Team Penske driver Will Power will be awarded the keys to Toowoomba on Sept. 29 after a special meeting of Toowoomba Regional Council.

Council announced last September that Power would be given the ceremonial keys after he won the 2014 Verizon IndyCar Series championship. Mayor Paul Antonio said Power, who became the first Australian to claim an Indy car title, was a worthy recipient.

"He's a great ambassador for the city," Antonio said. "Not only is he at a world level in his profession, he's a very humble person that hasn't forgotten his roots in Toowoomba."

Power, who followed up his championship season by placing third in the 2015 standings with one victory and six pole starts in 16 races, is visiting family and friends in Queensland. On Sept. 27 in Sydney, he was among the guests to walk the red carpet (above, with his father) for the Dally M awards, which honor the best of the National Rugby League.

He also began making the rounds to promote “The Sheer Force of Will Power,” which Power co-wrote with David Malsher and is being published by HarperCollins. It goes on sale Oct. 19.

USF2000 Scholarship Shootout field expands

The winners of F1600 championships in England, New Zealand and Scotland will join the group of young drivers who be eligible to contest the Mazda Road to Indy USF2000 Scholarship Shootout in 2016.

The Shootout, announced in August, will bring the champions of North American and international series together for the first time with a $200,000 Mazda scholarship on the line to join the first step of the ladder system, the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda, in 2017.

The initial group announced included ROTAX MAX Challenge, Skip Barber Race Series, the F2000 and F1600 Championship Series, Pacific F2000, Formula Car Challenge, SCCA Runoffs (F1600 and FC), the Team USA Scholarship, Australian Formula Ford Championship and BRSCC F1600 in England.

Of note

A.J. Foyt, who underwent surgery Sept. 22 to implant an artificial knee in his right leg, returned to his Houston home Sept. 25. He should be up and around for the November wedding of his son, Larry, to Kelly Curran. Larry Foyt is president of A.J. Foyt Enterprises and the team director of AJ Foyt Racing.