Andretti Autosport Adds Oliver Askew to Indy Lights Roster
Reigning Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires team champions, Andretti Autosport, added American talent Oliver Askew to their 2019 lineup. Askew will pilot the No. 28 racing machine for all 18 rounds of competition beginning with the season opener on the Streets of St. Petersburg.
“We’ve been following Oliver over the last few years in the Road to Indy and we have been very impressed with his talent behind the wheel,” said Andretti Autosport CEO Michael Andretti. “We are a championship-caliber team and thrilled to continue to field championship-caliber drivers. Adding Oliver to our already-strong roster has us confident we will be in contention to defend our title at the end of the season.”
The rookie out of Jupiter, Florida, began climbing the Road to Indy ladder system in 2017 running in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship. In his inaugural year of racing on the Road to Indy platform, Askew earned seven race wins and 11 podiums to claim the championship title and a scholarship to compete in Indy Pro 2000 Presented by Cooper Tires (previously known as Pro Mazda).
At the conclusion of his Indy Pro 2000 campaign, Askew landed third in the championship with one win, five podiums and his sights on Indy Lights competition.
“Joining Andretti Autosport is an extremely huge opportunity for me,” said Askew.“There is such a wealth of experience between Indy Lights, INDYCAR, Formula E and all their other racing programs – there are so many years of experience within the team. I am really looking forward to transferring that wealth and experience into my rookie season with the team and anticipate a successful season.”
The 22-year-old joined fellow American teammates Ryan Norman (No. 48 Dallara) and Robert Megennis (No. 27 Dallara) for open testing at Circuit of the Americas yesterday where he ended the day the fastest driver overall.
Askew, Norman and Megennis will join the remainder of the Indy Lights field for the doubleheader weekend in St. Petersburg, Florida. Round 1 of competition will take place Saturday, March 9, with the second round going green Sunday.
