USF Pro Insider Podcast

Now into his sophomore USF2000 season, DE Force Racing's Sebastian Garzon aims to leverage what he learned as a rookie to chase the 2026 title and the crucial career-extending scholarship that comes with it. In this episode, Rob talks with Sebastian about his years in karting, his fantastic two-win start to the season at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, and recent series tests at IMS and Mid-Ohio leading into the month of May.

The 2026 USF Juniors season now has two of its six events in the books with races completed at Homestead-Miami Speedway and Carolina Motorsports Park. Spaniard Ivan Machado Perez (VRD Racing with Pole Position Motorsports) is now the point leader after a strong outing at CMP that added two wins to his season total. USF Pro Insider Rob Howden connected with Ivan from his home in Madrid to discuss his career and this intriguing second opportunity to fulfil his racing dreams.

In this milestone 100th episode of the USF Pro Insider podcast, Rob takes a deep dive into this year's USF Pro 2000 championship. Our host looks at the schedule, breaks down the grid, and provides a team-by-team preview of the series for 2026. 

The 2026 USF2000 Championship begins at the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg this weekend (February 27-March 1) and USF Pro Insider Rob Howden takes a deep dive into the field that will fight for the title this season.

A massive freshman class is set to tackle this year's USF Juniors challenge, with 21 drivers lining up to begin the chase for the series championship and the scholarship worth almost $250,000 to advance to USF2000 in 2027. USF Pro Insider Rob Howden presents a full team-by-team preview ahead of the opening rounds of the series that are part of the annual USF Pro Championships 'Spring Training' event, which takes place on February 16-18 at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Florida.

The 2026 season kicks off with USF Spring Training at Homestead-Miami Speedway on February 16-18, where one of this show's guests will start the season with a tripleheader. Exclusive Autosport's Brenden Cooley will be focused in on race wins this year, as will VRD Racing Joao Vergara, who is graduating up into USF2000 for 2026. Both drivers have a goal of battling for a series championship this season

In Episode 96, the co-owners of the newest USF Juniors team will join USF Pro Insider Rob Howden in the online studio. Allen and Alex Berg from Berg Racing will debut this season with Alex handling the driving duties, although the team is focused on building a two-car program. The trio will discuss both Allen and Alex’s racing resumes and how Berg Racing is part of a vertical driver development program that begins with the Allen Berg Racing School at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.

It's an all-VRD Racing line-up for this episode of the USF Pro Insider. USF Pro 2000 driver Frankie Mossman and USF2000 sophomore Ryan Giannetta will sit down with Rob to discuss their respective 2025 seasons before looking forward to what's to come in 2026 in the USF Pro Championships.

Two drivers who will be targeting race wins and championships in the USF Pro Championships join Rob in this episode of the USF Pro Insider. Pabst Racing's Brad Majman and DE Force Racing's Vilho Aatola were both impressive in their rookie seasons in their respective series, and each will return as sophomores and primary title contenders.

Over the years, a majority of drivers winning USF Pro Championships titles have done so in their second or third years in a series. In this episode, Rob will chat with Pabst Racing's Jacob Douglas and Exclusive Autosport's Connor Aspley, two racers coming back for ultimate success in 2026. Douglas will be gunning for the USF Pro 2000 title and Aspley has his sights set on the same in USF Juniors.

As we prepare to head into the new year, just two months from the start of the 2026 USF2000 schedule at St Pete, Exclusive Autosport's Anthony Martella will sit down with Rob. He'll be joined by JT Hoskins from Jay Howard Driver Development, who will need to wait a couple of weeks after St Pete for his USF Pro 2000 debut at the highly-anticipated temp circuit race in Arlington.

While drivers are always working their way up and through the USF Pro Championships ladder, it's the teams that are the constant. They are the foundation of the program. In this edition of the USF Pro Insider podcast, Rob sits down with DE Force team owners David Martinez and Ernesto Martinez. They'll discuss the team's history, what is takes to win at this level, and how they develop their own culture for winning under their tent.

As the 2026 season approaches, USF Pro Insider Rob Howden sat down to chat with USF Pro Championships drivers Maddie Colleran (Zanella Racing) and Thomas Nordquist (DE Force Racing) to discuss how they got into the sport and how they fared in their rookie seasons in USF Juniors. They also looked forward to the 2026 season, as Colleran will return to USF Juniors for her sophomore season while Nordquist will make the jump to USF2000.

With the 2026 USF Pro 2000 season just two months away, teams are beginning to confirm their drivers for next year's campaign. Exclusive Autosport's Joey Brienza and Pabst Racing's G3 Argyros are set to go for 2026, and they joined USF Pro Insider Rob Howden to discuss this past season and how excited they are for next year's schedule. 

With the 2025 season now over three months in the rearview mirrors, USF Pro Insider Rob Howden starts the off-season and his look at 2026 by sitting down with the three series champions and scholarship winners who will run the USF Pro Championships livery on their cars next year. Champions Max Garcia (USF Pro 2000), Jack Jeffers (USF2000), and Leonardo Escorpioni (USF Juniors) speak with Rob about the past, present, and future.

Pabst Racing’s Max Garcia clinched this year’s USF Pro 2000 championship in the opening race in Toronto, scoring his second consecutive USF Pro Championships title. In the first of three ‘2025 Champions’ interviews, USF Pro Insider Rob Howden sat down with the young American to discuss his journey up the ladder and his dream season that will put him on the INDY NXT grid in 2026.

Zanella Racing’s Leonardo Escorpioni leads the USF Juniors championship standings heading into the season finale in Portland on the August 8-10 weekend. The Brazilian-American has delivered a stellar sophomore season, finishing on the podium in 11 of 13 races thus far, and only once outside the top-five. USF Pro Insider Rob Howden caught up with Leo after a crucial weekend at Road America that featured two podiums and three top-fives after qualifying 17th.

Heading into his home race at the Ontario Honda Dealers Toronto Indy, Canadian Mac Clark has been racking up impressive podium performances all season racing with Exclusive Autosport in the USF Pro 2000 series. Clark will be gunning for his first win of the season this weekend, and the 2022 USF Juniors champion would like nothing more to make that happen on home soil. USF Pro Insider Rob Howden caught up with Mac at the beginning of Race Week.

With just five races over two events left on the 2025 USF2000 schedule, VRD Racing’s Thomas Schrage heads to the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto tied for the championship points lead. USF Pro Insider Rob Howden spoke with the two-time race winner about his career, this year’s success, and what it will take to score the title and the scholarship in Portland.

North Carolina’s Caleb Gafrarar became the newest USF2000 race winner at Mid-Ohio when he was victorious in the first race of the tripleheader over the July 4th weekend. The Pabst Racing driver added another podium and another top-five result to advance to fifth in points, keeping himself in the championship discussion heading to Toronto. USF Pro Insider Rob Howden spoke with Caleb about his impressive karting career, his family’s roots in racing, and move to car racing in 2023.

VRD Racing driver Teddy Musella steered his way into the USF2000 title discussion at Road America with a massive first win in Race 2 as the series heads into the stretch run. USF Pro Insider Rob Howden spoke with the young American ahead of the Mid-Ohio weekend to discuss his career and his extremely consistent rookie season.

Australian driver Liam Loiacono scored his first USF Juniors win of the 2025 season at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in early June, mastering the challenging wet conditions in Sunday's Race 2. USF Pro Insider Rob Howden sat down with the 17-year-old Jay Howard Driver Development pilot to discuss the win, his season thus far, and his career.

The hottest driver right now in the USF Pro Championships Presented by Continental Tire is Ariel Elkin from TJ Speed Motorsports. The USF Pro 2000 driver from Israel has won three of the last four events, winning two of three on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course before triumphing in the Freedom 90 at IRP at the Carb Night Classic. USF Pro Insider Rob Howden sat down with Ariel to discuss his career and a streak of success that has brought him into the championship discussion after a tough start to the season in St Pete.

Winning at Indianapolis is a huge achievement for any driver, and when it's your first series victory, it's even more special. Exclusive Autosport's Jack Jeffers know how this feels having scored his maiden USF2000 win in early May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The Texan took over the point lead in the process, and USF Pro Insider Rob Howden sat down with Jack after the victory to discuss his career and the start to the 2025 season.

Rookie Ty Fisher from Zanella Racing is the new point leader in the USF Juniors series after scoring his second win of the season in tough conditions at Barber Motorsports Park. Six straight top-five finishes to start his 2025 campaign is the level of consistency that team owners look for, and the 14-year-old Canadian sat down with USF Pro Insider Rob Howden to discuss his early success.

In 2024, VRD Racing's Max Taylor scored wins in both USF Juniors and USF2000, and would eventually take the USF Juniors crown. This year, he's gunning for the USF Pro 2000 title and will also contest five INDY NXT events with HMD Motorsports. USF Pro Insider Rob Howden sat down with Max to discuss the start of his 2025 season and his thoughts on his upcoming races in in NXT.

USF Pro Insider Rob Howden takes a deep dive into the grid and schedule for the 2025 USF Juniors program, the first step on the ladder of the USF Pro Championships Presented by Continental Tire.

After scoring a podium finish in his USF2000 debut at the Grand Prix of St Petersburg, DE Force Racing driver Jeshua Alianell sat down for a chat with USF Pro Insider Rob Howden to discuss his time in the Skip Barber Racing School Formula Car Series, and his move to USF Juniors in 2024. Alianell followed his third-place finish in Race 1 with another top-10, and heads to NOLA Motorsports Park sitting third in the championship standings.

After running three USF Pro 2000 weekends in 2024 to test the waters and log crucial seat time, Florida's Alessandro de Tullio came out of the gate in 2025 with an impressive win at St Petersburg for Turn 3 Motorsports. USF Pro Insider Rob Howden sat down with Alessandro to discuss the intriguing road of experience he's logged to get to where he is today, and how he's evolved over the last three years.

With the 2025 USF Pro Championships season now underway, USF Pro Insider Rob Howden sits down with USF2000 St Pete race winner and current series point leader Liam McNeilly from Jay Howard Driver Development to discuss his career development, his growth throughout his USF Pro debut season in USF Juniors in 2024, and how he's ready to fight for the title this season.

The Grand Prix of St. Petersburg is just days away, and with it comes the start of the 2025 USF Pro Championships Presented by Continental Tire. In this show, USF Pro Insider Rob Howden provides a team-by-team, driver-by-driver preview of USF Pro 2000, which is the top series in the USF Pro ladder system. The champion will receive almost $595,000 to move to INDY NXT in 2026, so the fight will start from the first green flag this weekend.

With the start to the 2025 USF Pro Championships Presented by Continental Tire just around the corner at St. Petersburg, USF Pro Insider Rob Howden is back with his first podcast of the year, previewing the USF2000 Championship. Listen now to get up to speed on who will be fighting for the title and the scholarship to move to USF Pro 2000 in 2026.

The USF Juniors drivers put on a show at Road America and in this episode of the podcast, USF Pro Insider Rob Howden reviews the event from ‘America’s National Park of Speed’. Rob also chats with Exclusive Autosport’s Joao Vergara and VRD Racing’s Christian Cameron.

With the 2024 USF Juniors season heading into the home stretch, USF Pro Insider Rob Howden previews the Road America tripleheader, which will set the stage for the finale in Portland at the end of August. Rob also chats with VIR race winner and title contender Augie Soto-Schirripa from Inter MS and 14-year-old Leonardo Escorpioni from Zanella Racing.

USF Pro Insider Rob Howden takes a quick look at the action from the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy Toronto and provides his 'takeways' from the event. He also chats with a pair of current USF Pro Championships scholarship winners - USF Pro 2000 Toronto winner Simon Sikes from Pabst Racing and DE Force Racing's Nicolas Giaffone, who's had a strong second half of the USF2000 season.

INDYCAR's race north of the border in Toronto is one of the most popular amongst not only the fans, but the drivers and team as well. USF Pro Insider Rob Howden previews the 2024 edition of the iconic event, which is the biggest of the year for DE Force Racing's Canadian driver Mac Clark. Rob chats with Mac about the event and his season, and also checks in with Exclusive Autosport's Joey Brienza, who remains in the USF2000 title fight.

The Tatuus Grand Prix at Mid-Ohio certainly elevated the excitement in all three series title battles of the USF Pro Championships Presented by Continental Tire. USF Pro Insider Rob Howden provides a quick overview of the event and also chats with USF Pro 2000 point leader Lochie Hughes and Mid-Ohio race winner Evagoras Papasavvas.

With the USF Pro Championships event at Mid-Ohio this weekend, USF Pro Insider Rob Howden previews the weekend, checks in on the championship battles, and speaks with two of the primary combatants, Jace Denmark in USF Pro 2000 and Jack Jeffers in USF Juniors.

Fresh off a wild weekend at VIR, USF Pro Insider Rob Howden details the event and also chats with USF Juniors Race 1 winner Max Taylor and first time podium finish G3 Argyros about their 2024 seasons to date.

With the Carb Night Classic in the rearview mirrors and Road America out in front of the halo, Pabst Racing's Sam Corry and Turn 3 Motorsports' Danny Dyszelski join me as I preview this weekend's event in Elkhart Lake.

USF Pro Insider Rob Howden speaks with the winners of the rain-delayed Carb Night Classic events from Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park. Rob is joined by Exclusive Autosport's Braden Eves, who won the USF Pro 2000 Freedom 90, and Tanner DeFabis from Jay Howard Driver Development, who was victorious in the USF2000 Freedom 75.

After an exciting and hard-fought event on the road course at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, USF Pro Insider Rob Howden offers a quick synopsis before interviews with two drivers who left IMS with crucial podiums finishes. USF Pro 2000 driver Liam Sceats (TJ Speed) chats with Rob on the heels of two runner-up finishes, while USF2000 Race 2 podium finisher Elliot Cox (Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing Development) speaks on his career and his new focus for 2024.

The USF Juniors event at Barber Motorsports Park was certainly a wild affair, as USF Pro Insider Rob Howden details in a quick race report. Rob also speaks with DE Force Racing's Leandro Juncos and then checks in with Ava Dobson, who was involved in the massive shunt that ended the opening race of the Friday doubleheader.

With the USF Juniors drivers getting back in action this coming weekend (April 25-26) at Barber Motorsports Park on the same card as both INDYCAR and INDY NXT, USF Pro Insider Rob Howden previews the event. He also chats with VRD Racing drivers Sebastian Wheldon (point leader) and Alabama resident Michael Suco ahead of the second event of their schedule.

With the USF Juniors heading to Barber Motorsports Park next week for their second event of 2024, USF Pro Insider Rob Howden provides a brief preview of the event ahead of interviews with NOLA Motorsports Park race winners Liam McNeilly (USF Juniors) from Jay Howard Driver Development and Max Garcia (USF2000) from Pabst Racing.

All three series of the USF Pro Championships Presented by Continental Tire were on the docket at NOLA Motorsports Park on the April 5-7 weekend, including the 2024 season opener for the USF Juniors program, and USF Pro Insider Rob Howden provides a recap of the action. He also sits down with current USF Pro 2000 point leader Nikita Johnson from VRD Racing, who scored his second and third wins of the season in New Orleans.

With the start of the 2024 USF Juniors calendar beginning on the April 5-7 weekend at NOLA Motorsports Park, USF Pro Insider Rob Howden dives into a team-by-team preview of the drivers in the program this season. Rob starts the show with a quick report on the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, and the opening rounds for the USF2000 and USF Pro 2000 series.

As the USF Juniors schedule heads into its final two weekends of 2023, one of the season's highlights has been the steady improvement of VRD Racing's Hudson Schwartz. The 14-year-old rookie has improved each weekend, qualifying on the front row for both Mid-Ohio races ahead of scoring his second podium finish. USF Pro Insider Rob Howden chatted with Hudson and they discussed his young career, his goals, and how he sees himself as a racer.

Jay Howard Driver Development's Evagoras Papasavvas has been one of the drivers to watch in the USF2000 series in 2023, scoring his first victory during a breakout weekend at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in early July. USF Pro Insider Rob Howden sat down with the 15-year-old America driver after yet another strong performance, this time at the Honda Indy Toronto.

USF Pro Insider Rob Howden provides a race report from the USF2000 and USF Pro 2000 events at Mid-Ohio this past weekend (June 29-July 1), and then sits down with USF Juniors driver Carson Etter from DC Autosport, who made his USF2000 debut at the action-packed race.