August, 29, 2009 – Joliet. At the Chicagoland Speedway, J. R. Hildebrand became the first American since A. J. Foyt IV in 2002 to win the IRL Firestone Indy Lights Championship. Although J. R. only started 13th and finished 5th that was all it took to get enough more points to bring the trophy home for AFS Racing/Andretti Green Racing.
The 21-year-old star from Sausalito, California, claimed 5 poles this season and won 4 races. He also finished in the top 5, 11 times and finished 13 of this year’s 14 races. J. R. also led 241 total laps. He has high hopes that this record will put him on a fast track to Indy.
In the mean-time, Winston-Salem, N. C.’s Daniel Herrington of Bryan Herta Autosport won his first Lights race. And Australia’s James Davison of Vision Racing [2nd] and Chatham, N. J.’s Andrew Prendeville of Team Moore Racing [3rd] took the other two podium spots. New Zealand’s 2005 Lights champion Wade Cunningham with Sam Schmidt Motorsports, [4th] led the first 13 laps of the race and registered the most times led, 3, and the most laps led, 39 of 67, of any of the drivers.
Herrington, who started 9th in the race, worked his way up to the front and then took over the lead on lap 42 and kept if for the final 26 laps and the checkered flag.
The season ended up with one more race, that was at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Brazil’s Mario Romancini, driving for RLR Andersen Racing, was the winner while the champion, J. R. Hildebrand, finished 2nd and Columbia’s Sebastian Saavedra, J. R.’s teammate, took 3rd.
Wade Cunningham took the lead again at the start of the race, and again led 3 times, but James Davison, who had the pole, led 5 times. Still, this year’s champion, J. R., led 3 times also and had the most laps led of any driver, 32.
As with each year of the IRL’s Firestone Indy Lights Series, the competition just gets better and the competition more dramatic and exciting. Looking back, the results are a tribute to Tony George and the organization he put together. No doubt though with the organization he put together the future for this series will be even more awesome. A special thanks to Tim Harms, Dave Lewandowski and the IRL Firestone Indy Lights media staff.
|
IPS Archive 
