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2010 Indy Lights season
Firestone Indy Lights
Season
Races13
Start dateMarch 28
End dateOctober 2
Awards
Drivers' champion France Jean-Karl Vernay
Teams' champion United States Sam Schmidt Motorsports
Rookie of the Year France Jean-Karl Vernay
←  2009
2011 →

The 2010 Indy Racing League Firestone Indy Lights season was the 25th Indy Lights season. It was contested over thirteen races beginning on March 28 on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida, and ended on October 2 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Jean-Karl Vernay became the first European to win the championship title since Alex Lloyd in 2007, after taking five victories and ten top-five placings at the wheel of his Sam Schmidt Motorsports car. His championship title, guaranteed by just starting the final race at Homestead, also garnered him with the Rookie of the Year award, having moved into the series from Europe and the Formula 3 Euro Series. Another driver with ten top-fives, James Hinchcliffe finished second in the title race for Team Moore Racing, a race winner at Long Beach, Edmonton and Chicagoland Speedway.

Third place was fought between AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport team-mates Martin Plowman and Charlie Kimball, with Plowman coming out on top by six points; Plowman won a race at Mid-Ohio, while Kimball finished four races in second place including three in succession early in the season. Other drivers to take wins were Wade Cunningham – winning the Firestone Freedom 100 for the third time – and Sebastián Saavedra at Iowa Speedway, while two drivers visited victory lane for the first time; Pippa Mann at Kentucky Speedway and Brandon Wagner at Homestead in their second seasons in the formula.

Team and driver chart

Team No. Drivers Rounds
United States AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport 26 United States Charlie Kimball [1] All
27 United Kingdom Martin Plowman [2] All
United States Sam Schmidt Motorsports 7 France Jean-Karl Vernay [3] All
11 United Kingdom Pippa Mann [4] 1-8, 10-13
49 Canada Philip Major [5] All
77 United Kingdom James Winslow [6] 1-3, 6-9
New Zealand Wade Cunningham [7] 4, 13
Canada Alex Ellis [8] 10
United States Andersen Racing 4 Spain Carmen Jordá [9] 1-3, 7-8
Netherlands Arie Luyendyk Jr. [10] 4
Norway Anders Krohn [11] 6
Brazil Giancarlo Vilarinho [12] 9-10
United States Sean Guthrie [13] 13
5 United States Joel Miller [14] 3
Estonia Tõnis Kasemets [15] 7
United States Bryan Herta Autosport 28 United Kingdom Stefan Wilson [16] 1-9, 11-12
United States Joel Miller [17] 10
29 Colombia Sebastián Saavedra [18] 1-11
United States Daniel Herrington [19] 12
United Kingdom Dillon Battistini [20] 13
United States Team PBIR 35 United States Nic LeDuc [21] 2
Estonia Tõnis Kasemets [22] 3
United Kingdom Dillon Battistini [23] 11
37 Republic of Ireland Niall Quinn [24] 2-3
United States Team Moore Racing 2 Canada James Hinchcliffe [25] All
22 Spain Adrián Campos Jr. [26] All
United States Alliance Motorsports 24 Netherlands Arie Luyendyk Jr. [27] 11-13
United States PDM Racing 18 Brazil Rodrigo Barbosa [28] All
United States Walker Racing 40 United States Jonathan Summerton [6] 1
United Kingdom Dan Clarke [21] 2-13
United States Davey Hamilton Racing 32 United States Brandon Wagner [7] 4-5, 11-13
34 United States Henry Clarke [13] 13
United States Genoa Racing
United States O2 Racing Technology
36 Mexico David Martínez [29] 9-10
United States Daniel Herrington [13] 13
United States HVM Racing 6 Netherlands Junior Strous [30] 1-3
United States Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing 10 Colombia Gustavo Yacamán [31] All
United States Team E 17 Belgium Jan Heylen [6] 1
United States Jeff Simmons [7] 4
United States Michael Crawford Motorsports 8 Mexico Juan Pablo Garcia [32] 9-10

Schedule

Rnd Date Race Name Track Location
1 March 28 United States Firestone Indy Lights Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Streets of St. Petersburg St. Petersburg, FL  
2 April 11 United States Firestone Indy Lights Grand Prix of Alabama Barber Motorsports Park Birmingham, AL
3 April 18 United States Firestone Indy Lights Grand Prix of Long Beach Streets of Long Beach Long Beach, CA
4 May 28 United States Firestone Freedom 100 Indianapolis Motor Speedway Speedway, IN
5 June 19 United States AvoidTheStork.com 100 Iowa Speedway Newton, IA
6 July 4 United States Corning 100 Watkins Glen International Watkins Glen, NY
7 July 18 Canada Toronto 100 Streets of Toronto Toronto, ON
8 July 25 Canada Edmonton 100 Edmonton City Centre Airport Edmonton, AB
9 August 8 United States Mid-Ohio 100 Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course Lexington, OH
10 August 22 United States Carneros 100 Infineon Raceway Sonoma, CA
11 August 28 United States Chicagoland 100 Chicagoland Speedway Joliet, IL
12 September 4 United States Drive Smart Buckle-Up Kentucky 100 Kentucky Speedway Sparta, KY
13 October 2 United States Fuzzy's Ultra Premium Vodka 100 Homestead-Miami Speedway Homestead, FL
  Oval/Speedway
  Street/Temporary Circuit
  Road Course

Open Testing

Firestone Indy Lights Barber Open Test

Top Three Drivers
Pos Car
No.
Driver Team Total
Laps
Best Time Best Speed In
Lap
Practice
Session
1 2 Canada James Hinchcliffe   United States Team Moore Racing 73 1:14.9604   110.458 29 1
2 27 United Kingdom Martin Plowman United States AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport   93 1:15.0832 110.278 39 1
3 26 United States Charlie Kimball United States AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport   73 1:15.1716 110.148 30 2
Average speed: 108.346 mph (174.366 km/h)

Indianapolis Open Test – Indy Lights

Top Three Drivers
Pos Car
No.
Driver Team Total
Laps
Best Time Best Speed In
Lap
Practice
Session
1 10 Colombia Gustavo Yacamán   United States Cape Motorsports
with Wayne Taylor Racing
105 47.2413 190.511 48 2
2 11 United Kingdom Pippa Mann United States Sam Schmidt Motorsports 103 47.3125 190.225 35 2
3 26 United States Charlie Kimball United States AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport   36 47.3486 190.080 10 1
Average speed: 0.0 mph (0 km/h)

Race results

Rd. Race Pole position Fastest lap Most laps led Winning driver Winning team
1 United States St. Pete Canada James Hinchcliffe Colombia Sebastián Saavedra France Jean-Karl Vernay France Jean-Karl Vernay Sam Schmidt Motorsports
2 United States Barber France Jean-Karl Vernay France Jean-Karl Vernay France Jean-Karl Vernay France Jean-Karl Vernay Sam Schmidt Motorsports
3 United States Long Beach Canada James Hinchcliffe Canada James Hinchcliffe Canada James Hinchcliffe Canada James Hinchcliffe Team Moore Racing
4 United States Indianapolis United Kingdom Pippa Mann United States Jeff Simmons New Zealand Wade Cunningham New Zealand Wade Cunningham Sam Schmidt Motorsports
5 United States Iowa Colombia Sebastián Saavedra Canada Philip Major Colombia Sebastián Saavedra Colombia Sebastián Saavedra Bryan Herta Autosport
6 United States Watkins Glen Canada James Hinchcliffe Canada James Hinchcliffe Canada James Hinchcliffe France Jean-Karl Vernay Sam Schmidt Motorsports
7 Canada Toronto France Jean-Karl Vernay United Kingdom Stefan Wilson France Jean-Karl Vernay France Jean-Karl Vernay Sam Schmidt Motorsports
8 Canada Edmonton Canada James Hinchcliffe Canada James Hinchcliffe Canada James Hinchcliffe Canada James Hinchcliffe Team Moore Racing
9 United States Mid-Ohio United Kingdom Martin Plowman Canada James Hinchcliffe United Kingdom Martin Plowman United Kingdom Martin Plowman AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport
10 United States Sonoma France Jean-Karl Vernay France Jean-Karl Vernay France Jean-Karl Vernay France Jean-Karl Vernay Sam Schmidt Motorsports
11 United States Chicagoland United Kingdom Martin Plowman Canada James Hinchcliffe United Kingdom Pippa Mann Canada James Hinchcliffe Team Moore Racing
12 United States Kentucky United Kingdom Pippa Mann Spain Adrián Campos Jr. United Kingdom Pippa Mann United Kingdom Pippa Mann Sam Schmidt Motorsports
13 United States Homestead United Kingdom Pippa Mann Canada James Hinchcliffe United States Brandon Wagner United States Brandon Wagner Davey Hamilton Racing

Race summaries

Round 1: Streets of St. Petersburg

  • Sunday March 28, 2010 – 12:58 p.m. EDT
  • Streets of St. PetersburgSt. Petersburg, Florida; Temporary street circuit, 1.800 miles (2.897 km)
  • Distance: 45 laps / 81.000 miles (130.357 km); reduced to 35 laps / 63.000 miles (101.389 km) due to rain.
  • Race weather: 71 °F (22 °C), overcast at start with rain falling later.
  • Pole position winner: #2 James Hinchcliffe, 1:06.3496 sec, 97.664 mph (157.175 km/h)
  • Most laps led: #7 Jean-Karl Vernay, 31
  • Race report: On turn one of the first lap, Philip Major divebombed the field, making contact with polesitter James Hinchcliffe, taking both out of the race. Later that lap, Adrián Campos Jr. who had made contact with Pippa Mann during the start nosed into the wall in turn 8. Mann retired from the race, after spinning under caution. On the lap four restart Jean-Karl Vernay passed Sebastián Saavedra for the lead and was later spun by Charlie Kimball in turn four, bringing out another caution. The race was red flagged on lap six during that caution period due to moisture, allowing the teams to pit and change to full wet tires. The race went back to green on lap nine. On the restart, leader Vernay pulled out to a 9-second lead over Junior Strous who had climbed to second. However, on lap 17 Strous spun in turn 1, handing Vernay a 17-second lead over new second-place Jan Heylen. On lap 25 Saavedra hit the wall bringing out the caution and erasing Vernay's 20 second lead over Heylen. However, on the resultant restart with 8 minutes remaining (the race had become a timed race due to the rain), Vernay was able to pull away and win by 11 seconds over Heylen. Jonathan Summerton spun in the final corner of the last lap and fell from fourth to eighth.
Top Five Finishers
Fin.
Pos
St.
Pos
Car
No.
Driver Team Laps Time Laps
Led
1 2 7 France Jean-Karl Vernay Sam Schmidt Motorsports 35 1:02:02.6848 31
2 4 17 Belgium Jan Heylen Team E 35 +11.2338 0
3 14 28 United Kingdom Stefan Wilson Bryan Herta Autosport 35 +11.5785 0
4 7 26 United States Charlie Kimball AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport 35 +20.4041 0
5 10 10 Colombia Gustavo Yacamán Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing 35 +21.8013 0
Race average speed: 60.924 mph (98.048 km/h)
Lead changes: 1 between 2 drivers
Cautions: 4 for 10 laps

Round 2: Barber Motorsports Park

Top Five Finishers
Fin.
Pos
St.
Pos
Car
No.
Driver Team Laps Time Laps
Led
1 1 7 France Jean-Karl Vernay Sam Schmidt Motorsports 40 57:07.6033 39
2 2 26 United States Charlie Kimball AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport 40 +1.1542 1
3 4 29 Colombia Sebastián Saavedra Bryan Herta Autosport 40 +5.7970 0
4 3 27 United Kingdom Martin Plowman AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport 40 +9.0794 0
5 5 2 Canada James Hinchcliffe Team Moore Racing 40 +10.2997 0
Race average speed: 96.627 mph (155.506 km/h)
Lead changes: 1 between 2 drivers
Cautions: 2 for 4 laps

Round 3: Streets of Long Beach

  • Sunday April 18, 2010 – 1:40 p.m. EDT / 10:40 a.m. PDT
  • Streets of Long BeachLong Beach, California; Temporary street circuit, 1.968 miles (3.167 km)
  • Distance: 45 laps / 88.560 miles (142.524 km)
  • Race weather: 64 °F (18 °C), clear skies
  • Pole position winner: #2 James Hinchcliffe, 1:14.6261 sec, 94.937 mph (152.786 km/h)
  • Most laps led: #2 James Hinchcliffe, 45
  • Race report: Starting from his second pole of the season, James Hinchcliffe led the field through Turn 1 on the opening lap as Charlie Kimball overhauled Jean-Karl Vernay for second place. The three drivers then held their respective positions for the duration of the race, as the other drivers battled behind. Sebastián Saavedra and Martin Plowman rounded out the top five placings. Dan Clarke and Junior Strous both ran into early trouble, with Clarke suffering a mechanical problem and Strous running into the barriers on Lap 9. Clarke returned to the race six laps down, and wound up thirteenth at the end of the race. Stefan Wilson suffered an electrical problem, Rodrigo Barbosa was parked after causing two of the race's four full course cautions with spins and Adrián Campos Jr. crashed heavily at Turn 1 on Lap 34, causing the third caution. Almost immediately after the race returned to green after the Campos crash, the yellow flags flew again after Gustavo Yacamán and Niall Quinn were both involved in incidents at the track's Fountain section; Yacamán having been punted from behind by Quinn's team-mate Tõnis Kasemets, while Quinn spun by himself. On the penultimate lap, Sam Schmidt Motorsports' Philip Major ran into his team-mate James Winslow, forcing the British driver into the barrier and was eventually scored in twelfth position.
Top Five Finishers
Fin.
Pos
St.
Pos
Car
No.
Driver Team Laps Time Laps
Led
1 1 2 Canada James Hinchcliffe Team Moore Racing 45 1:03:41.4082 45
2 3 26 United States Charlie Kimball AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport 45 +0.8370 0
3 2 7 France Jean-Karl Vernay Sam Schmidt Motorsports 45 +1.2291 0
4 4 29 Colombia Sebastián Saavedra Bryan Herta Autosport 45 +2.9126 0
5 5 27 United Kingdom Martin Plowman AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport 45 +4.4735 0
Race average speed: 83.429 mph (134.266 km/h)
Lead changes: None
Cautions: 4 for 8 laps

Round 4: Firestone Freedom 100

  • Friday May 28, 2010 – 12:30 p.m. EDT / 11:30 a.m. CDT
  • Indianapolis Motor SpeedwaySpeedway, Indiana; Permanent racing facility, 2.500 miles (4.023 km)
  • Distance: 40 laps / 100.000 miles (160.934 km)
  • Race weather: 79 °F (26 °C), clear skies
  • Pole position winner: #11 Pippa Mann, 1:35.7505 sec, 187.989 mph (302.539 km/h) (2-lap)
  • Most laps led: #77 Wade Cunningham, 38
  • Race report: Pippa Mann led the field to the green flag, but was immediately overtaken by Wade Cunningham, with Charlie Kimball, series returnee Jeff Simmons and Martin Plowman all getting ahead of Mann by the end of the first lap. Mann's race ended at Turn 1 of lap three, being an innocent victim in an accident with Simmons, producing the race's only caution period. Championship leader Jean-Karl Vernay hit trouble early in the race, making a lengthy pit-stop on lap one, returning to the field several laps down. When the race returned to green on lap nine, Cunningham led from Kimball, Plowman, Dan Clarke and Philip Major. Kimball took the lead on lap ten before Cunningham repassed him on lap eleven. James Hinchcliffe progressed through the field, and ran as high as second place for the middle portion of the race, before Kimball reasserted himself in the position. He once again took the lead from Cunningham before the New Zealander took the lead for good on lap 34. Cunningham held his rivals off for the remaining laps, as he took his third Freedom 100 victory by 0.4368 seconds from Kimball, with Hinchcliffe, Clarke and Plowman rounding out the top five positions. Along with Simmons and Mann, Arie Luyendyk Jr. retired from the race due to mechanical gremlins. With Vernay finishing down the field, his championship lead over Kimball was trimmed to just five points.
Top Five Finishers
Fin.
Pos
St.
Pos
Car
No.
Driver Team Laps Time Laps
Led
1 2 77 New Zealand Wade Cunningham Sam Schmidt Motorsports 40 39:55.4552 38
2 3 26 United States Charlie Kimball AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport 40 +0.4368 2
3 8 2 Canada James Hinchcliffe Team Moore Racing 40 +2.3638 0
4 10 40 United Kingdom Dan Clarke Walker Racing 40 +2.6459 0
5 4 27 United Kingdom Martin Plowman AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport 40 +3.7024 0
Race average speed: 150.285 mph (241.860 km/h)
Lead changes: 4 between 2 drivers
Cautions: 1 for 6 laps

Round 5: AvoidTheStork.com 100

  • Saturday June 19, 2010 – 9:40 p.m. EDT / 8:40 p.m. CDT
  • Iowa SpeedwayNewton, Iowa; Permanent racing facility, 0.894 miles (1.439 km)
  • Distance: 115 laps / 102.810 miles (165.457 km)
  • Race weather: 77 °F (25 °C), clear skies
  • Pole position winner: #29 Sebastián Saavedra, 40.0594 sec, 160.681 mph (258.591 km/h) (2-lap)
  • Most laps led: #29 Sebastián Saavedra, 115
  • Race report:
Top Five Finishers
Fin.
Pos
St.
Pos
Car
No.
Driver Team Laps Time Laps
Led
1 1 29 Colombia Sebastián Saavedra Bryan Herta Autosport 115 46:10.0471 115
2 2 27 United Kingdom Martin Plowman AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport 115 +0.4820 0
3 3 7 France Jean-Karl Vernay Sam Schmidt Motorsports 115 +1.3682 0
4 5 22 Spain Adrián Campos Jr. Team Moore Racing 115 +5.8468 0
5 9 2 Canada James Hinchcliffe Team Moore Racing 115 +7.4975 0
Race average speed: 133.614 mph (215.031 km/h)
Lead changes: None
Cautions: 2 for 15 laps

Round 6: Corning 100

  • Sunday July 4, 2010 – 1:30 p.m. EDT
  • Watkins Glen InternationalWatkins Glen, New York; Permanent racing facility, 3.370 miles (5.423 km)
  • Distance: 30 laps / 101.100 miles (162.705 km)
  • Race weather: 85 °F (29 °C), clear skies
  • Pole position winner: #2 James Hinchcliffe, 1:37.3593 sec, 124.610 mph (200.540 km/h)
  • Most laps led: #2 James Hinchcliffe, 18
  • Race report: Charlie Kimball suffered problems even before the start of the race, stalling his car at Turn 7. His stall forced the start to be waved off a lap. When the race did eventually get under way, James Hinchcliffe led Stefan Wilson into Turn 1. Wilson would be demoted to fourth by the end of the lap, as both championship leader Jean-Karl Vernay and Sebastián Saavedra found a way past the British driver. The first of two cautions flew on lap two as Dan Clarke was tipped into a spin by Pippa Mann and both cars found the wall at Turn 9. After the restart, Wilson was demoted yet further, as debutant Anders Krohn found a way by. Krohn would fall to tenth position by the race's conclusion. Wilson's engine blew at the beginning of lap fourteen, causing the second and final caution due to fluid leaking out of his Bryan Herta Autosport car all the way along the front straight. Vernay found a way past Hinchcliffe on lap nineteen, using the Canadian's slipstream to full effect, passing him into the Inner Loop. Vernay held the lead to the end, as he won his third race of the season to extend his championship lead. Hinchcliffe finished in close proximity to Vernay in second, with Saavedra, Martin Plowman and James Winslow – returning to the series, and starting last out of the 14-car grid – rounded out the top five placings.
Top Five Finishers
Fin.
Pos
St.
Pos
Car
No.
Driver Team Laps Time Laps
Led
1 3 7 France Jean-Karl Vernay Sam Schmidt Motorsports 30 58:48.4946 12
2 1 2 Canada James Hinchcliffe Team Moore Racing 30 +0.2135 18
3 4 29 Colombia Sebastián Saavedra Bryan Herta Autosport 30 +3.9635 0
4 6 27 United Kingdom Martin Plowman AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport 30 +19.0729 0
5 14 77 United Kingdom James Winslow Sam Schmidt Motorsports 30 +23.3294 0
Race average speed: 103.149 mph (166.002 km/h)
Lead changes: 1 between 2 drivers
Cautions: 2 for 6 laps

Round 7: Toronto 100

  • Sunday July 18, 2010 – 10:25 a.m. EDT
  • Streets of TorontoToronto, Ontario; Temporary street circuit, 1.755 miles (2.824 km)
  • Distance: 50 laps / 87.750 miles (141.220 km)
  • Race weather: 72 °F (22 °C), clear skies
  • Pole position winner: #7 Jean-Karl Vernay, 1:05.2989 sec, 96.755 mph (155.712 km/h)
  • Most laps led: #7 Jean-Karl Vernay, 50
  • Race report: Jean-Karl Vernay dominated en route to his fourth victory of the season, leading every lap of the race from pole position. After fending off sufficient pressure from James Hinchcliffe, Vernay extended his lead despite two full course cautions for incidents at Turn 8. Hinchcliffe was due to finish second behind Vernay but made a mistake into Turn 3 and allowed Dan Clarke and Gustavo Yacamán to fill the remaining podium slots. Charlie Kimball also looked for the pass into Turn 5, but ended up colliding with Hinchcliffe sending him into the wall and a tenth-place classification. Kimball finished fourth ahead of a recovering Stefan Wilson, who set the fastest lap after earlier going down the escape road due to an error. Other retirees from the race were Sebastián Saavedra who lost fourth gear, and Carmen Jordá who spun at Turn 8.
Top Five Finishers
Fin.
Pos
St.
Pos
Car
No.
Driver Team Laps Time Laps
Led
1 1 7 France Jean-Karl Vernay Sam Schmidt Motorsports 50 58:52.0083 50
2 3 40 United Kingdom Dan Clarke Walker Racing 50 +1.7469 0
3 4 10 Colombia Gustavo Yacamán Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing 50 +2.7446 0
4 7 26 United States Charlie Kimball AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport 50 +3.5688 0
5 10 28 United Kingdom Stefan Wilson Bryan Herta Autosport 50 +4.2667 0
Race average speed: 89.439 mph (143.938 km/h)
Lead changes: None
Cautions: 2 for 4 laps

Round 8: Edmonton 100

  • Sunday July 25, 2010 – 2:57 p.m. EDT / 12:57 p.m. MDT
  • Edmonton City Centre AirportEdmonton, Alberta; Temporary airport course, 1.973 miles (3.175 km)
  • Distance: 50 laps / 98.650 miles (158.762 km)
  • Race weather: 69 °F (21 °C), clear skies
  • Pole position winner: #2 James Hinchcliffe, 1:06.2160 sec, 107.267 mph (172.630 km/h)
  • Most laps led: #2 James Hinchcliffe, 50
  • Race report: James Hinchcliffe led from start to finish, as he cut Jean-Karl Vernay's championship lead by thirteen to 55, in a race which lacked overtaking moves. The top five qualifiers – Hinchcliffe, Vernay, Martin Plowman, Charlie Kimball and Dan Clarke – claimed the top five placings, with only Carmen Jordá failing to finish out of the 13-car grid.
Top Five Finishers
Fin.
Pos
St.
Pos
Car
No.
Driver Team Laps Time Laps
Led
1 1 2 Canada James Hinchcliffe Team Moore Racing 50 58:33.2721 50
2 2 7 France Jean-Karl Vernay Sam Schmidt Motorsports 50 +1.2273 0
3 3 27 United Kingdom Martin Plowman AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport 50 +9.5605 0
4 4 26 United States Charlie Kimball AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport 50 +11.6991 0
5 5 40 United Kingdom Dan Clarke Walker Racing 50 +12.5320 0
Race average speed: 101.085 mph (162.681 km/h)
Lead changes: None
Cautions: 1 for 3 laps

Round 9: Mid-Ohio 100

  • Sunday August 8, 2010 – 12:30 p.m. EDT
  • Mid-Ohio Sports Car CourseLexington, Ohio; Permanent racing facility, 2.258 miles (3.634 km)
  • Distance: 40 laps / 90.320 miles (145.356 km)
  • Race weather: 83 °F (28 °C), clear skies
  • Pole position winner: #27 Martin Plowman, 1:12.8624 sec, 111.564 mph (179.545 km/h)
  • Most laps led: #27 Martin Plowman, 40
  • Race report: Martin Plowman became an Indy Lights victor after leading from start-to-finish to tie James Hinchcliffe for second in the championship. Plowman held off the challenge of Hinchcliffe during the race, with the Canadian driver running wide midway through the race. British drivers claimed a 1-2 as Dan Clarke finished second ahead of Plowman's team-mate Charlie Kimball and the Bryan Herta Autosport cars of Stefan Wilson and Sebastián Saavedra. Championship leader Jean-Karl Vernay struggled all weekend and finished in eighth, just behind Hinchcliffe.
Top Five Finishers
Fin.
Pos
St.
Pos
Car
No.
Driver Team Laps Time Laps
Led
1 1 27 United Kingdom Martin Plowman AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport 40 50:28.5067 40
2 3 40 United Kingdom Dan Clarke Walker Racing 40 +0.8443 0
3 6 26 United States Charlie Kimball AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport 40 +4.1734 0
4 5 28 United Kingdom Stefan Wilson Bryan Herta Autosport 40 +7.6215 0
5 4 29 Colombia Sebastián Saavedra Bryan Herta Autosport 40 +7.8045 0
Race average speed: 107.364 mph (172.786 km/h)
Lead changes: None
Cautions: None

Round 10: Carneros 100

  • Sunday August 22, 2010 – 2:45 p.m. EDT / 11:45 a.m. PDT
  • Infineon RacewaySonoma, California; Permanent racing facility, 2.303 miles (3.706 km)
  • Distance: 40 laps / 92.120 miles (148.253 km)
  • Race weather: 67 °F (19 °C), clear skies
  • Pole position winner: #7 Jean-Karl Vernay, 1:23.5582 sec, 99.222 mph (159.682 km/h)
  • Most laps led: #7 Jean-Karl Vernay, 40
  • Race report:
Top Five Finishers
Fin.
Pos
St.
Pos
Car
No.
Driver Team Laps Time Laps
Led
1 1 7 France Jean-Karl Vernay Sam Schmidt Motorsports 40 1:02:21.4252 40
2 2 26 United States Charlie Kimball AFS Racing/ Andretti Autosport 40 +3.4245 0
3 3 2 Canada James Hinchcliffe Team Moore Racing 40 +10.5583 0
4 4 10 Colombia Gustavo Yacamán Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing 40 +15.2115 0
5 7 11 United Kingdom Pippa Mann Sam Schmidt Motorsports 40 +23.2599 0
Race average speed: 88.638 mph (142.649 km/h)
Lead changes: None
Cautions: 2 for 5 laps

Round 11: Chicagoland 100

  • Saturday August 28, 2010 – 5:15 p.m. EDT / 4:15 p.m. CDT
  • Chicagoland SpeedwayJoliet, Illinois; Permanent racing facility, 1.520 miles (2.446 km)
  • Distance: 67 laps / 101.840 miles (163.896 km)
  • Race weather: 93 °F (34 °C), clear skies
  • Pole position winner: #27 Martin Plowman, 57.7510 sec, 189.503 mph (304.976 km/h) (2-lap)
  • Most laps led: #11 Pippa Mann, 35
  • Race report:
Top Five Finishers
Fin.
Pos
St.
Pos
Car
No.
Driver Team Laps Time Laps
Led
1 13 2 Canada James Hinchcliffe Team Moore Racing 67 42:30.9080 3
2 2 11 United Kingdom Pippa Mann Sam Schmidt Motorsports 67 +0.0159 35
3 4 49 Canada Philip Major Sam Schmidt Motorsports 67 +0.0557 0
4 5 7 France Jean-Karl Vernay Sam Schmidt Motorsports 67 +0.1271 0
5 11 40 United Kingdom Dan Clarke Walker Racing 67 +0.2061 0
Race average speed: 143.723 mph (231.300 km/h)
Lead changes: 4 between 3 drivers
Cautions: 4 for 17 laps

Round 12: Drive Smart Buckle-Up Kentucky 100

  • Saturday September 4, 2010 – 5:30 p.m. EDT
  • Kentucky SpeedwaySparta, Kentucky; Permanent racing facility, 1.480 miles (2.382 km)
  • Distance: 67 laps / 99.160 miles (159.583 km)
  • Race weather: 76 °F (24 °C), scattered clouds
  • Pole position winner: #11 Pippa Mann, 55.9447 sec, 190.474 mph (306.538 km/h) (2-lap)
  • Most laps led: #11 Pippa Mann, 67
  • Race report: Pippa Mann led from start to finish to join Ana Beatriz as female winners in Indy Lights, as she pulled away from her rivals to a winning margin of nearly seven seconds. Jean-Karl Vernay had a chance to wrap up the title with a round to spare, but with James Hinchcliffe finishing ahead of him, his 48-point championship lead meant that Vernay will only need to start the final race on October 2 to become champion. Adrián Campos Jr. equalled his best finish to place fourth, a car length behind Vernay while Gustavo Yacamán finished fifth after starting on the back row. Daniel Herrington returned to the series as a raceday replacement at Bryan Herta Autosport for Sebastián Saavedra who parted company with the team but only made it as far as lap two, when he was involved in a three-car crash with team-mate Stefan Wilson and Philip Major, which brought out the only caution of the race, before the race was halted for 15 minutes to sweep the circuit of debris. All three drivers were unhurt in the incident.
Top Five Finishers
Fin.
Pos
St.
Pos
Car
No.
Driver Team Laps Time Laps
Led
1 1 11 United Kingdom Pippa Mann Sam Schmidt Motorsports 67 34:04.7529 67
2 6 2 Canada James Hinchcliffe Team Moore Racing 67 +6.8372 0
3 4 7 France Jean-Karl Vernay Sam Schmidt Motorsports 67 +9.7137 0
4 7 22 Spain Adrián Campos Jr. Team Moore Racing 67 +9.7924 0
5 13 10 Colombia Gustavo Yacamán Cape Motorsports with Wayne Taylor Racing 67 +13.9245 0
Race average speed: 174.581 mph (280.961 km/h)
Lead changes: None
Cautions: 1 for 3 laps

Round 13: Fuzzy's Ultra Premium Vodka 100

  • Saturday October 2, 2010 – 3:45 p.m. EDT
  • Homestead-Miami SpeedwayHomestead, Florida; Permanent racing facility, 1.485 miles (2.390 km)
  • Distance: 67 laps / 99.495 miles (160.122 km)
  • Race weather: 88 °F (31 °C), clear skies
  • Pole position winner: #11 Pippa Mann, 57.2999 sec, 186.597 mph (300.299 km/h) (2-lap)
  • Most laps led: #32 Brandon Wagner, 66
  • Race report:
Top Five Finishers
Fin.
Pos
St.
Pos
Car
No.
Driver Team Laps Time Laps
Led
1 3 32 United States Brandon Wagner Davey Hamilton Racing 67 40:38.3036 66
2 6 2 Canada James Hinchcliffe Team Moore Racing 67 +0.7006 1
3 5 77 New Zealand Wade Cunningham Sam Schmidt Motorsports 67 +9.0836 0
4 10 22 Spain Adrián Campos Jr. Team Moore Racing 67 +10.1335 0
5 1 11 United Kingdom Pippa Mann Sam Schmidt Motorsports 67 +10.9261 0
Race average speed: 146.898 mph (236.409 km/h)
Lead changes: 2 between 2 drivers
Cautions: 1 for 9 laps

Driver standings

Pos Driver STP
United States
BAR
United States
LBH
United States
INDY
United States
IOW
United States
WGL
United States
TOR
Canada
EDM
Canada
MDO
United States
SNM
United States
CHI
United States
KTY
United States
HMS
United States
Pts
1 France Jean-Karl Vernay  RY  1* 1* 3 13 3 1 1* 2 8 1* 4 3 15 494
2 Canada James Hinchcliffe 15 5 1* 3 5 2* 10 1* 7 3 1 2 2 471
3 United Kingdom Martin Plowman 6 4 5 5 2 4 7 3 1* 16 13 7 6 392
4 United States Charlie Kimball 4 2 2 2 13 11 4 4 3 2 14 6 13 388
5 United Kingdom Pippa Mann 13 12 8 16 8 14 8 11 5 2* 1* 5 313
6 Spain Adrián Campos Jr.  R  16 13 15 10 4 7 13 8 6 7 8 4 4 307
7 United Kingdom Dan Clarke  R  7 13 4 9 13 2 5 2 13 5 10 17 304
8 Colombia Sebastián Saavedra 12 3 4 9 1* 3 14 6 5 15 11 303
9 Canada Philip Major  R  14 10 7 6 6 6 12 10 10 11 3 13 8 299
10 Colombia Gustavo Yacamán 5 9 14 11 11 8 3 9 15 4 15 5 16 293
11 United Kingdom Stefan Wilson  R  3 6 17 7 7 12 5 7 4 6 14 278
12 Brazil Rodrigo Barbosa 9 16 16 12 10 9 9 12 12 12 10 11 14 241
13 United States Brandon Wagner 8 12 12 8 1* 136
14 United Kingdom James Winslow  R  7 15 12 5 11 9 130
15 New Zealand Wade Cunningham 1* 3 87
16 Spain Carmen Jordá  R  11 17 10 Wth 15 13 84
17 Netherlands Arie Luyendyk Jr. 14 7 9 12 82
18 Estonia Tõnis Kasemets  R  6 6 56
19 Netherlands Junior Strous 10 8 18 56
20 Mexico Juan Pablo Garcia 11 6 47
21 United States Daniel Herrington 12 7 44
22 United Kingdom Dillon Battistini 9 9 44
23 United States Joel Miller  R  11 9 41
24 Belgium Jan Heylen  R  2 40
25 Mexico David Martínez 14 8 40
26 Republic of Ireland Niall Quinn  R  14 9 38
27 Brazil Giancarlo Vilarinho  R  13 10 37
28 United States Jonathan Summerton 8 24
29 Norway Anders Krohn  R  10 20
30 United States Sean Guthrie 10 20
31 United States Nic LeDuc  R  11 19
32 United States Henry Clarke  R  11 19
33 Canada Alex Ellis  R  14 16
34 United States Jeff Simmons 15 15
Pos Driver STP
United States
BAR
United States
LBH
United States
INDY
United States
IOW
United States
WGL
United States
TOR
Canada
EDM
Canada
MDO
United States
SNM
United States
CHI
United States
KTY
United States
HMS
United States
Pts
Color Result
Gold Winner
Silver 2nd place
Bronze 3rd place
Green 4th & 5th place
Light Blue 6th–10th place
Dark Blue Finished
(Outside Top 10)
Purple Did not finish
Red Did not qualify
(DNQ)
Brown Withdrawn
(Wth)
Black Disqualified
(DSQ)
White Did not start
(DNS)
Blank Did not
participate
(DNP)
Not competing
In-line notation
Bold Pole position
(1 point)
Italics Ran fastest race lap
* Led most race laps
(2 points)
1 Qualifying cancelled
no bonus point awarded
Rookie of the Year
Rookie
Position 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33
Points 50 40 35 32 30 28 26 24 22 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
  • Ties in points broken by number of wins, or best finishes.

References

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External links