Photo credit: Gavin Baker Photography

Vilho Aatola was just two years old the last time a Finnish driver stood on a USF Pro Championships podium. Now, he’s the one ending the drought.

Aatola, the first participant in the Indy Junior Academy Finland–USA program, secured his first-career podium in USF Juniors competition, finishing second in the opening race of the weekend at Barber Motorsports Park for DEForce Racing on Friday.

The Finland–USA program is the brainchild of Tero Palmroth, the only Finnish driver to have ever competed in the Indianapolis 500. The academy is currently accepting applications from Finnish drivers aged 13–16 for next year, with the deadline set for June 20.

Aatola, 16, earned a front-row start thanks to a 1:25.686 qualifying lap — just three-tenths behind eventual winner Leonardo Escorpioni, who swept the weekend with victories in both Race 1 and Race 2.

Though Aatola held his position from start to finish in Race 1, it wasn’t without pressure. He defended skillfully through two restarts — on laps 3 and 12 — with teammate Rodrigo Gonzalez threatening into Turn 1 both times.

Aatola and Gonzalez’s 2–3 finish marked DEForce Racing’s first double podium in USF Juniors since their win at Mid-Ohio in 2023. It was a crucial return to form for the two-time team champions, who went podium-less in 2024.

Aatola’s result was more than a team victory — it was a national milestone. He became the first Finnish driver to podium in any USF Pro Championships series since Petri Suvanto’s 2011 USF2000 title run, and the first-ever Nordic driver to finish on the podium in USF Juniors.

He joins Dennis Hauger, Indy NXT points leader, as one of only two Nordic drivers to stand on an American junior formula podium in 2025.

Meanwhile, Gonzalez’s third-place finish marked the first USF Juniors podium by a Mexican driver, bringing the series’ total podium nationalities up to nine since its debut in 2022.

Aatola backed up his breakout result with fifth and fourth-place finishes in Races 2 and 3, lifting him to fifth in the championship standings heading into Mid-Ohio next month.