MONTEREY, Calif. - The old saying that a dog is a man’s (or woman’s) best friend was on display Thursday at the SPCA of Monterey County, as several drivers in the Mazda Road to Indy presented by Cooper Tires paid a visit to the facility ahead of this weekend’s Soul Red Finale at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.
Considering the pressure some, if not all, drivers in the three series competing here this weekend are under with Mazda advancement scholarships on the line, it was nice to see those present embracing their soft sides as they got to meet a number of dogs and cats - or in two random cases, a rat and a horse.
Those drivers present included:
Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires
- Kyle Kaiser, No. 18 Juncos Racing
- Neil Alberico, No. 22 Carlin
- Dean Stoneman, No. 27 Andretti Autosport
- Dalton Kellett, No. 28 Andretti Autosport
- Shelby Blackstock, No. 51 Andretti Autosport
Of note, Zach Veach, Andre Negrao and Santiago Urrutia were all at Sonoma testing IndyCars for the first time, and therefore unable to attend.
Stoneman and his family have embraced and worked with dogs and cats back home in England, and seeing him with a mini chihuahua presented a softer side of the 26-year-old Englishman that hasn’t really been witnessed too much during his first full-time season in America. It was quite nice to see.
The softer side of @TheDeanStoneman. Properly loves dogs. @SPCAmc @FollowAndretti pic.twitter.com/H35aDuFrkR
— Tony DiZinno (@tonydizinno) September 8, 2016
Teammate Kellett, who was confirmed for another season in Indy Lights earlier this year, appeared to get congratulations from all parties.
.@Dalton_Kellett gets congrats on his second Lights season from all kinds of characters at @SPCAmc. pic.twitter.com/PT8hZtOhwf
— Tony DiZinno (@tonydizinno) September 8, 2016
Alberico played up a joke with fellow American Aaron Telitz, with the two Rising Star Racing-supported drivers eyeing each other as a rat named for Aaron was in-between, unbeknownst to the debauchery.
This is called a Wild Neil. @neilalberico @AaronTelitz #andarat pic.twitter.com/SgAloOfCeC
— Tony DiZinno (@tonydizinno) September 8, 2016
Pro Mazda Championship Presented by Cooper Tires
- Bobby Eberle, No. 13 JDC Motorsports
- Aaron Telitz, No. 82 Team Pelfrey
Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship Powered by Mazda
- Parker Thompson, No. 2 Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing
- Dakota Dickerson, No. 18 Afterburner Autosport
- Garth Rickards, No. 22 Pabst Racing
- Ayla Agren, No. 33 John Cummiskey Racing (not racing this weekend)
- Robert Megennis, No. 80 Team Pelfrey
Four of these five had a fun time with dogs - Rickards in particular - while Thompson had a different animal of note he spent time with. He got paired with a horse named Parker.
.@parkertracing meets Parker the horse on a visit to the @SPCAmc #MRTI @MazdaRaceway pic.twitter.com/zJ0B9zRVqi
— USF2000 Series (@USF2000) September 8, 2016
Meanwhile, here’s Agren and Rickards with dogs.
Great to see @AylaAgren here. Hope to see her back in a seat soon. @SPCAmc pic.twitter.com/9hmiUSsZvL
— Tony DiZinno (@tonydizinno) September 8, 2016
This might be my favorite pic from @SPCAmc - @GRickards230 with a new friend. pic.twitter.com/VowmPNkUyU
— Tony DiZinno (@tonydizinno) September 8, 2016
Since 2007, @MazdaRacing has worked with the @SPCAmc to promote animal adoption. Cool visit with #MRTI drivers today pic.twitter.com/JlXPcoOZr5
— TSO Ladder presented by Cooper Tires (@TSOLadder) September 8, 2016