It was a trip to Road America for Rounds 11 through 13 of the USF Juniors Presented by Cooper Tires championship. Taking on the 4.048-mile, 14-turn Road America, Lockhart rejoined VRD Racing and delivered a pair of top-five results, including a third-place podium finish Sunday morning as the penultimate event weekend ended.
After an eighth-place result in the one and only qualifying session that set the grid for the first race of the weekend, Lockhart crossed the stripe in a disappointing P9 when the checkered flag flew Saturday afternoon on the first wheel-to-wheel action in Wisconsin. While battling for third and a potential podium result, Lockhart had an off in turn six that dropped him down in the running order. Managing to stay on the lead lap, the USF Juniors rookie salvaged a top-ten finish.
Returning to the track on Sunday with renewed focus and energy, Lockhart was able to deliver another podium performance adding a third-place result to his resume after he led early in a five-car battle for the win.
“Race two on Sunday morning was a good one,” explained Lockhart. “It was a great battle up front, and we were able to lead on a few occasions. In the end, it was another podium result, one that VRD Racing deserved after all their hard work and support.”
With the third and final race of the weekend taking place Sunday afternoon, it was a tenth place starting spot for Lockhart. After an early caution before the track returned to green flag conditions, Lockhart pushed forward to the fifth position before the midrace distance. Falling back to seventh and then up to fourth before the caution flag flew again late in the race, the race would finish behind the pace car with Lockhart crossing the stripe in fourth, narrowly missing another podium result, but earning his second top-five result of the weekend as VRD Racing put three drivers in the top four positions.
Next up for Jimmie Lockhart will be a trip to the 3.41-mile, 20-turn Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas over the August 24-27 weekend.
Stay tuned to the Jimmie Lockhart social media pages for news, information, photos, and results from the 2023 season. For more information on Jimmie Lockhart, please visit him via his social media pages by searching Jimmie Lockhart Racing.
Photo Credit: RTD Media