Juncos Racing, which plans efforts in both Indy Lights and Star Mazda in 2012, announced its Star Mazda drivers on Monday. Venezuelan rookies Bruno Palli, 20, and Diego Ferreira, 18, enter their first seasons in the U.S. as representatives of "Team Viso Venezuela", an initiative founded by their Venezuelan manager and IZOD IndyCar Series driver E.J. Viso.
The partnership should see Viso working with Juncos Racing team owner Ricardo Juncos to promote opportunities in the U.S. for more of Viso's countrymen.
"After talking with Ricardo (Juncos) for a long time, we concluded that we would start a partnership to bring young drivers into the Mazda Road to Indy and Star Mazda Championship," Viso said. “I created the program to promote young drivers coming from my country so that they can have a bright future in auto racing. My idea is to manage them and give them all the tools I can for them to have successful careers.”
The team has not yet announced its Indy Lights drivers for 2012. J.V. Horto, Tatiana Calderon and Martin Scuncio ran for Juncos in Star Mazda in 2011, and may be in line to move up the next rung on the Mazda Road to Indy ladder.