Matt Brabham to shakedown 2017 USF2000 Tatuus USF-17

Matt Brabham in the new car

Matt Brabham returns to Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend for the annual Chris Griffis Memorial Mazda Road to Indy test.

The Verizon IndyCar Series rookie will be responsible for shaking down the new-for-2017 USF2000 Tatuus USF-17 for Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing.

It will be the first time Brabham will have driven the car on a road course. In June, he was engaged by MRTI promoter, Dan Andersen to shake down the Italian built chassis on the Lucas Oils Speedway in Indianapolis.

The USF-17 will be the basis of the USF2000 category from next year and this weekend will be the first opportunity that most teams in the Championship have had to come to grips with the new car.

22-year-old Brabham was engaged by Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing for his experience in the Mazda Road to Indy program where he has taken 18 victories from his 43 starts – coupled with his experience at the Indianapolis Road Course – where he finished 16th in this year's Angie's List Grand Prix of Indianapolis – his Verizon IndyCar Series debut. Brabham won the Indy Lights race on the former F1 circuit in 2014.

Brabham – who is a highly sought after driver coach for MRTI talent will work Cape Motorsport's rookie – fellow Florida-born Oliver Askew – in establishing a baseline for the new chassis.

The test comes amid a busy few weeks of motorsport for the PIRTEK Team Murray Indy 500 rookie. Last weekend, he attended the Red Bull Air Race that was conducted in and around the Speedway, supporting Red Bull Simply Cola-backed Australian pilot, Matt Hall.

This was followed up by attendance at the IndyCar end of season gala through this week.

Next weekend, he'll head south for the final round of the Stadium Super Trucks North American Series at the Mike's Peak event in Baja California, Mexico.

Straight after that, he'll fly to Australia for the final round of the Australian Stadium Super Trucks event at the Castrol Gold Coast 600. He is locked in a battle for both Championships and the overall title with his fellow TRAXXAS Off Road athlete, Sheldon Creed.

The two-day Chris Griffis MRTI Memorial Test is held in honor of former Schmidt Peterson Motorsports Team Manager Chris Griffis, who passed away suddenly and unexpectedly in September 2011 at the early age of 46.

The MRTI, under the auspices of Andersen Promotions, is widely considered to be the strongest ladder program in world motorsport, providing opportunities for youngsters from karts through to the Verizon IndyCar Series.

MATT BRABHAM QUOTES:

"To head back to the Speedway again brings back some great memories from May," said Brabham. "I appreciate the opportunity being presented to me by the Cape brothers in association with Wayne Taylor Motorsport.

"While it'll be fun to get myself back in the Tatuus USF-17, the focus will be shaking the car down, arriving at a baseline setup and bringing Oliver (Askew) up to speed.

"Anything at Indy is cool, but the road course is enjoyable. We got to lay down some of the quickest laps of the weekend in the PIRTEK Team Murray IndyCar in May and of course I've won there in the past – any track you win at is always one of your favorites!

"Last weekend hanging out at the Red Bull Air Race was awesome, particularly catching up with Aussie pilot Matt Hall and having a good look at his Red Bull Simply Cola MSX-R race plane.

"These guys are phenomenal pilots. I think it's one of those things where you have to see it live to get a true understanding. The focus and concentration is one of the biggest things that relates to my sport.

"I was surprised to learn that Matt is a third generation pilot – so we had a bit in common.

"Following the test, the focus is straight back to the TRAXXAS Stadium Super Truck and doing our best to take out the Championship. I've really come to grips with the handling of the truck and we'll be doing our best to wrest those Championships from Sheldon's grasp and putting on a show back home on the Gold Coast."