Urrutia edging closer to IndyCar deal

Santiago "Santi" Urrutia has been the driver to beat this summer in Indy Lights, and with two seasons of experience plus six wins to his credit, the young Uruguayan says he's on the verge of making the final step on the Mazda Road to Indy.

"Everything is going the right way – it's close, I'm working with my sponsors, and it seems like I'm going to be able to sign a contract in IndyCar," he told RACER.

Driving for Schmidt Peterson Motorsports, Urrutia came within eight corners of winning the Indy Lights title in 2016. A bit of chicanery at the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca finale – one where Carlin Racing's Felix Serralles moved over on the final lap to let teammate Ed Jones slide into fourth place – was enough to take the championship out of Urrutia's hands and give it to Jones by two points.

Following Monterey, Urrutia's career was less than stable without the $1 million advancement prize from Mazda, and with SPM's decision to shutter its Indy Lights operation ahead of 2017, his return for a second shot at the title was in question.

With SPM out of the picture, landing with Brian Belardi's outfit proved to be beneficial after getting through a rough patch early in the year, and with a pair of wins – one at Mid-Ohio and another from Saturday's visit to the Gateway oval – to go with six trips to the podium in the last eight rounds, Urrutia has become the series' most dominant force since May.

"The second part of the year has helped a lot, and getting my first oval win helped, too," he added. "It's getting closer and closer, and around Sonoma, I hope to sign the deal."

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Despite Urrutia's hot streak, Juncos Racing's Kyle Kaiser is set to win the championship due to a stronger body of work in the opening rounds and a pair of invaluable wins at Toronto. Ending the season with a close second in the standings remains possible, and unlike last year, it would appear missing out on Mazda's $1 million won't prevent Urrutia from graduating to IndyCar.

"The team knows I'm ready to be in IndyCar and they believe I am ready to move on," the 21-year-old said. "Especially since last year I've learned a lot – I'm more mature, and IndyCar is very tough. The best drivers are there, and I'm looking forward to competing there."

Although Urrutia wouldn't be drawn on where he hopes to drive, a union between Belardi and SPM – one where his Lights car received backing from the same Arrow Electronics firm that sponsors IndyCar driver James Hinchcliffe – could suggest where he wants to land.

"This new program with Belardi Auto Racing is all about assisting young talented drivers any way we can to get them to the Verizon IndyCar Series," SPM co-owner Sam Schmidt said in April during the partnership's unveiling.

"Santi did a great job for us in 2016, coming just [a few points] shy of becoming an IndyCar driver this year. Brian Belardi has a great history of doing everything possible with talented drivers, like Gabby Chaves and Zach Veach, so we think this is a great fit. Arrow Electronics and their guests will now have another car to cheer for this season."

With six of IndyCar's eight full-time teams expected to have one or more vacancies to fill next year, and a few new or part-time teams looking to step up with full-time entries, Urrutia could be one of many Indy Lights drivers on the move to the big show after this weekend's season finale in Watkins Glen.