The new season of USF2000, the second step of the USF Pro Championships ladder, is fast approaching, with a focus on organisational stability and a number of exciting young talents joining the fray. Feeder Series tells you all you need to know about the 2026 USF2000 season. 

By Vincent van der Hoek

Just as in every junior series, there is a high amount of turnover in USF2000. More than half the grid is new this year, and two new teams enter the fray in 2026.

Last season, Jack Jeffers stormed to the USF2000 championship and gained a promotion to USF Pro 2000. He earned a scholarship worth $405,000 to help his progression up the ladder. The 2026 champion is set to receive $409,816, a slight increase over the 2025 amount. Twenty-four drivers will contest the opening round in hopes of starting their seasons on the right foot and taking home the prize.

The calendar

Just as in 2025, most USF2000 rounds will be run in support of the IndyCar Series events, apart from the round at Indianapolis Raceway Park oval, held on the Thursday and Friday before the Indianapolis 500, and the final round at Road America, which is held on a separate weekend after the IndyCar season ends. 

NOLA Motorsports Park has been removed from the calendar and replaced by a second weekend at Road America in September. The Canadian rounds of the championship have moved from the streets of Toronto to a new street course in Markham in Greater Toronto. 

• Races 1–2: Streets of St. Petersburg (27 February–1 March)
• Races 3–5: Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course (7–9 May)
• Race 6: Indianapolis Raceway Park (21–22 May)
• Races 7–9: Road America (18–21 June)
• Races 10–11: Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (2–5 July)
• Races 12–13: Portland International Raceway (6–9 August)
• Races 14–15: Streets of Markham (14–16 August)
• Races 16–18: Road America (24–26 September)

The format

Each race weekend begins with one or two 35-minute practice sessions, at least one qualifying session and usually two or three races. The exception is the event at IRP, which is a standalone race.

Each qualifying session sets the grid for the race. In case of double- or triple-headers, the remaining races will be set by the second-fastest lap a driver completed in qualifying or the fastest lap in the previous race. Bonus points are awarded for the driver on pole position.

On road courses, qualifying sessions follow the standard format in junior series racing in which drivers all hit the track at once aiming to set the fastest time. The qualifying format on ovals is similar to that of the IndyCar Series. Drivers go out one b -one on an empty racetrack, where they will get a warmup lap and two green-flag laps. The driver who sets the fastest aggregate speed across both laps is awarded pole position. 

Points are awarded for every position in the race, starting with 30 points for a race win, 25 points for second place, 22 points for third place, 19 points for fourth place, and 17 points for fifth place. From sixth place on down, points decrease by increments of one. Drivers placed 20th and lower score just one point. 

At the series’ sole oval race at IRP, the race winner earns 45 points, second place 38 points and third place 33 points. The oval points are all 1.5 times the value of the regular points scored on a road or street course, rounded up to the nearest integer for any half points. 

In all races, bonus points can be earned for setting the fastest lap and leading the most laps of the race.

USF2000 also has a teams’ championship, with the top two entries from each team eligible for points. The best-performing entry in a weekend gets 22 points, the second-best 18 points and the third-best eligible entry 15 points. From there, points decrease by two for each eligible entry, from 12 to two, with 10th and lower earning one point. Points are reallocated, meaning that if, for example, a three-car team locks out the top three places, the 15 points ostensibly reserved for third go to the entry in fourth.

Teams with a single-car entry get three bonus points per race to lessen the disadvantage they may face.

Where to watch

All USF2000 sessions will be broadcast live on the USF Pro Championships app and on YouTube. Live timing will be available during sessions on the USF Pro Championships app as well as the USF2000 website.

Teams and drivers 

Benchmark Autosport have left the series. Synergy Motorsport competed in a full season last year but have yet to announce plans for 2026.

VRD Racing

VRD Racing, previously known as Velocity Racing Development, were founded by Dan Mitchell in 2019 and made their USF2000 debut in 2021. Last season, they finished first in the teams’ championship, while Teddy Musella finished second in the standings behind Jeffers.

João Vergara (#3) has been promoted to USF2000 from the VRD Racing USF Juniors team. The 18-year-old Brazilian finished the USF Juniors season in third place in the standings, winning twice and standing on the podium six times.

Colin Aitken (#19) stays with the team for his first full season in USF2000 in 2026. The 18-year-old Floridian joined VRD Racing for the final six races of the 2025 USF Juniors season, in which he took a personal best finish of seventh in race one at Road America. This winter, Aitken took part in the YACademy Winter Series, winning two races and finishing fourth overall.

Jack Mohrhardt (#78) will enter his first year in the USF Pro Championships system. The Michigan native finished second in the Formula FARA championship in 2025. Prior to Formula FARA, the 18-year-old competed in the 2024 Skip Barber Formula Race Series. This winter Mohrhardt participated in the YACademy Winter Series.

Ryan Giannetta (#44) stays with VRD Racing for a second year in USF2000. The 16-year-old from California finished 18th in the championship last year. 

Though he will step up to USF Pro 2000 for the 2026 season, Teddy Musella (#25) will contest the opening round of the season for VRD. The 16-year-old Floridian, who won the 2024 Ligier JS F4 title, finished the 2025 USF2000 season second in the standings, defeating Thomas Schrage by one point after winning the season-ending race at Portland. That came after his maiden victory at Road America, while he also had seven other podium finishes across the 18-race campaign.

Then, after he turns 15 in March, Oliver Wheldon is expected to step up with VRD Racing in Musella’s place. Last year, the American raced in USF Juniors, finishing fifth in the standings and standing on the podium seven times in 16 races. Wheldon, one of the two sons of the late Dan Wheldon, is the younger brother of Sebastian Wheldon, who is racing in FR Middle East and FR Europe this year. Both brothers are supported by Andretti Global. 

Exclusive Autosport

Exclusive Autosport were founded in 2013 by Canadian businessman Michael Duncalfe. The team enjoyed a fantastic season in 2025 as they won the USF2000 championship with Jack Jeffers, who won six races and stood on the podium 13 times in 18 races. Carried by Jeffers, the team finished second in the teams’ standings.

For the 2026 USF2000 season, Exclusive Autosport have announced four full-time drivers, two of whom are brothers and another of whom is one half of a USF Pro Championships sibling pair. 

Evan Cooley (#90), son of team co-owner Joshua Cooley, returns to Exclusive Autosport for a second season. The 19-year-old Illinois resident finished his rookie season in sixth place in the standings while also standing on the podium on two occasions. 

Anthony Martella (#92) joins the team after driving his rookie season in the series with JHDD. The 17-year-old Canadian finished seventh in the standings in 2025. His best performance of his first season in the series was his victory at the short oval at IRP. 

Ayrton Cahan (#94) will enter his first USF2000 season with Exclusive Autosport. The 18-year-old won the Formula Race Promotions F1600 championship in 2025. He clinched the title with four victories and 16 podium finishes, narrowly beating his older brother to the title. 

Still, Gabriel Cahan (#93) will get a chance to get revenge when he joins Exclusive Autosport for the 2026 USF2000 season. The 20-year-old – who, like his brother, hails from New Mexico – won seven races in F1600 while finishing on the podium 12 times. 

While those are the four full-time drivers, Exclusive Autosport has one more entry on the grid in 2026 as Kaylee Countryman (#97) will run USF2000 races alongside her F1 Academy campaign with ART Grand Prix and Haas backing. The 16-year-old Arizona native is not a stranger to Exclusive Autosport, having finished 16th in USF Juniors last season with the team in addition to taking part in four USF2000 races. Her F1 Academy commitments will cause her to miss at least the IRP and Mid-Ohio rounds.

Also set to race in a partial campaign is Connor Aspley (#91), who currently competes in USF Juniors for Exclusive Autosport but will join them for USF2000 for the St Petersburg round. The 20-year-old from Missouri finished his rookie USF Juniors season 13th in the standings. 

Pabst Racing

Pabst Racing are the longest-serving team in USF2000. The team, founded by the descendants of the Pabst and U-Line business empires, specialises in American single-seaters. In 2025, the team won one race with Caleb Gafrarar and scored a total of seven podiums. The year before, Pabst won the championship with Max Garcia.

Brad Majman (#22) joins the team from JHDD, with whom he finished 12th in the standings in his rookie USF2000 season. The best finish the 16-year-old Australian took was a third place at IRP. Majman’s career is overseen by Fernando Alonso’s A14 Management entity.

Eddie Beswick (#23) will enter his second season in the series with Pabst Racing. The 20-year-old Australian finished 10th in the standings in 2025 while driving for Synergy Motorsport. 

The team is completed by 18-year-old rookie Lucas Nanji (#24). The Canadian will enter his first full season of open-wheel racing after spending four years in karting. Last year, Nanji made his open-wheel debut by competing in one event of the E4 championship at Monza, having done multiple tests with Prema beforehand. 

Jay Howard Driver Development powered by ECR

Jay Howard Driver Development, founded by former IndyCar driver Jay Howard, compete in all three USF series. Ahead of the upcoming season, JHDD announced a new partnership with IndyCar’s Ed Carpenter Racing, who will provide technical support. Having made their USF2000 debut in 2017, JHDD had a strong chance to deliver their first USF2000 champion in 2025 when Liam McNeilly won the first five races of the season. The Englishman, however, was forced to withdraw from the series because of prolonged visa issues just before the sixth race at Indianapolis. 

For 2026, the team has announced four rookie drivers, led by Liam Loiacono (#6), who finished second in USF Juniors in 2025 with the team. The Australian driver took five race wins and two second places in 16 races last year. After the USF Juniors season concluded, the 18-year-old took part in the USF Pro Fall combine test with JHDD. Prior to racing in America, Loiacono raced in his native Australia in the Australian Formula Ford Series, finishing fourth in the standings with three race wins, and the Victorian Formula Ford Championship, in which he finished third in the standings with two race wins.

Naim Saleh (#7) also joins JHDD for his first season in USF2000. The Brazilian driver joins the series after having finished third in the Skip Barber Race Series last year. Additionally, the 15-year-old competed in the non-championship weekend of the Brazilian F4 championship in support of the F1 grand prix at Interlagos.

Erik Holm (#8) will be making his junior single-seater debut with JHDD in USF2000. Last year, the 20-year-old Swedish driver karted at the KZ2 level and finished 13th in the WSK Super Master Series, 38th in the FIA Karting European Championship and 47th in the Champions of the Future Euro Series, running partial campaigns in the latter two. 

Cal Peter (#9) is a 17-year-old karting graduate who will enter his first season in open-wheel racing. In 2025, Peter, who lives in Indiana, took part in the USF Pro Fall Combine test with JHDD. He otherwise made appearances in the Pro X30 and KA100 Senior classes of SuperKarts! USA events in 2025.

DEForce Racing

DEForce Racing were founded by brothers David and Ernesto Martínez in 2016 and have quickly become a mainstay in all three USF series. The team have enjoyed success in USF2000 thanks to Kiko Porto, who won the 2021 USF2000 championship. In 2025, the team scored two podiums. For the upcoming season, they have announced two full-time drivers. 

Sebastián Garzón (#12) returns to the team for a second season. The 16-year-old Colombian finished the 2025 season eighth in the championship standings with a season-best third place in the final race of the season in Portland. 

Alongside Garzón, Thomas Nordquist (#17) will make his debut in USF2000. The 22-year-old based in Nebraska finished 17th overall in USF Juniors in 2025. Prior to that campaign, Nordquist competed in the YACademy Winter Series and the Skip Barber Formula Race Series. 

There will be a third entry for the USF2000 season opener at St Petersburg in the form of Brady Golan (#10), who raced for the team at Mid-Ohio in 2023, the full season in 2024 and the first five races of 2025. The 18-year-old Texan has otherwise been announced for the 2026 USF Pro 2000 season with Turn 3 Motorsport. In 26 previous races in USF2000 with DEForce, Golan’s best finish was seventh at Toronto in 2024. 

Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing Development

Longtime IndyCar fans will recognize the name of former IndyCar driver Sarah Fisher, who raced in the series from 1999 until 2010 and became a team owner in 2008. After Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing merged with Ed Carpenter Racing in 2015, Fisher took a step back as a team owner until she relaunched the team as Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing Development in 2022. Last season in USF2000, SFHR competed in 15 of the 18 races, with the team’s best finish being a fifth place in race two at the IMS road course.

Wian Boshoff (#67) returns to the team for a second year in USF2000. The South African driver finished 17th in the standings last year. During USF Spring Training in February, Boshoff consistently featured in the top 10, suggesting a stronger second season may be in the offing for the 16-year-old.

ENVE Motorsport

Founded in 2025, ENVE Motorsport are trying to gain a foothold in the IndyCar ladder. The team based out of the Thermal Club circuit in California took part in three races with Spencer Hancock at the end of 2025 and will now gear up for their first full season in USF2000. Indy NXT driver Matteo Nannini is team manager and co-founder of ENVE Motorsport.

The team enters as a single-car team with debutant Wesley Gundler (#46) behind the wheel. The 17-year-old California resident previously raced in the F1600 championship series, in which he finished third in the standings. 

Zanella Racing

Zanella Racing are set to make their debut in USF2000. The team founded by José Zanella in 2012 have been active throughout karting and USF Juniors. 

The team comes into this season on a high after clinching the USF Juniors championship with Leonardo Escorpioni (#55) in 2025. The Brazilian has been supported by Zanella Racing since 2020 and graduates along with the team to USF2000. The 16-year-old won six races in USF Juniors and stood on the podium 14 times in the 16-race season.

The grid at a glance

Team	#	Driver
VRD Racing	3	João Vergara (R)
	19	Colin Aitken (R)
	25	Teddy Musella
	44	Ryan Giannetta
	78	Jack Mohrhardt (R)
	TBA	Oliver Wheldon (R)
Jay Howard Driver Development powered by ECR	6	Liam Loiacono (R)
	7	Naim Saleh (R)
	8	Erik Holm (R)
	9	Cal Peter (R)
DEForce Racing	10	Brady Golan
	12	Sebastián Garzón
	17	Thomas Nordquist (R)
Pabst Racing	22	Brad Majman
	23	Eddie Beswick
	24	Lucas Nanji (R)
ENVE Motorsports	46	Wesley Gundler (R)
Zanella Racing	55	Leonardo Escorpioni (R)
Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing Development	67	Wian Boshoff
Exclusive Autosport	90	Evan Cooley
	91	Connor Aspley (R)
	92	Anthony Martella
	93	Gabriel Cahan (R)
	94	Ayrton Cahan (R)
	97	Kaylee Countryman (R)

Header photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography