INDY LIGHTS PRESENTED BY COOPER TIRES
MAZDA INDY LIGHTS WATKINS GLEN GRAND PRIX
PRESENTED BY COOPER TIRES
RACE REPORT
09.03.17
Treacherous and rainy conditions couldn’t stop the field from wrapping up the 2017 Indy Lights season with an exciting, wet and wild 25-laps in today’s Soul Red Finale.

Action from the 2017 Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires season finale at Watkins Glen International airs Wednesday, Sept. 6, at 6 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network.

For more information, check out AndrettiAutosport.com and IndyLights.com.

No. 98 Deltro Energy Mazda
  • Started: 1st // Finished: 3rd
  • Championship: 3 / 15 (300 pts., unofficial)
  • Earned his seventh podium finish in his rookie season, adding to his seven poles, two wins and eight top-five finishes
“The last lap was dicey. I was looking behind and I could see Matheus [Leist] there and he tried to get me in Turn 8. We were super close – we might have touched. It was a fun race, though. It is good to end the season on a high and on the podium. It gives a lot of motivation going into the offseason, and I’m happy with that. I think we may have had a little bit more in the Deltro Energy car, but we’ll see what we have next year.”

No. 27 Synova Mazda
  • Started: 4th // Finished: 5th
  • Championship: 7 / 15 (269 pts. unofficial)
  • Earned his seventh top-five finish in addition to three wins, one pole and five podium finishes
“Overall, it was really a tough race. I ended up in the top-five and scored some points for the team so that’s a positive. I think we missed something in the rain. I had no real grip at all, and I felt like I was on slick tires the whole race, so we just tried to hold on and bring it home. Top-five isn’t bad, and we’ll move on to next year. It’s still been a really good season as a rookie. We’ve had three wins and tied for most wins this season. I’m very thankful for the opportunity this season with Andretti, and I want to thank my sponsors, Synova, who has been following me for many years as well and RelaDyne and The Stellrecht Company. We will have more success in the future, but overall I learned a lot which is a big positive.”

No. 48 Journey Mazda
  • Started: 7th // Finished: 10th
  • Championship: 11 / 15 (200 pts., unofficial)
  • Earned his 14th top-10 finish in his rookie season, competing today in his first rain race in an Indy Lights car
“At the beginning of the race, we were alright. I was right behind Nico [Jamin]. I’m not really sure what place we were in, but I made a small mistake and spun [the car] and put the back end in the wall, hurting the wing a little bit. We got going again, I don’t think the wing was affecting us too much, but hurt us a little bit. When they called us in for the red flag, we replaced the damaged wing but didn’t make it back out in time for the green flag with everyone. Given we made changes under a red flag, we would have faced a penalty anyway. It’s not the way we wanted to finish the season, but at the end of the day I want to thank Andretti Autosport and the crew for all the hard work they’ve given me all year and giving me a great car. I’m so thankful to be part of this great organization and I’m looking forward to next season.”

No. 28 K-Line Insulators USA Mazda
  • Started: 8th // Finished: 13th
  • Championship: 12 / 15 (198 pts., unofficial)
  • Ended his season on a low note after spinning on Lap 14 in the Bus Stop, his day was done early after sustaining damage from hitting the wall
“I’m really frustrated with how things ended up here in the last race of the season. I definitely wanted to end on a high note but we were really struggling for grip out there. I was trying to work my line, find where the grip was and couldn’t really figure that out. Going through the bus stop, I hit a little patch of water and hydroplaned and just looped it around. I had contact with the wall, which caused the end of our race. It is definitely frustrating for the No. 28 K-Line crew. These guys have worked hard all year. We had some success on the ovals and good pace on the road courses, but haven’t been able to put together a consistent race weekend. I’m a little frustrated overall we couldn’t have ended the season on a higher note.”