SASKATOON, Saskatchewan – Exclusive Autosport has announced Russian open-wheel star Artem Petrov as the team’s second Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires driver for this season.
Petrov will pilot the team’s No. 42 red and white Tatuus PM-18 for his second full year of competition on the Road to Indy Presented by Cooper Tires.
Petrov won two races last season, taking victories at Road America and Mid-Ohio en route to fourth in the overall championship standings.
“I’m glad to announce that this season I’ll be doing my job with Exclusive Autosport,” said Petrov. “I’m really looking forward to meeting every person inside of the team and to start working with them. Hopefully, many good moments are coming soon!”
Artem, like most drivers, got his start in karting at the young age of seven in St. Petersburg, Russia. He won the Russian Karting Championship (KF-J category) and Russian Cup in 2014 and finished sixth in the FIA World Karting Championship in 2015 with some wins and podiums in the WSK series and the Vega Trophy.
In 2016, he made the move to cars competing in the Italian F4 championship, where he finished fifth overall in the championship in 2017, securing two wins, nine podiums, and multiple pole and fast lap awards.
In 2019, Artem came stateside to join the Road to Indy in Indy Pro 2000 with a limited program of three races to finish the season. This effort was highlighted by a seventh-place finish in his oval debut at World Wide Technology Raceway, and then a pair of top-fives at Portland and Weather Tech Raceway Laguna Seca.
Having made an impact in his debut run, Petrov returned to the Indy Pro 2000 series in 2020, scoring his first win at Road America in July, following up with a second victory at Mid-Ohio late in the month.
Since coming to the Road to Indy, Petrov has complied a strong resume, featuring 19 top-10s, 13 top-fives, seven podiums, one pole and two wins.
“It’s very exciting to have Artem join the team for the 2021 Indy Pro 2000 season,” noted Michael Duncalfe, Exclusive Autosport Team Principal. “Artem has great work ethic and is a proven winner. The EA team strives for wins and championships, and I feel with Petrov and (Braden) Eves leading the charge this year, we have a very good chance at our first championship.
“I’m looking forward to getting this season started and seeing how we stack up when we unload at Barber for the season opener.”