For Simon Sikes, it’s another chance to try to live his dream once again and be a candidate for the team USA scholarship and is honored to be a candidate for the second year in a row. “To be a part of Team USA once again is just a complete honor. I can’t thank Jeremy Shaw and Team USA enough for the opportunity to be a part of it once again,” Sikes excitedly stated.
Sikes was only 16 when he first got into the program last year. Now at 17, Team USA decided to bring him back another year. “They really liked my interview. Unfortunately, I didn’t have experience that would help me win in England last year. Now, I feel like I do have the experience to try to go to England for Team USA this year. I can’t thank them enough for giving me another opportunity,” Sikes said.
At some point in your career, if you’re on the Team USA Scholarship, you catch the attention of Jeremy Shaw. Sikes met Shaw when Sikes was running in the Skip Barber Championship series in 2016. “I was given his contact information and met him at a few IMSA races. We just kept in contact, and last year he nominated me for the scholarship and here we are today,” Skies remarked.
Sikes got his start in racing when he watched the movie Herbie the Love Bug at about three years old. He fell in love with racing, and his dad said he could start when he was old enough to race. He then found a book about racing at the school library which said that kids could start racing go karts when they were just five years old. His dad got him his first go kart when he was just six years old. He started moving his way up the Go Kart ranks and started running the Skip Barber Series when he was just 14 years old. He then raced in the F1600 Series and currently runs in the F2000 Series this season.
If Sikes was nominated to win the scholarship, it would be one of the biggest accomplishments in his racing career thus far. “It would be one of the biggest accomplishments in my racing career and would be a major help to achieve my dream of running in the Indycar Series. I want to be racing USF 2000 next year, that’s the goal for me. I’m running the old USF2000 cars this year in the F2000 Series so it will be a progression to get into the new USF2000 cars. The goal right now for me is to win the Team USA Scholarship, the Mazda Scholarship shootout, and hopefully contend for the USF2000 Championship next year,” Sikes remarked.
Sikes will be racing this weekend in the F2000 Series at the Keystone Speedfest for Primus Racing.