Maybe a future F1 driver....

[68camaro]

Cool thread, please keep it going so we can follow his progress.

Chuck

[K7Baixo2]

Originally Posted by Tripp11

I will be at Indy May 9-10th and also at Lucas Oil Raceway on May 24th. I will make it a point to take interest in Victor!

Cool - let's touch base before then and see if we can't meet.

Originally Posted by 68camaro

Cool thread, please keep it going so we can follow his progress.

Chuck

Will do Chuck. I appreciate your interest!

[wy2l]

“I don't give a shit for fame, I don't give a shit for society. I don't want to make friends with anybody who's important. I just want to win." - Nelson Piquet (Formula One race car driver)

[K7Baixo2]

Victor arrived in FL for tests with his new team, Afterburner Autosport.

Here's their site and, from another site in part,

"As a team we built tremendous momentum in 2013, and we are looking for that to continue throughout out 2014," stated Team principal Tim Walsh. "This year we are excited to have partnered with some really talented young drivers such as returning driver Jeroen Slaghekke, and newcomers Victor Franzoni and Gustavo Myasava. Were also working to secure a fourth racer as a teammate to this exciting trio. Our goal is to be the best, and with that come results. It should be an exciting year!"

"I am very excited for the beginning of the season," said Franzoni. "It will be my first year of racing in the USA, and my first time in the USF2000 series. I am very happy to be part of the Afterburner team. I think we can do a great job together. We did well in the winter test, and I am sure that it will be an excellent partnership. I hope good results will come."

Franzoni enters the Mazda to Road Indy program with Afterburner Autosport having recently showcased his talents in Europe. The 18 year-old Brazilian competed in both the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 and Formula Renault 2.0 ALPS series over the past two years, highlighted by a pair of pole positions. Prior to making the move to Europe, Franzoni was a Formula Future Fiat race winner in his homeland.

[scottIN]

Maybe I missed it, but has he considered IndyCar?

I raced karts every weekend with Josef Newgarden & Conor Daly - both of them have been through RTI. I'll tell you, it's all about the money. Conor has had trouble getting backing so he does a lot of one-offs, where Josef had some family money as well as some backers that have kept him in it. It doesn't matter if you're the most talented driver in the world, if you can't bring the money to the team, you're watching from pitwall. It's a little different in F1, but in IndyCar, even the top drivers bring more to the teams than they make.

And FWIW, Josef and I started racing the same year (8 years ago now). Six years later and he's in the Indy 500 and I'm still racing karts...

[K7Baixo2]

Brazilian Franzoni Wins Cooper Tires Winterfest USF2000 Opener

Link

February 21, 2014

New Orleans, La. – Victor Franzoni might be small in stature at just 5' 3" but he certainly stood tall in this afternoon’s opening round of the six-race Cooper Tires Winterfest for the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda, taking a hard-fought victory for Afterburner Autosport at NOLA Motorsports Park. Norway’s Henrik Furuseth finished second for JAY Motorsports, while polesitter RC Enerson, from New Port Ritchey, Fla., completed the podium for Team E Racing.

The 18-year-old Franzoni, from Sao Paulo, Brazil, who has raced Formula Renault cars in Europe the past two years, started third in the 17-car field but vaulted into the lead shortly after a mid-race restart and remained out in front when the race was concluded under a second full-course caution.

Enerson posted the fastest lap in qualifying at 1:35.270, an average speed of 103.915 mph on the 2.75-mile road course, and jumped into the lead in confident style at the start. Danilo Estrela, making his debut with defending series champion team Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing, made a move to the outside at Turn One but succeeded only in losing a couple of positions to Furuseth, who jumped from sixth on the grid to second, and Franzoni. Estrela settled into fourth ahead of Clarke Toppe (JDC MotorSports), who was showing vastly improved form over last year.

The yellow flags were flying even before the first lap had been completed, however, when Aaron Telitz (ArmsUp Motorsports) spun at the exit of Turn One after being clipped inadvertently by Toppe. A close-following Scott Andrews (JDC MotorSports) also was caught up in the melee. Telitz was able to continue at the back of the field, but the unfortunate Australian was out on the spot.

The restart on Lap 6 saw Furuseth make an impressive move around the outside of Enerson to take the lead in Turn One. Moments later, Franzoni took advantage of Enerson’s lost momentum to snatch second place.

A slight mistake by Furuseth on the series of fast, sweeping corners on the back section of the race track on Lap 8 gave Franzoni the opportunity to make a move for the lead. He took it decisively. Next time around, the caution flags waved again after Telitz’s car, which had been damaged in the first-lap incident, suffered a suspension failure, pitching into the gravel at Turn 14.

Franzoni thus took the checkered flag ahead of Furuseth, Enerson, Estrela and Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing teammate Jake Eidson, who had moved up nicely from 10th on the grid. Frenchman Nico Jamin finished sixth in his debut with Belardi Auto Racing, followed by teammate Michael Epps, from England, and Toppe, who had lost several positions at the restart. Florian Latorre (Belardi Auto Racing) and Will Owen (Pabst Racing) completed the top 10.

The USF2000 contenders will have two more races tomorrow. Race 2 will start at 11:45 am ET and Race 3 at 4:15 pm ET. Live timing and scoring will be available at www.livetiming.net.

Victor Franzoni, #17 E-qual/Vhero/Novac Sports (Afterburner Autosport):
“I’m really, really happy. It’s been three years since I won my last race (in Formula Future in Brazil), so it feels great to win again. I’m still learning the car but it feels really good. I think we made a good start to the season, so let’s see if we can keep it going.”

[K7Baixo2]

[Foxy1]

This is the best news there can be, you must feel great yourself, congratulations to the young guy, I am going to be in the USA in May is he racing at all then, would love to go and see him race.

[K7Baixo2]

First race this morning and Victor was second. Third race up soon.

[K7Baixo2]

Originally Posted by Foxy1

This is the best news there can be, you must feel great yourself, congratulations to the young guy, I am going to be in the USA in May is he racing at all then, would love to go and see him race.

We're excited and his dad is even more excited. They've worked their ass off and even now, his dad is working two jobs to help make this happen.

I may go to Indy: May 9/10 Indianapolis Motor Speedway

He'll be at the May 24 event at the Lucas Oil Raceway, a 0.686-Mile Oval.

[Foxy1]

Dam, no where near where I will be, yes it costs a fortune to race and is very hard on everyone.

[tinger]

Great news Gerry!!!!

[K7Baixo2]

Last race: gearbox issues. While he finished next-to-last, he's in the top 3 for the championship points. Great start!

[K7Baixo2]

A good article on Victor

http://www.junioropenwheeltalent.com...ctor-franzoni/

[K7Baixo2]

In today's race, he started 6th and finished 3rd in the rain. He's the only driver to be on the podium three times. The next race begins shortly and they'll race tomorrow also.

Here's the current standings:

POS....DRIVER...NOLA1...NOLA2...NOLA3...Barber1... Barber2...Barber3...TOTAL
1.....RC Enerson...23....... 31.......15..........19........................... ........ 88
2..Victor Franzoni..31.......25.........5..........22............... .....................83
3...Jake Eidson......17.......22.......25..........18...... ..............................82
4...Michael Epps....14.........9.......22..........32......... ...........................77
5..Clark Toppe.......13.......13.......32..........11...... ..............................69

Living timing here when they start again... http://livetiming.net/USF2000/HTML.asp

[K7Baixo2]

First race of the season is upon us but first......

My wife and I were in Brazil last week and were able to visit Victor, Fabio and his mom. Here's my wife with Victor and his dad:



We also went over to their home for.....



Yeah - it was extremely good...a family friend who did the cooking:



Their home is slightly more upscale than most. In the garage, I counted 5 vehicles including this 60's, locally built Chevy:



There's also a 1994 Canadian-market mustang with about 30,000 km on the clock but the one that I love is his 1972 Mustang Mach I:



Fabio is an expert mechanic and trust me, this thing is a fire-breather.



My sister-in-law had a birthday and we went to a local country&western bar - they offer dance lessons before the place gets busy and while I had a good time, I'm a horrible dancer. Having a gringo there was clearly a novelty and the women enjoyed dancing with me.

I was by far the tallest there but there was a blond gal, just in front of me in the picture, who was tall also. She was wearing 6" heels though:



I later added my name to this picture on FB and to my wife's amusement, several of the women sent friend requests to me.

.....which I accepted.

[K7Baixo2]

It's time for the Streets of St Peterburg:



1.8 miles, 14-turns. They had their first practice session yesterday morning and Victor was middle-of-the-pack (speed: 85.383) and in the afternoon, he was in the second position at 85.816.

Here's the rest of the schedule:

Today:

11:00 AM-11:30 AM Qualifying

4:40 PM-5:20 PM Race 1

3/30/2014

8:50 AM-9:30 AM Race 2

From yesterday morning:



You can follow the racing here: www.USF2000.com/results/live-timing

Victor had a good morning qualifying - won the pole with the fastest lap.

The gap between 1 & 2 was 0.0081 seconds. First race for him is later this afternoon.

[iLLGT2]

Best of fortune to him, its a tough industry.

I didn't start at a young age with anything serious, but, always had that underlying talent to be behind the wheel.

I have pulled stupid times in my RUF GT2 around many tracks, set a track record for street car twice, and was running within cup car times in my full street weight car with not TOO much more power ...

I feel I was meant to be at the track, behind the wheel, and race.. But, I never pursued it as i had too many bread and butters, family/etc frowned upon it thinking it was a fairytale.

I still dream about racing

On that note, as I mentioned, I TRULY WISH HIM THE BEST! I know what it feels like to get that break, have to prove yourself and work hard for something. so much talent out there not given the opportunity, and wasted!

[77T]

Sucks that they have a really wet race this afternoon. T&S is up.

But lots of maturity shown by your family's rookie USF2000 driver. Owners like that - to finish first, first you must finish...

Congrats on his first win - many spins by others in the last 2 laps.

[K7Baixo2]

Originally Posted by 77T

Sucks that they have a really wet race this afternoon. T&S is up.

But lots of maturity shown by your family's rookie USF2000 driver. Owners like that - to finish first, first you must finish...

Congrats on his first win - many spins by others in the last 2 laps.

Thanks! We were listening to it on-line. Spectacular race. I think Victor raced a lot in the rain last year in Europe. I guess he learned a few lessons. I noticed that in NOLA, the race he won there was under the same conditions: wet.

The team manager wasn't happy when he wrecked out in practice at Barber - we watched the on-board video on a big screen while in Brazil. Victor was mad at himself but this is a good start to the series and redemption!

I'm really looking forward to Indy and Sonoma!

[77T]

Originally Posted by K7Baixo2

I'm really looking forward to Indy and Sonoma!

Well let's focus on tomorrow AM Race 2 before we start thinking Indy

Should be dry weather for the race - but cold at about 60ºF - tires won't warmup quickly so hope they do installation and pace laps + 1 or 2 under FCY before a Green Flag. Saves people from bad incidents in Turn 1-2 complex on cold tires.

[Foxy1]

Keep us informed

[K7Baixo2]

Originally Posted by 77T

Well let's focus on tomorrow AM Race 2 before we start thinking Indy

You mean I shouldn't have purchased my ticket to a Indy already?

Originally Posted by 77T

Should be dry weather for the race - but cold at about 60ºF - tires won't warmup quickly so hope they do installation and pace laps + 1 or 2 under FCY before a Green Flag. Saves people from bad incidents in Turn 1-2 complex on cold tires.

I think I understood what you said....a few laps under a yellow before going green? Makes sense to me. Didn't they do that at the start of today's race also?

Originally Posted by Foxy1

Keep us informed

I'll do my best and I appreciate the knowledge that others are bringing to the thread also. Clearly, there are a few here who know what they're talking about as compared to me....I'm just a cheerleader for Victor but I'm enjoying learning from others also.

[77T]

Originally Posted by K7Baixo2

I think I understood what you said....a few laps under a yellow before going green? Makes sense to me. Didn't they do that at the start of today's race also?

Yep

Today was wet so Race Director made good decision. Whenever it's cold (like 50°-ish) that is a good reason, too.

[K7Baixo2]

Originally Posted by 77T

Yep

Today was wet so Race Director made good decision. Whenever it's cold (like 50°-ish) that is a good reason, too.

Great - thanks Paul!

I also figured out that FCY is Full Course Yellow. There was some chatter about the need for those during today's race. Like you stated, "good decision".

[K7Baixo2]

Link



Brazilian Rookie Holds off Determined Challengefrom Local Teenager Enerson

St. Petersburg, Fla. – Brazilian rookie Victor Franzoni started the “regular season” Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda in exactly the same way as he began the recent Cooper Tires Winterfest preseason mini-series – with a victory. The 18-year-old from Sao Paulo started Afterburner Autosport’s #17 Vhero/Aflex/E-QUAL/Novac Sports Van Diemen-Mazda from the pole position but was made to work extremely hard for his victory in the Peninsula Pipeline Grand Prix of St. Petersburg by 16-year-old RC Enerson from New Port Richey, Fla.

The margin between the two front-runners was a scant 0.0081 seconds in qualifying, which was held this morning on a dry track. Conditions, however, were completely different this afternoon. After a lengthy delay due to a severe storm warning, the 18 USF2000 cars were faced by an extremely wet 1.8-mile, 14-turn street circuit for the 15-lap race which began at 4:55 p.m.

The first three laps were run behind the Pace Car, after which the field was unleashed with Franzoni immediately coming under pressure from a fired-up Enerson, who claimed the inside line under heavy braking for Turn One and emerged with the lead. Enerson showed precisely why he won the Winterfest championship by holding onto his advantage until Lap 10, when Franzoni drew alongside under braking for Turn One and pulled off a breathtaking maneuver around the outside to take over the lead.

Once in front, Franzoni used the experience he had gained in European Formula Renault competition the last couple of years by edging clear to a well-deserved triumph. Enerson finished a fine second for Team E Racing.

The two leaders left everyone firmly in their wake during the early stages. Aaron Telitz (ArmsUp Motorsports) and Jake Eidson (Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing) continued their battle from last year’s F1600 Championship Series for much of the race before both were overhauled by Frenchman – and fellow rookie – Nico Jamin (Belardi Auto Racing). Another veteran of Formula Renault, Jamin stormed from 10th on the grid to fifth inside the first three laps of green-flag racing, then swept past both Eidson and Telitz on Lap 8 to take over third place.

Jamin was given a glimmer of hope for the victory by a full-course caution after Will Owen (Pabst Racing) crashed on Lap 10, but he was unable to find a way past Enerson following the restart and had to be content with third.

Eidson finished fourth for the St. Petersburg-based Cape Motorsports team, followed by Canadian Daniel Burkett (Belardi Auto Racing) who found a way past rookie Adrian Starrantino (JAY Motorsports) on the last lap to equal his career-best finish. Frenchman Florian Latorre (Belardi Auto Racing), Norwegian Henrik Furuseth (JAY Motorsports),
Dutchman Jeroen Slaghekke (Afterburner Autosport) and German Keyran Andres (Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing) completed the top 10.

The Replay XD Move of the Race was adjudged to have been made by Franzoni for his pass of Enerson in Turn One on Lap 10, after which he held on for the win. The Tilton Hard Charger Award was presented to rookie Andrew List (D2D Motorsports), who climbed eight positions from 20th on the grid to 12th at the finish. The PFC Award and customized Race Energy BMC21 charger – the Official Battery of the ladder series - went to winning car owners Tim Walsh and Brian Tomasi of Afterburner Autosport, while the Staubli Award went to race winner Franzoni.

Race 2 on Sunday will start at 8:50 am. Live commentary, plus timing and scoring, will be available at www.usf2000.com. Visit RoadToIndy.TV for an inside look at USF2000 drivers and teams.

Victor Franzoni, #17 #17 Vhero/Aflex/E-QUAL/Novac Sports (Afterburner Autosport): “The race was just perfect. I won the first race at the [Cooper Tires] Winterfest and now to win here, this is a nice way to start the season and the championship chase. The conditions were difficult. It was raining and then it stopped, but the track was still wet. It was difficult to brake on the line. It was difficult but in the end it was perfect. We will try to do it again tomorrow.”

[jatco]

...This.. is so fricken cool.. - Got to love the 'new comers'..and Victor certainly seems to be up there, in contention.. -
Anything is possible.. and it looks like, he has the right people behind him and his talent...!!
This should be an interesting season....
Looking foward to his progress.. - Ya just never know. Its a tough 'game' to say the least..and 10ths of a second can make All the difference...!!

[joeychitwood]

Enjoying the updates on his career. Thanks for posting his progress!

[Foxy1]

Brilliant start, if he ever needs to chat to an older successful Brazilian race driver I have a great friend.

[K7Baixo2]

Originally Posted by Foxy1

Brilliant start, if he ever needs to chat to an older successful Brazilian race driver I have a great friend.

Interesting offer. I may take you up on that and arrange a telephone call to surprise him. Thanks!