The 2006 Cooper Tires Formula Ford 2000 Championship is an open-wheel series for Formula 2000 race cars. The series is a support event for the Grand American Championship, American Le Mans Series, Champ Car and SCCA Pro Racing.

The championship consists of fourteen doubleheader weekends, each contested on road courses. The season begins in May at Road Atlanta and ends with the final two races at Road America.

  • May 13 - Road Atlanta
  • May 20-21 - Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
  • June 17-18 - Portland International Raceway
  • June 24-25 - Grand Prix of Cleveland
  • July 8-9 - Honda Indy Toronto
  • September 16-17 - Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
  • September 23-24 - Road America

The cars competing in the series are single-seat, rear-engine, open-wheel vehicles constructed with a tube frame chassis. Manufacturers producing series chassis include Carbir, Mygale, Tatuus, Piper, Citation and the most popular choice, Van Diemen. The suspensions are independent – both front and rear. Shock absorbers and sway bars are adjustable. A four-speed, non-synchro gearbox is used. Sequential transmissions are not permitted.

There are two championships:

  • Zetec Championship – This category is for newer cars with the Ford Zetec engine. The Zetec powerplant is a 2.0-liter fuel injected double-overhead-camshaft four-cylinder motor, producing approximately 160-horsepower at 6,800-rpm.
  • Cooper Gold Cup Championship – This class was introduced to provide an economical means for drivers and teams to enter the series. These 1,190-lbs formula cars are powered by a 2.0-liter Ford NEA engine fitted with a single Weber DGV carburetor. At 6,200-rpm, the motors produce approximately 150-horsepower.

The sponsors and supporters of the series are Ford Racing, Performance Friction Brakes, Carl Haas, Sunoco Fuels, Dynamic Suspension and Racing Radios.

The second doubleheader for the 2006 Cooper Tires Formula Ford 2000 Championship was held at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course during the American Le Mans Series weekend. Drivers would compete in two races around the thirteen-turn 2.258-mile road course.

The winner of the opening rounds at Road Atlanta for the 2006 Cooper Tires Championship was J.R. Hildebrand. Hildebrand drove the No. 2 Formotion / Spy / Mocket.com Van Diemen RF05 and put it on the pole for race one. He would go unchallenged for the victory. It was much the same performance on Sunday. Hildebrand would start on the pole and go flag-to-flag for his fourth consecutive win of 2006.
Jason Byers opened the season with a sixteenth-place finish at Road Atlanta. The stop at Mid-Ohio would allow Byers to redeem himself and he did. On Saturday, he was gridded in the fourth spot, but a pass on Chris Meredith with two laps to go gave Byers a runner-up result. He started race two second, as the result of his finish the previous day and was 13.470-seconds behind Hildebrand at the checker.
Chris Meredith joined Cape Motorsports for his 2006 campaign driving the No. 3 MII Security Van Diemen RF02. Meredith qualified third fastest for the weekend’s first contest. He inherited second when his teammate, Dane Cameron, spun on the opening lap. A pass by Jason Byers resulted in a third-place finish. Meredith started third in the finale but spun and fell down the order to finish in the twenty-first spot.
Another member of the Cape Motorsports team was Dane Cameron, who drove the No. 19 Jim Russell Racing School / Red Line Oil backed Van Diemen RF01. Cameron qualified beside pole-sitter and his teammate, J.R. Hildebrand, for round three. In the race, he was caught out by the cold track and spun, resulting in a twenty-sixth-place finish. Starting at the back of the grid on Sunday, Cameron charged to a third-place result.
Like J.R. Hildebrand, Cole Morgan swept the Gold Cup class at Road Atlanta and the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. The driver of the No. 11 Morgan Homes Swift DB-6 qualified seventh overall and first in his category for the opening contest of the weekend. Dane Cameron’s spin on the opening lap impacted Morgan, but he battled back for the win. Despite contact at the start of round four, he grabbed another victory.

FINISHSTARTCLASSDRIVERENTRANTLAPSRETIREMENTS
11F2AJ. R. HildebrandFormotion / Van Diemen RF0517-
24F2AJason ByersA&B Refridgeration / Van Diemen RF0317-
33F2AChris MeredithMII Security / Van Diemen RF0217-
46F2ANick HayeCoast.College / Van Diemen RF0117-
59F2ADominik JacksonNAPA / Van Diemen RF0517-
616F2ARicardo VassmerSanta Barbara Air / Van Diemen RF0617-
78F2ANoah BystromCooper Power Tools / Van Diemen RF0517-
812F2AAndy KnightNAPA / Van Diemen RF0517-
913F2AWladimir Genovesi, Jr.Ortopedia Germania / Van Diemen RF0217-
1015GCCole MorganMorgan Homes / Swift DB-617-
1110F2APhilip MetzgerNAPA / Van Diemen RF0517-
1214F2AScott RubenzerStorage Battery Systems / Van Diemen RF0217-
1315F2AGerry KrautDougherty & Co. / Van Diemen RF0317-
1424F2AJuliana GonzálezJDC MotorSports / Van Diemen RF0317-
1521GCMark DeferSt. Clair Motorsports / Van Diemen RF9917-
1620GCSeth RavndalTRW / Van Diemen RF0117-
177F2AClark CambernDenison Consulting / Van Diemen RF0517-
1819F2ADan DenisonDenison Consulting / Van Diemen RF0517-
1927F2AChuck LessickZAT Graphics / Van Diemen RF0517-
2022GCBill JordanJ&F Painting Contractors / Van Diemen RF0017-
2125GCBrent Gilkes- / Van Diemen RF9917-
2226F2ACharles FinelliGreisiger Motorsports / Van Diemen RF0217-
2328F2AAlexis SabetSt. Clair Motorsports / Van Diemen RF0116-
2418F2ADwight RiderFront Range Motorsports / Van Diemen RF0216-
2523F2AJim HallmanAberdeen Homes / Van Diemen RF0314Did Not Finish
262F2ADane CameronJim Russell Racing School / Van Diemen RF010Did Not Finish
275F2ASlade MillerKechi Energy / Van Diemen RF020Did Not Finish
2811F2ADoug KniffinPioneer Magnetics / Van Diemen RF010Did Not Finish

FINISHSTARTCLASSDRIVERENTRANTLAPSRETIREMENTS
11F2AJ. R. HildebrandFormotion / Van Diemen RF0519-
22F2AJason ByersA&B Refridgeration / Van Diemen RF0319-
326F2ADane CameronJim Russell Racing School / Van Diemen RF0119-
48F2AAndy KnightNAPA / Van Diemen RF0519-
54F2ANick HayeCoast.College / Van Diemen RF0119-
67F2ANoah BystromCooper Power Tools / Van Diemen RF0519-
711F2APhilip MetzgerNAPA / Van Diemen RF0519-
817F2AClark CambernDenison Consulting / Van Diemen RF0519-
913F2AGerry KrautDougherty & Co. / Van Diemen RF0319-
109F2AWladimir Genovesi, Jr.Ortopedia Germania / Van Diemen RF0219-
1127F2ASlade MillerKechi Energy / Van Diemen RF0219-
1210GCCole MorganMorgan Homes / Swift DB-619-
136F2ARicardo VassmerSanta Barbara Air / Van Diemen RF0619-
1412F2AScott RubenzerStorage Battery Systems / Van Diemen RF0219-
1516GCSeth RavndalTRW / Van Diemen RF0119-
1623F2AAlexis SabetSt. Clair Motorsports / Van Diemen RF0119-
1718F2ADan DenisonDenison Consulting / Van Diemen RF0519-
1820GCBill JordanJ&F Painting Contractors / Van Diemen RF0019-
1919F2AChuck LessickZAT Graphics / Van Diemen RF0519-
2021GCBrent Gilkes- / Van Diemen RF9919-
213F2AChris MeredithMII Security / Van Diemen RF0219-
2222F2ACharles FinelliGreisiger Motorsports / Van Diemen RF0218-
2315GCMark DeferSt. Clair Motorsports / Van Diemen RF999Did Not Finish
2424F2ADwight RiderFront Range Motorsports / Van Diemen RF028Did Not Finish
255F2ADominik JacksonNAPA / Van Diemen RF052Did Not Finish
2614F2AJuliana GonzálezJDC MotorSports / Van Diemen RF031Did Not Finish
-25F2AJim HallmanAberdeen Homes / Van Diemen RF03-Did Not Start
-28F2ADoug KniffinPioneer Magnetics / Van Diemen RF01-Did Not Start

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