Michai Stephens and Dakota Dickerson were named winners of the 2015 Team USA Scholarships and will travel to England later this month to compete in a pair of famous international events to further their racing careers.
The drivers will represent the U.S. in the Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch and the Walter Hayes Trophy at Silverstone, driving Ray chassis prepared by Cliff Dempsey Racing.
Dickerson, 18, from San Diego, and Stephens, 23, from Evanston, Ill., earned the scholarships from a field of 12 nominees following a "shootout" last month at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif., that included an assessment comprised of a variety of on- and off-track activities.
The Team USA Scholarship is celebrating 25 years of providing opportunities for American race car drivers. Past recipients include Indy car drivers Jimmy Vasser, Bryan Herta, Buddy Rice, Josef Newgarden, JR Hildebrand and Conor Daly.
Driver-athletes tackle the challenges
Andretti Autosport driver Marco Andretti has been training for the Runner's World Half Marathon on Oct. 18 in Bethlehem, Pa.
Two-time Indy car champion Alex Zanardi knocked nearly seven minutes off his 2014 time in completing the Ironman World Championship presented by GoPro (2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride and 26.2-mile run) on Oct. 10 in Hawaii.
Zanardi, 48, who lost both legs in a crash at Lausitzring in Germany in 2001, won a cycling gold medal at the 2012 Paralympic Games in London. He uses a handbike for the cycling portion and an Olympic wheelchair for the running section.
Of note
Four-time Indy car champion Sebastien Bourdais and co-driver Lee Holdsworth finished ninth in the V8 Superscars Bathurst 1000 in Australia over the weekend. They qualified fourth. Verizon IndyCar Series veteran Simona de Silvestro and co-driver Renee Gracie placed 21st. … Andretti Autosport driver and 2014 Sunoco Rookie of the Year Carlos Munoz (below) was among the attendees Oct. 10 of the Diamond Ball – Miami Children’s Health System’s signature fund-raising event. ... Andretti Autosport's Ryan Hunter-Reay, Andretti and Munoz are scheduled to participate in a team test Oct. 26 at Barber Motorsports Park.