deep Throttle home page. Otherwise, no reuse permission is granted.
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