Chase Owen wins Skip Barber INDYCAR Academy Shootout

ABOVE: Ben Waddell (left), Chase Owen and David Porcelli.

With any luck, Chase Owen will the next Michai Stephens.

Owen won the Skip Barber INDYCAR Academy Shootout with another outstanding session Wednesday at Sebring International Raceway, putting himself in the same position as Stephens a year ago. Stephens, a 23-year-old from Evanston, Ill., who was unknown in racing circles before winning the Shootout last year, has embarked on a year-long journey that led him to the prestigious Team USA scholarship.

Owen (LEFT), a 22-year-old from Houston with no prior racing experience, is looking at an open door.

"I'm looking forward to taking it one step at a time," he said. "Hopefully I'll be able to work my way into the podium in each race (in next year's Skip Barber Summer Series) and end up in the championship."

Owen accumulated 291.7 points during four racing sessions and an instructors' evaluation, the best point total of the 28 drivers who participated in the three-day event. His total was 11.1 points ahead of runner-up David Porcelli and 17.8 points ahead of third-place finisher Ben Waddell.

Waddell had the highest instructor score, but Owen lost only three of the possible 280 on-track points available. He also was one of only five drivers not docked points because of penalties.

The program is designed to get entry-level racers behind the wheel and see if they have talent. If they do, they're rewarded with help toward advancement. Nick Andries, a 24-year-old from Pinellas Park, Fla., with experience in Indy Lights and the Pro Mazda Championship, is one of the Skip Barber Racing School instructors who helped tutor the INDYCAR Academy drivers.

"The problem in motorsports is that it's expensive to get into it," Andries said. "This program is designed for guys who don't have any kart racing experience or any pro racing experience. It's a way for them to get into racing at the grassroots level. It's designed to give the average Joe a shot at eventually winning the Indy 500."

Stephens turned last year's INDYCAR Academy and its winning spoils into a path to success, climbing through a season of Skip Barber racing to represent the Team USA Scholarship with Aaron Telitz in the Formula Ford Festival and Walter Hayes Trophy events in England in October.

"The INDYCAR Academy scholarship has opened doors to young men and women who can take full advantage of what's inside of them and what the world has to offer in terms of racing," Stephens said. "This scholarship is a great program. It's what helped launch my career. I encourage everybody to go out there and continue with it. If this is something they want to do, then they should go for it."

Owen's next goal is to work through the 2015 Skip Barber Summer Series and qualify for the Skip Barber Championship Shootout, which was won last month at Road Atlanta by 19-year-old Australian Luke Gabin. That resulted in a $200,000 scholarship to the first level of the Mazda Road to Indy Series, the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship powered by Mazda. He also receives a "Top Gun Award" from RACER Magazine and will be the subject of a feature article in a future issue of the magazine.

"I've always watched IndyCar races and Formula 1 races and have thought, 'I want to do that,'" Owen said. "This was my chance to get started on that path. I'm one step closer."

Stephens, who presented the podium finishers with oversized checks Wednesday, praised the Skip Barber program and its connection to the Road to Indy.

"Having traveled to England and having talked to drivers who don't have a set plan, I realize just how privileged we are to have this program," Stephens said. "People are trying to take full advantage of it."