If you don't follow the Indy Pro racing series - and really, you probably should since the racing has been better than the big boys as of late - you might not recognize many names. However, if you follow the Indy 500 then you'll recognize this staple of Bump Day drama: Jimmy Kite.
The braintrust at TrackSide Online speaks:
TSO is hearing that Jimmy Kite will drive a second SWE IndyPro Series entry next weekend at Chicagoland. Jimmy last drove an IndyCar Series machine at Indy where he was unable to make the field in a PDM Panoz.And the best part is it's highly unlikely he gets eliminated in qualifying!
This would be his first run in an IndyPro Series car, and is interesting in many ways. First, it's great that Jimmy will put his ego aside and just go drive what is available to him. Many former ICS drivers don't want to take a "step down", but seat time is seat time, and Jimmy is a race car driver - good for him.
In case you were wondering what Jimmy's been doing lately, he's been running JK Hobby World - "Your source for all your hobby needs". A guy has gotta pay the bills, ya know.
Still, he won't have the most well-known name in the series. That distinction might belong to Adam Andretti (John's younger brother) who will be making his IPS debut as well. Of course, Al Unser III might also be racing at Chicagoland as well.
See, you really should be watching this series.
UPDATE: Here's video of Adam Andretti testing. Bonus footage of Aldo.
JK deserves better than the hand he's been dealt. I'd like to see what he could do even with a mid-level machine (say, a RLR-type car).