Nikita Johnson was virtually in a class of his own today at NOLA Motorsports Park. The 15-year-old from Gulfport, Fla., romped to a pair of USF Pro 2000 Presented by Continental Tire victories for VRD Racing and now holds a commanding 39-point advantage in the quest for a champion’s scholarship valued at $681,500 to propel him into INDY NXT in 2025.

The new USF Pro 2000 Presented by Continental Tire season is off to another intensely competitive start, evidenced by Hunter Yeany this afternoon becoming the third different winner – representing three different teams – from the opening three races of the campaign.

A total of 65 young drivers with their sights set on a career in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES and the Indianapolis 500 will converge on the 2.74-mile, 13-turn road course situated only a few miles from downtown New Orleans, which also hosted the series’ traditional Spring Training pre-season test last month.

Twelve months after Lochie Hughes and Nikita Johnson shared the victory spoils during the opening two USF2000 races of the season on the downtown streets of St. Petersburg, the two talented youngsters have repeated the feat.

Just as he did one year ago, Australian Lochie Hughes arrived at the opening race of a new season on the unforgiving streets of St. Petersburg as a rookie and promptly scored an emphatic debut victory.