Maple, Ont. Resident Ready to Take on The Indianapolis Motor Speedway in The Freedom 100
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.– With a rock steady, consistent racing program under his belt so far in the Firestone Indy Lights Series this season, young Canadian driver David Ostella is ready to kick it up a notch at the Freedom 100 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this Friday.
Ostella and the No. 22 Global Precast/LiUNA/Xtreme Coil Drilling Team Moore Racing crew have recently logged two very respectable top-ten finishes in the last two races. However, they are shifting gears and are ready to break out of their current mold and head toward the front of the field on the weekend of “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” at the Speedway.
The recent Firestone Indy Lights open-test on May 11 provided just the incentive the Team Moore Racing stable needed as Ostella and his new engineer Don Bricker quickly found their rhythm and were able to post the overall second fastest time of the test, just behind teammate Gustavo Yacaman in the No. 2 car.
With set-ups dialed in and posted lap-times that put him solidly out front , Ostella is more than ready for the green flag to drop this Friday.
“My favorite part of this race is the start of the race. Getting ready, sitting in the car and knowing there’s a big crowd out there watching,” said Ostella, “It’s a dream come true to race on this track.”
Twenty-year-old Ostella of Maple, Ont., is looking forward to making the transition once again from the rough and challenging street circuits and smooth winding road courses that started the season, to the 2.5-mile fast and smooth oval track of the IMS.
“The driving style is different and my mindset is different as well. The oval isn’t as physically demanding. It’s mostly mental,” Ostella said. “With the ridiculously fast speeds we’re hitting in Indy, I need to be focused. I love the oval though. It’s made for amazing racing. ”
Last year inclement weather shortened track time considerable, completely eliminating qualifying and cutting practice down to merely 10 minutes, resulting in an eighth place finish for Ostella.
Practice begins with a three-hour practice session on Thursday, May 24 from 9 am to 12 pm, followed by a one-hour qualifying session at 1:15 pm.
The 40-lap Freedom 100 will take place on Legendary Carburetion Day, Friday, May 25, with pre-race and driver introductions at 12:15 pm in the shadow of the famed Pagoda on the historic Yard of Bricks. The live race broadcast will commence at 12:30 pm on NBC Sports.