Route to MRTI Shootout

I don't aspire to be an F1 prodigy or Indy's next champion, but I've set a rather realistic goal of competing in a season of open wheel racing at a professional level in the next five years. With that said, I don't have hundreds of thousands of dollars in family money to buy a seat out right for season after season, hence the goal of just one season at some point in the near future then enjoying club racing for the rest of my life unless I come up with the next multi-million dollar infomercial gizmo.

Next season the plan is to get my feet wet in TT with NASA, and do at least one weekend in a formula car with Bertil Roos or Lucas OIl, and possibly drive an event or two in a budget enduro series. Then try for a regional TT championship or possibly start W2W racing on my own accord if the budget permits the following year. Followed up by a season in a FV for the third year. Realistically leaving me with two years left of the allotted five years to land myself in the shootout.

Leading into my real question, if I wanted to take one shot at getting into the MRTI shootout to get the $200k USF2000 scholarship, what's the most affordable route? Trying to win the F1600 series championship or finish runner up in hopes of the champ winning runoffs? Putting in the necessities to qualify for runoffs in a mediocre FF car, then putting all my eggs in a basket with a runoffs winning capable ride for that week? Is there another more budget friendly route that I'm missing?

Skip all the time wasting preliminaries.

Call Kris at K-Hill and tell him you want to do the F1600 Series with him next year.
Do some testing this fall/winter with him.
Then go balls to the wall next F1600 season.

If you can win in that Series, you probably can run up front anywhere.

Last year they used the Lucas cars which I think is an advantage to FF drivers.
If you can score some time in those cars it would help fr the actual shootout.