St. Patrick’s Day may not be until March 17, but there will still be plenty for Irish supporters to enjoy this weekend when Keith Donegan makes his debut in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship powered by Mazda on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida.
The 20-year-old from Navan, Ireland, captured the Mazda Road to Indy USF2000 $200K Scholarship Shootout in December, which enabled a chance to compete in the first rung of the INDYCAR-sanctioned development ladder for the 2018 season. He will pilot the No. 30 Soul Red Mazda/Tatuus USF-17 for ArmsUp Motorsports.
Looking through the archive of notable racers from the Emerald Isle, the list includes current FIM Superbike World Championship rider Eugene Laverty, former Formula 1 driver Derek Daly and Adam Carroll, who started two races in the Verizon IndyCar Series with Andretti Autosport in 2010.
However, Donegan’s path is similarly tied to that of former Mazda Road to Indy driver Peter Dempsey, who took victory in the thrilling 2013 edition of the Freedom 100 – the crown jewel event of Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires. Ironically, though from different towns, both hail from County Meath.
“There’s been some quick drivers that came out of Ireland, like even down through the years,” said Donegan, the 2013 runner-up in the Ginetta Junior Championship.
“Hopefully, I’m one of them and I’ll have success this year and future years in MRTI. I don’t intend on it (being) like a flash in the pan, I want my career to be in the States.
“Hopefully, we can get a bit of success like Peter did. He went all the way to Indy Lights. So hopefully I’ll be the same and go one step further (to the Verizon IndyCar Series).”
Last month, Donegan admitted to some growing pains in getting acclimated with his new team and new car while testing during the annual Mazda Road to Indy spring training on the Homestead-Miami Speedway road course. After 102 laps over six sessions, he posted the 15th-best pace at 93.439 mph (1 minute, 25.1467 seconds) around the 14-turn, 2.21-mile circuit.
Donegan felt his comfort growing every session at Homestead. For that reason, there is a lot for him to like in joining the Wisconsin-based squad.
“Basically, what I find is with some teams it can be difficult for them to change the car to how you want it,” said Donegan.
“Every driver has such a different driving style that you have to tweak the car and adapt it to make a driver comfortable in the car. And what I like most about this team is they take my feedback and they value it like they really believe in me, that I can do it, that I can get the car going well.
“We’re constantly making progress and that’s what I really liked. They’re organized. They’re clean. They’re meticulous with things, and I like it as well.”
Donegan is also benefiting from the knowledge of two engineers.
“I have my own engineer, Pat Duffy, that I’ve always used. Him and John (Walko, engineer at ArmsUp Motorsports) work really well together. So two of them are putting their heads together trying to get this car sorted, so I know we’ll be able to get it done.”
Among the many positive things about Donegan, one of the more remarkable is that he isn’t afraid to grease his knuckles to work on an engine or adapt to other mechanical aspects of the car. In turn, that knowledge combined with diverse experience that includes running Formula Ford could provide an added boost against the competition.
“I know a good lot of guys coming to USF2000 straight out of karts, but I feel like I’ve gone into cars since I was 15 so I’ve got a bit of experience,” said Donegan.
“I know I took three and a half years off when I was in college, but last year especially stuck to me because we ran the whole thing ourselves. It was up to me to develop the car. I’m prepared as well and learned all about how the suspension works, how the roll bars work, what the changes feel like, what spring rates feel like, damper settings and camber. All the things like that.
“Now, what we’ve been working on is just learning and making one change at a time, and we’re making progress. We’re going the direction we want to go. So yeah, it’s definitely standing out to me now.”
Twenty-four cars are entered for the St. Petersburg doubleheader race weekend to start the 2018 season. Practice and first-race qualifying are scheduled for Friday, second-race qualifying and the first 40-minute race on Saturday, with the second race set for Sunday.