INDIANAPOLIS — North Carolina native Laci Ferno will join Abacus Racing and their team of drivers this season as part of a newly formed development team.
The “Abacus Racing Women’s Development Team” will begin competition in 2023 with the goal of having the car be completely staffed by women, no later than the end of the 2025 racing season.
“This is something very important to me. I believe that women play a vital role in motorsports, and I would like to see more involvement at this level. In my experience in motorsports, I have had the pleasure of working with so many talented women,” said Brent Cox, team principal of Abacus Racing
The team, which plans to race under the No. 59, will drive select races in the Xtreme Outlaw Midget Series and POWRi National Midget Series, with the goal of also participating in a few USAC national midget races.
“This announcement will be the first of many steps to having this car be completely women run and managed. From the team manager, crew chief, support crew and driver of the car, the goal is for it to be 100 percent women. This could include an entirely separate truck and trailer that would be driven by a woman,” Cox said.
Ferno, 18 years old, will be the newly formed team’s first driver.
The Mooresville, N.C., native is entering her fifth year of racing and has previous racing experience in outlaw karts and micros, as well as two starts in the POWRi National Midget Series that came last year. She’s optimistic about having more opportunities in a midget.
“I want to keep working to advance my racing career. I had been following Abacus Racing for a while and I am very happy to be able to drive for them. I think this team will give me the experience I need,” Ferno said.
It took Ferno reaching out to Cox, along with a well-timed podcast, for him to form the team.
“I was traveling in my car and listening to an episode of The Loudpedal Podcast and they had Lacey Doyle (car chief for RMS Racing) on there. I just loved her story and I had been in initial discussions with Laci (Ferno) at around the same time. Both stories were based on development and opportunity. That was the genesis for the team,” Cox said.
“When I first talked to Laci, it is a story that is echoed a lot in motorsports. A driver hungry to do more, to go faster, to get results. They just need the opportunity. I have worked with drivers, executives, owners and mechanics at all levels of the Road to Indy and IndyCar, and the primary thing you need is the opportunity to match the drive and desire. Laci had the drive and I really liked that,” Cox continued.
To find women to crew the car is a challenge that Brent looks forward to. His current crew are excited at the opportunity to do what they can to locate and mentor this crew over time. It provides a challenge and an education that many women may not realize is even there.
“When you look at a dirt car, they may look unsophisticated to those who don’t truly understand just how technical these cars are. It takes a tremendous amount of talent to set these cars up and to drive them at their maximum level,” Cox said.
As part of the process, the team also plans to have a team advisory board made up entirely of women.
The goal is to take the expertise of that board, along with current Abacus Racing ownership and management, to identify all the ways to make this truly a development team covering all aspects of what the team needs to be successful: marketing, social media presence, media training, technical issues, financial management, sponsorship procurement and activation and on-track success.
“This is an initiative I think can have a major impact on the sport,” Cox said.
Initial sponsors for the team, advisory board and planned races will be released later.