All four team drivers have raced on the oval before – though three will see their first action in an INDY NXT car at the Madison, Ill. track
Taylor Ferns set for the “double” – contesting both the USAC Silver Crown race and the INDY NXT event
SPEEDWAY, Ind. (August 13, 2024) – ABEL Motorsports will field its largest team of the season in this weekend’s INDY NXT by Firestone’s OUTFRONT Showdown at World Wide Technology Raceway, with four cars set to take the green flag Saturday afternoon.
Jacob Abel (Louisville, Ky.), Yuven Sundaramoorthy (Oconomowoc, Wis.), Taylor Ferns (Shelby Township, Mich.) and Jordan Missig (Joliet, Ill.) all have experience on the 1.25-mile oval, located just across the Mississippi river from downtown St. Louis, Mo.
Abel has three USF Pro 2000 races and two INDY NXT races on the oval and has delivered improving results each season, with four top 10s finishes, while Sundaramoorthy and Missig both raced at WWTR two years ago in USF Pro 2000. Missig will make his INDY NXT oval debut this weekend.
While Ferns will race the No. 55 ABEL Motorsports Dallara at WWTR for the first time, the USAC veteran has raced at the 1.250-mile oval twice (2022 and 2023, and she tested there at age 16), all in her Silver Crown car. In 2022, she was pacing in the top three and looking for a podium, but a radiator issue with six laps remaining put her back in ninth at the checkered flag.
All four drivers tested on the Nashville Superspeedway last week, which puts them back into the oval mindset following the NTT INDYCAR SERIES’ “summer break” during the Paris Olympics (broadcast on NBC).
“It’s not your typical oval, because the two ends of the track are obviously pretty drastically different,” noted Abel. “Turns 1 and 2 are very tight and you end up lifting and downshifting, whereas 3 and 4 are two of the highest speed corners we race on. But it should be close to flat the whole race, which will be interesting. It presents a unique challenge because you need a different balance for both. We were good there last year, and we raced strong. We’re ready to get going after this break, with the first race of this final stretch, setting up a strong finish for the end of the season.”
“It’s nice that I’ve raced there several times before,” said Sundaramoorthy. “Of course, it would have been nice to test there, but I think we’ll still be pretty fast, the car was fast last year. It’s just going be the same as everywhere else: head down, just figure it out. The track has raced well in the past – two years ago, I was able to go two and three-wide, so it should be a good race.”
“I’m looking forward to going back there – it’s a good track for my oval debut,” said Missig. “I like the big ovals and I’m excited to see what it’s going to be like in the INDY NXT car, compared to the USF Pro 2000 car. I know there will be a substantial difference, but I know the ABEL Motorsports guys will be ready. I’m looking forward to getting some oval experience now with an eye toward next season, so that is one of the keys. Having the test last week at Nashville helped get me into the oval mindset, since it’s a very different driving style, so that gives us just that little bit more confidence going into this weekend.”
“I’m excited to get there and get more seat time in the INDY NXT car,” said Ferns, who will look to build on her Iowa INDY NXT debut last month. “I know it’s going to be much different than racing in the Silver Crown car – from the racing lines to the driving style. I’m excited to try that out and I’m ready for the challenge.”
Ferns is also ready for the challenge of competing in two very different races on the weekend. She will contest Friday’s 75-mile Ranken Technical College Silver Crown Shootout Presented by Welsch Heating & Cooling, and Saturday’s 75-lap INDY NXT by Firestone OUTFRONT Showdown.
“Racing is my passion, so I just didn’t feel right not doing it in the end,” said Ferns, who finished fourth in the Silver Crown main event last Saturday at Jennerstown (Pa.) Speedway. “The INDY NXT car is my focal point, but I think there’s just a natural intuition with the Silver Crown car – so I am skipping Silver Crown practice and qualifying in order to focus on the INDY NXT sessions, then doing Friday night’s race from the back of the field. I don’t have a problem passing cars so hopefully we can put on a good show.”
ABEL Motorsports thanks partners ABEL Construction Company, Advance Ready Mix, Boyd Cat®, S Team Motorsports and OMP for their continued support.
The INDY NXT by Firestone’s OUTFRONT Showdown takes the green flag Saturday at 4:05 p.m. ET. The race will be streamed live in the U.S. on Peacock, while international viewers can watch via INDYCARLIVE, with INDYCAR Radio available at indycar.com and on Sirius XM.
About ABEL Motorsports: Team principal Bill Abel began racing motocross in 1972, earning numerous championship titles as he continued the family tradition. In 2015, ABEL Motorsports was launched, starting in the USF2000 series and building up the junior open wheel ladder. The team captured the inaugural Formula Regional Americas Championship with driver Kyle Kirkwood in 2018.
ABEL Motorsports currently competes in the INDY NXT by Firestone series, the official development series for the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, led by third-generation driver Jacob Abel. The team made its INDYCAR debut in 2023 with driver RC Enerson in the Indianapolis 500. For more information visit the official team website at abelmotorsports.com.
About ABEL Construction Company: ABEL Construction specializes in general contracting and construction management, design build, IPD and facilities maintenance. Based in Louisville, Ky, ABEL is one of the largest contractors in the Kentuckiana region and has helped build some of the area’s most recognizable landmarks.
ABEL Construction was founded in 1938 and is now a fourth-generation, family-owned business, recognized for its experience, stability and capabilities, and focused on relationships and trust. That’s the ABEL way. abelconstruct.com/.
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