Jonathan Summerton is looking to resume his racing career in IndyCar or the United SportsCar Championship in 2016 as he refocuses on racing after spending time concentrating on his business.
Summerton was one of a few highly rated, talented American drivers to be lost in the shuffle when the Champ Car Series merged with IndyCar, with the A1GP race winner and 2009 Formula Atlantic Championship runner-up never having had an opportunity to race in the top level of single seater racing in the United States.
He ran a number of Indy Lights races in 2010, before racing in 2012 in the American Le Mans Series with BMW Team RLL, before turning his focus on business, but now Summerton feels ready to return to racing, and is eyeing the IndyCar test at Sonoma next week.
“We’re talking to a couple of teams about testing at Sonoma next week; it would be a last-minute deal,” said Summerton to Racer.com. “I’m hoping to know by the end of this week if I we can do the full day. If not, I hope to get in for one session, at least, at the end of the day with another team we’re talking to.
“I moved out to San Francisco with a start-up company working in the Bay Area, and have been networking with a lot of businesses and searching for a way back into the sport.
“Racing has changed a lot recently, and if you don’t have the right business package behind you, you aren’t going to go very far, so that’s what I’ve been trying to address.”
“I want to bring my name back into consideration in IndyCar, and I’m also trying to open some new doors in sports car racing. I’m waiting to see if I can test next week, and either way, I’ll be there and I’ll be at the race talking with teams and holding meetings about working together next year.”
