Birmingham, Alabama (April 27, 2015) – Juncos Racing gave their most dominating performance since moving into the Mazda Road to Indy’s top level, the Indy Lights Championship Presented by Cooper Tires, this weekend in the Legacy Indy Lights 100 at Barber Motorsports Park. Rookie Spencer Pigot scored not only his first two wins of the season in Rounds 4 and 5, but delivered Juncos Racing their first wins in the Indy Lights series.
Juncos Racing started off on a promising note, pacing the field in practice with Spencer Pigot (Orlando, Florida), who was fastest overall and teammate Kyle Kaiser (Santa Clara, California) finishing third overall in the combined practice sessions. The team continued their momentum in qualifying with Pigot, who set a new track record while capturing his first pole of the season for Race 1 at Barber while Kaiser took fourth to start on the second row.
Pigot continued to dominate the field in the #12 MAZDASPEED scholarship car for Race 1 leading all 30 laps and recording the fastest lap overall. This victory was the first for Pigot since moving up the ladder in the Mazda Road to Indy program, along with Juncos Racing since entering into the Indy Lights series. Kaiser, who started fourth in the #18 InterVision/NetApp/JuniperNetworks, finished eighth.
The weekend concluded on the 2.3 mile, 17-Turn road course with Race 2. Pigot prevailed again going two-for-two in victory circle, leading the entire 35 lap race. Kaiser, who started fourth, was dealt with bad luck from the start after the #11 of Ed Jones made contact with the front wing of Kaiser’s #18 forcing him off track. Kaiser was able to make his way back on track to continue, but the car stopped twice a few laps later, forcing Kaiser to pit. The team discovered the car was overheating, retiring Kaiser from the race on lap 14.
Pigot’s two wins, and three pervious podium finishes move him up to lead the Indy Lights Championship.
“I’m thrilled about how this past weekend went,” said Pigot. “The car was great right from the start, the guys have been working so hard and I can’t thank them enough. To get our first two wins in such dominating fashion was amazing. We’re heading into the month of May with the points lead so hopefully we can extend it at IMS. Big thank you to everyone at Mazda, Cooper Tires, Mockett, Rising Star Racing, The Stutz, MOBĒ, BAD, California Scents and D-A Lubricant for making it all possible. “
Kaiser, who has shown great pace in practice and qualifying, is confident his race results will improve with the momentum the team has gained over the past few race weekends.
“We showed great pace in practice and qualifying, but obviously that wasn’t enough,” said Kaiser. “This past weekend has been a character builder, as well as a huge motivator to produce better results for the upcoming Indy Grand Prix. I have a lot of confidence in the car and my abilities, it’s just a matter of putting it all together. There’s no better way to reward the team for all their hard work over the past couple weeks than a podium finish, so I’ll be working hard to ensure a great performance.”
Juncos Racing Team Owner, Ricardo Juncos, is pleased with the effort the entire team has put into the Mazda powered Dallara-IL 15 and the accomplishments they have made this far into the 2015 season.
“The team’s performance at Barber speaks to the effort and dedication that everyone at Juncos is putting into the program,” said Juncos. “Our technical department has been working flat out since the day our first IL-15 arrived. While we are incredibly proud of our accomplishments at Barber we have to focus on continuing our performance for the remainder of the season. There are a number of different development projects in the pipeline that should help keep us at the top in the coming races.”
The 2015 Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires continues next month May 7-9th for Rounds 6 and 7 on the 2.439 mile, 14-Turn road course at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. For more information please visit juncosracing.com and indylights.com.
Juncos Racing
