Bryan Herta Autosport to Field Three Mygale Honda FF Entries in 2013
Indianapolis, IN - March 28, 2013 - Bryan Herta Autosport (BHA) will field three Mygale SJ Honda entries for Ayla Agren, Sam Chastain and Adrian Starrantino in the 2013 F1600 Championship Series. The team will have the full support of Mygale North America in their quest to win the championship.
Driver of the No. 96 Mygale/Honda, nineteen-year-old Ayla Agren hails from Slemmestad, Norway. The 2012 season marked her first in open-wheel cars after a decade of karting in Europe. Agren relocated to St. Petersburg, FL to pursue her racing dream. She took part in the Skip Barber Karting Shootout towards the end of 2011 and was rewarded with a scholarship towards the Skip Barber Summer Series. She showed no signs of being a rookie during her debut as she took the podium four times in just seven race weekends.
"Driving for Bryan Herta Autosport is a really great step up for me," said Agren, "both on the driving side and the team side, since there are no teams at Skip Barber. I am certain that running with BHA will further improve my driving skills and my ability to work within a team environment."
Sam Chastain, 20-year-old grandson of former IndyCar team owner Tom Chastain, will be driving the No. 97 Mygale/Honda prepared by "On Track Sports" in a joint effort with BHA. Chastain has an extensive background in karting and has completed Skip Barber schools in Sebring and Laguna Seca.
Says Chastain, "I'm really excited to have the opportunity to race with On Track Sports and with my teammates Adrian and Ayla. I'm sure that they will help to shorten my learning curve and we will push each other on the track."
Eighteen-year-old, California native Adrian Starrantino returns to BHA to drive the No. 98 Mygale/Honda, after filling in as a substitute driver at Watkins Glen during the 2012 season and finishing second. Starrantino made his karting debut at age ten. He raced in several series including the International Karting Federation, Rotax Challenge of the Americas and Pro Kart Pro Tour. In 2011, Starrantino earned the second place scholarship in the Skip Barber Karting Shootout. He finished fourth overall in his first season in the Skip Barber Summer Series, earning four wins, eleven podiums and being named runner-up for Rookie of the Year. In addition, he was chosen as a 2012 Team USA Scholarship candidate.
"I look forward to running with Bryan Herta Autosport this year in the Formula F1600 Championship," says Starrantino. "The team has given me a great opportunity to go out there and earn great results while also improving my overall knowledge and experience."
Team owner Steve Newey commented on the BHA entries and competition within the series, "We have an impressive driver line up for this year's F1600 Championship Series battle. Ayla, Sam and Adrian have all proven that they have the talent to win races this season. We are also very excited about our other Mygale Honda teams competing in the championship. Rice Race Prep will be back this season with driver Steve Bamford and we have high expectations for new F1600 team Wisko Race Engineering to be in contention every race with their drivers Aaron Telitz and Paul Alspach. All of the Mygale Honda teams will receive technical and spares support from Mygale North America."
The 2013 F1600 Championship Series season kicks off on April 11-14, 2013 at Virginia International Raceway. The complete 2013 schedule consists of 12 races over six race weekends and can be found at www.f1600series.com.