Herrington was making his first Indy Lights start since Homestead of last year, returning to BHA to take over driving duties of the #29 William Rast machine from Sebastian Saavedra. Wilson, making his fourth career oval start, suffered the hardest impact of the two team cars. He was credited with a 14^th-place result and Herrington a 12^th-place finish. The race was won by Pippa Mann who brought home her first Indy Lights victory.

Bryan Herta Autosport will regroup and head to the series season finale on October 2 at Homestead-Miami Speedway in Homestead, Fla.

Race Results:

1.    Pippa Mann

2.    James Hinchcliffe

3.    J.K. Vernay

12.  Daniel Herrington

14.  Stefan Wilson

Stefan Wilson, #28 Dallara/Firestone: “Coming out of [Turn] Four, there was a car that had already spun up ahead. I tried to avoid it but I had the #29 car on the high side of me and I just had nowhere to go. I tried to go low and just clipped the front end [of Major’s car] and that was the end of my race. We knew the race was going to be difficult from my end; it is still only my fourth oval so we are trying to keep learning and run every lap on the ovals to get as much experience for next year as possible. Unfortunately, today was a big blow.”

Daniel Herrington, #29 William Rast Dallara/Firestone: “We got off to a conservative start and wanted to get a few laps under our belt before I started moving forward.  Unfortunately, when you start at the back, everything that happens is in front of you. Philip Major spun in front of us and we didn’t have anywhere to go around him. Both teammates were taken out because of it. It was a really tough day. I was happy that Bryan [Herta] gave me a shot to get back in the car and I’m sorry to let him down like that. The car felt really comfortable from the start and I had already made up a couple of places. I was confident we were going to have a great result.”

Bryan Herta, Team Co-Owner: “It was a tough day for Bryan Herta Autosport but we are thankful that all of the drivers involved in the incident are okay. We’ll regroup and move on from here.”

“Sebastian Saavedra’s father informed me last night that Sebastian has decided not to participate in today’s race,” said Herta. “This turn of events has come to me, our sponsor and our entire race team as quite a surprise. Needless to say I am deeply disappointed. We greatly appreciate and admire Daniel’s willingness to step into our #29 William Rast Indy Lights entry on extremely short notice.”

Both young drivers have shown solid form on the ovals, with Colombian Saavedra claiming victory at Iowa Speedway in June and Englishman Wilson securing top-seven finishes in each of his previous three career starts on ovals this year.

Last weekend at Chicagoland Speedway, Saavedra qualified a strong third and was running among the lead pack until experiencing a mechanical failure which cost him three laps and restricted him to an 11th-place finish. Wilson started 10th in his first-ever outing on a 1.5-mile superspeedway before fighting his way through the field to finish sixth.

Saavedra, who brought home a second-place finish at Kentucky Speedway last year driving for the AFS Racing/Andretti Green Racing team, currently lies fifth in the championship standings, while Wilson is in seventh – just nine points away from sixth place – despite missing one of the 11 races held thus far.

Of Note:

•     Wilson will be making his 17th Indy Lights start

•     Wilson claimed his career-best Indy Lights finish of third at St. Petersburg and his career-best starting position of second at Watkins Glen

•     Wilson has finished in the top seven in each of his three oval starts

•     Saavedra will be making his 26th Indy Lights start

•     Saavedra has three wins to his credit [St. Petersburg ‘09, Toronto ‘09, Iowa ‘10]

•     Saavedra finished second at Kentucky last year after starting second with the grid determined by championship points due to inclement weather

Stefan Wilson, #28 Dallara/Firestone: “It was great to run every lap of the Chicago race last weekend. It was totally new to me being my first race on a one-and-a-half-mile oval and quite different to [previous oval events at] Indy and Iowa, so I think that will be a big boost going into Kentucky. I tested at Kentucky last year with Sam Schmidt – that was actually my first oval experience – and we had the rookie test there this year. Every lap on the ovals I learn more, so I’m looking forward to applying that knowledge. Chicago is definitely one of the smoothest one-and-a-half-mile ovals, whereas Kentucky is a bit bumpy so it makes it a little bit more interesting and I’m hopeful that we will be able to develop our car to handle those bumps better than everyone else.”

Sebastian Saavedra, #29 William Rast Dallara/Firestone: “I’m a bit frustrated after last weekend [at Chicagoland] when we had a mechanical problem but we have to keep going and I’m looking forward to Kentucky. It’s quite similar to Chicago but a lot more bumpier so it makes for really good racing. I think if we can do a good job again, like we did in Chicago in the qualifying session [third], try to optimize the car a little more, we’re going to do well. We need to finish races. We’re still after the top three in the championship and we’re going to fight for it.

“I really had a good race last year in Kentucky. We had an unfortunate situation with a yellow flag with just a few laps to go. I wanted to do my move at the last lap at the last corner but I was very happy with that second place. I really hope we can try to do the same this year but bring another win.”

It was an eventful run for Wilson as he went on to claim his career-best result on an oval in only his third start and set the second-fastest lap of the race in the process. Wilson qualified 10^th but twice had to rebound from lost positions after dropping to 13^th at the start and spinning during a caution period just past the halfway mark.

Saavedra did not fare as well. He qualified third and held off the advances of Philip Major to maintain his position through the first third of the race. Saavedra dropped to sixth position by Lap 23 and eighth by Lap 29 battling a loose car, and a fuel pump problem on the #28 William Rast machine resulted in a pit stop while the race was under caution [Lap 35]. Saavedra did take the checkered flag, but finished three laps down.

Saavedra and Wilson remain fifth and seventh in the championship with Saavedra picking up a few points to third place despite the result and Wilson making gains towards the top five in the standings.

Bryan Herta Autosport will head to Kentucky Speedway next weekend for the Drive Smart, Buckle-Up Kentucky 100 on Saturday, September 4.

Race Results:

1.   James Hinchcliffe

2.   Pippa Mann

3.   Philip Major

6.   Stefan Wilson

11. Sebastian Saavedra

Stefan Wilson, #28 Dallara/Firestone: “It was a good race for us. We improved our position which is encouraging and I improved my race craft. I feel like I learned a lot being able to run every lap and keeping my nose clean. It was a big learning curve and I did what I had to do this weekend and kept the car in one piece. This gives us a lot of momentum going into Kentucky next weekend.”

Sebastian Saavedra, #29 William Rast Dallara/Firestone: “We came to the track very positive about what we could do this weekend. It was an amazing qualifying session for us and I had a really good car for traffic in the race. Unfortunately, things didn’t go our way. I don’t know if it was the [hot] weather or what happened but the car became a bit too loose to drive. Unfortunately, we then had a mechanical failure that caused us to lose a few laps and that was the end of our day. I think it was something with the fuel pump. I am very frustrated but we have to take the positives from the good work that Stefan did at the end. Now we will go and try our best for Kentucky.”

The 1.5-mile, D-shaped, tri-oval holds special memories for team owners Bryan Herta and Steve Newey. BHA claimed its first win in Indy Lights competition at Chicagoland with Daniel Herrington’s maiden victory last year. It was a strong showing all around for the team with technical partner Vision Racing’s James Davison finishing second.

Stefan Wilson will return to the cockpit of the #28 machine after missing last weekend’s event at Infineon Raceway. This will be the third-ever career start on an oval for Wilson, who impressed in his oval debuts to date with a fourth-place qualifying effort at Iowa and a pair of seventh-place finishes at Iowa and Indianapolis.

Teammate Sebastian Saavedra, rebounding from a disappointing weekend in Sonoma after retiring due to contact in the #28 William Rast entry, qualified on the front row at Chicagoland last year and finished sixth. He has high hopes for the weekend after winning the last oval race at Iowa in June with a dominant flag-to-flag victory.

Of Note:

• Wilson will be making his 16^th Indy Lights start
• Wilson claimed his Indy Lights career-best finish of third at St. Petersburg and his career-best starting position of second at Watkins Glen
• Wilson is currently seventh in the point standings, seven points outside the top six
• Saavedra will be making his 25^th Indy Lights start
• Saavedra has three wins to his credit [St. Petersburg ’09, Toronto ’09, Iowa ‘10]
• Saavedra is currently fifth in the point standings, 43 points outside the top three

Stefan Wilson, #28 Dallara/Firestone: “I am really excited to be back this weekend. It was a shame that we had to miss Sonoma but it was what we had to do to make sure we finished off the rest of the season successfully. This year was my first time on the ovals and it has been a steep learning curve, but Indy and Iowa have gone reasonably well and I have been pretty pleased with the progression. I am looking forward to getting this weekend underway. This will be my first one-and-a-half mile oval race and I’m sure it is going to be a little bit different to all of the other ovals I have done so far. Indy and Iowa are not so much side-by-side racing. Chicago produces three wide, side-by-side running for the majority of the race so it is going to be very mentally demanding. We need to try to bring the car home in one piece and get some good points. Missing Sonoma has put me back to seventh in the championship. Our performance all year has really proven that we deserve to be in the top six and it would be nice to work our way back up there. ”

Sebastian Saavedra, #29 William Rast Dallara/Firestone: “I think Chicago is one of the most exciting oval races, if not the most exciting, of the season. I am looking forward just to being there. Last year, Chicago was my worst finish on an oval [with no problems*] and it was because of how tough of a race it is. You have to be ready in every way for this type of a race. It is very close racing and that is what makes it so exciting. I am also looking forward to this race because of how well my team did here last year with Daniel Herrington and James Davison. Both did an incredible job during the race. It makes me feel very positive and excited about how well we can do. We are still fighting for the top three in the championship. Winning the championship right now is out of our control because we know that J.K. [Vernay] is pretty much gone but we are still 40 some points behind third and I think this we can do. If we can finish with three good races, we can get back up in the championship standings.”

*Finished 15^th at Iowa last year with a mechanical issue

Saavedra lined up sixth on the grid and was battling Dan Clarke for fifth place when the two made contact on a Lap 10 restart at the 2.303-mile permanent road course. Clarke was able to continue but Saavedra retired with a bent toe link on the #29 William Rast entry. It was the third DNF of the season for Saavedra after contact at St. Petersburg and a gearbox issue inToronto.

Miller, who was second-quickest in the morning warm up, qualified 11^th but had to start at the back of the grid after an engine change. Making up a few positions in the opening laps and benefiting from a mistake-free drive, he brought home his first top-10 Indy Lights result. Miller made his series debut in Long Beach, finishing 11^th with Andersen Racing, and is focusing his efforts on a full season in 2011.

Series points leader J.K. Vernay extended his lead with a flag-to-flag victory today. Sebastian Saavedra remains fifth in the championship standings with team regular Stefan Wilson, working with BHA to secure the funding to complete the season, in seventh place.

Bryan Herta Autosport will travel to Joliet, Ill., later this week for the Chicagoland 100 at Chicagoland Speedway on August 28.

Race Results:
1.    J.K. Vernay
2.    Charlie Kimball
3.    James Hinchcliffe
9.    Joel Miller
15.  Sebastian Saavedra

Joel Miller, #28 Doug Mockett & Company/Lamborghini Travels/Blanco Basura Clothing/Valli Construction/Paradise Landscape Dallara/Firestone: “With the penalty that put us at the back of the grid, I knew I would have to try to pick off positions one by one. I had a good start and made up a position there and another going into Turn 7. I felt I had a good car in traffic. I started working my way through the field but, unfortunately, we developed a bit of understeer. It was something that I had to deal with the entire race but I just tried to keep plugging away and working with the bar and brake bias. Everyone was pretty happy with the ninth-place finish.

“I would like to thank Bryan, Steve [Newey, team co-owner], my engineer Ian Brown and everyone at BHA for their efforts to get me reacclimated to the car and to learn the boundaries of it. A big thank you to Doug Mockett, Lamborghini Travels, Blanco Basura, Valli Construction and Paradise Landscape for making this weekend possible. I am going to continue to work for next season and may do another event yet this year. I made some good contacts and after being P2 in warm up, just a couple of hundredths off of J.K. [Vernay], Bryan said that showed I am capable of running up there. Hopefully, that is where we will be next year.”

Sebastian Saavedra, #29 William Rast Dallara/Firestone: “We were doing a great job and saving the tires so it was a very disappointing end and the loss of important points for me. I was by his [Dan Clarke’s] side and already turning in and I touched his front wing. It was something we were not hoping for as we were working for the points. But this is motorsports and this can happen and we have to look forward now.”

“We are excited to welcome Joel to the team this weekend,” said team co-owner Bryan Herta. “Joel has worked hard and creatively to put together the budget to compete at Sonoma and we want to provide him with the best opportunity to showcase his talents as he focuses on a full Indy Lights campaign next year.

“At the same time, we are working hard to raise the necessary budget to put Stefan back in the car for as many of the remaining races as possible. He will be at Sonoma to support the team and also fulfill his pace car team obligations. Stefan has done a great job this year on the road and street circuits and also in his oval debut. Our goal is to help him achieve his first Indy Lights win and we want to get him back in the car as soon as possible.”

Miller, 22, of Hesperia, Calif., made his Indy Lights debut at Long Beach earlier this season finishing 11th for Andersen Racing in a solid performance after losing second gear in the race. A mechanical engineering student at the University of California, Riverside and sales representative for Sparco USA, Miller began his racing career in the karting ranks. Among his credits are the 2006 Stars of Karting national title in the ICA division, the 2007 Skip Barber National Championship and runner-up in the 2008 Star Mazda Championship in his rookie season. He was also a Team USA Scholarship recipient contesting the 2007 Formula Palmer Audi Autumn Trophy Series in England.

Miller helped to raise the funding for this Sunday’s 40-lap race through the Joel Miller Indy Racing Experience, an event held this past Sunday in Santa Cruz which featured a celebrity poker tournament, raffle, exotic car display, live music and a pro skate demonstration. Proceeds also benefited the Wings for Life charity. Organized by Monarchy Media Management, guests included “Dancing With the Stars” Karina Smirnoff, Pro Football Hall of Famer Jerry Rice and former New York Giants defensive back Reggie Stephens and motocross champion Josh Van Den Heuvel.

“I have known Bryan since I was seven years old in go karts and I am happy to come full circle and finally be able to drive a car for him. I have run at Sonoma in various formulas and I am very familiar with the track. This is a local race for me and I am really looking forward to the weekend because I know the place and I also know that I will have a good car under me. My goal is a full season in Indy Lights next year. I did Long Beach for the experience and now this weekend at Sonoma. Everything we are doing is for next year. Hopefully, we can keep the sponsors we have on the car for this coming weekend involved for a full-time effort and, hopefully, with Bryan’s team.”

Miller will partner this weekend with Sebastian Saavedra who pilots the #29 William Rast entry. Saavedra and Wilson are currently fifth and sixth respectively in the championship standings.

“Obviously I am disappointed to not be driving this weekend but that is the economics of racing sometimes,” said Wilson. “I will be there to support Joel as much as I can and help him to get up to speed as quickly as possible. Bryan has worked hard to try to raise the necessary funding to keep me in the car this weekend but time was not on our side. We will keep working and, hopefully, I can be back to finish out the season.”

The Carneros 100 will take place at 12:00 pm PT this Sunday and will be broadcast on IndyCar.com.

For additional information on Joel Miller, please visit www.joelmillerracing.com.

Saavedra, who started fourth, lost two positions at the start with Wilson, who qualified fifth, and Charlie Kimball the beneficiaries. Kimball was able to pass Wilson on Lap 3 and the field began to separate but it wasn’t until the latter stages of the caution-free 40-lap race that Saavedra managed to close the gap to challenge Wilson. The pair crossed the line nose-to-tail with Wilson claiming his third top-five result of the season and the fifth for Saavedra.

While Wilson and Saavedra were hoping for better results after a promising pace in practice, they did make up some points in the championship standings following an eighth-place finish by series points leader J.K. Vernay and a seventh-place result from James Hinchcliffe, second in the championship entering the Mid-Ohio race weekend.

Hinchcliffe and Plowman are now tied for second in the standings with Saavedra, in fifth place, trailing them by 37 points and Wilson, in sixth, by 72. Vernay leads by 53 points.

BHA will return to the track in two weeks time for the Carneros 100 at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma,Calif., on August 22.

Race Results:

1.  Martin Plowman

2.  Dan Clarke

3.  Charlie Kimball

4.  Stefan Wilson

5.  Sebastian Saavedra

Stefan Wilson, #28 Dallara/Firestone: “The race was good. We expected more going into this weekend but the track changed a little bit compared to the test and the balance that we had just wasn’t quite there this weekend. We had to do some work to improve the car and some good decisions were made in the engineering room. On my fastest lap in qualifying, I was held up in Turn 4 and that cost me a tenth-and-a-half [of a second]. You are fighting for every little bit around this track because the times are so close and that would have put me on the front row in P2. The way things played out, if I had started P2 I think I probably would have finished there if not fighting for the lead. Starting fifth, we had to go quite aggressive on downforce. We started quite low on downforce and that made the handling of the car a little bit of a compromise but that allowed us to try to overtake people. Bryan Herta Autosport did a great job this weekend. We kept on digging and kept on pushing and came home with a solid points finish with the cars fourth and fifth. I am happy with that.”

Sebastian Saavedra, #29 William Rast Dallara/Firestone: “It was a great race for us. We are back in the fight. It was a tough race because everyone was so close on times. We did a great job and we are very happy to finish without any mistakes. I had a really tough start. I lost valuable positions which, at the end, I couldn’t get back because of the really fast pace of the race, but fourth and fifth is something very positive and a good result for the team.”

Mid-Ohio was the site of Wilson’s final Indy Lights race in 2009, which consisted of a six-race campaign focused on the road/street circuits. At a track known for limited passing opportunities, he finished his season on a high note with an impressive drive from 17^th to 8^th to earn Hard Charger Award honors.

Saavedra did not fare as well, however, qualifying 10^th and finishing 18^th after a pair of off-track excursions. It was a disappointing result after setting fastest lap of the race.

With five races remaining on the schedule, Saavedra and Wilson are currently fifth and sixth in the championship standings. Saavedra, who is 14 points outside the top three, trails points leader J.K. Vernay by 96 points. Wilson is currently 51 points shy of the top three and 133 points behind Vernay.

Team co-owner Bryan Herta clinched the 1993 Indy Lights Championship at Mid-Ohio for Hilliard-based Tasman Motorsports Group.

Of Note:

• Wilson has 14 Indy Lights starts to his credit posting seven top-seven finishes with a best result of third at St. Petersburg earlier this year; he posted his best qualifying effort of second at Watkins Glen in July

• Saavedra has made 22 Indy Lights starts, claiming three wins [Kansas/Toronto in 2009 andIowa] and three poles [St. Petersburg/Toronto in 2009 and Iowa] and a total of 10 podium finishes

Stefan Wilson, #28 Dallara/Firestone: “I’m really excited. I raced at Mid-Ohio last year and I had never seen the track before – nor had the team – so it was a big learning curve but we were pretty competitive in the race. This year I’m going back with prior experience and we had a great test here a few months ago. The team has a really good car for Mid-Ohio so it is a track where we should be strong. I’ve been looking forward to it all year. We showed the speed that we have on the permanent road courses at Watkins Glen and we want to be sure that we make the best of the opportunity we have this weekend and walk away with some good points.”

Sebastian Saavedra, #29 William Rast Dallara/Firestone: “We had a really good test at Mid-Ohio and we have a very positive attitude with our setup. I have been training hard on the physical side and I am looking forward to starting to bring points back for the championship. Last year was disappointing. I was fighting for the pole in qualifying but I spun and caused a yellow flag so they took (away) my two fastest laps and I had to start in back. In the race, I was P3 and I had an off and needed to come in and change tires and that was it. It was the end of my race.

“The track is one that reminds me of Europe and that’s why I like it so much. It has hairpins, fast corners, slow corners, ups and downs, so it’s a complete driver’s track. That makes it a lot more difficult, a lot more technical, but that is what makes it fun to drive.”

“I’ve spent my entire life in motorsports and in racing,” Herta says. “I started thinking about what the next stage in my life would be and I wanted racing to be a part of it.”
Herta began an Indy Lights team, in what he calls a “grassroots” bridge to the parent IndyCar series.
“It’s like what AAA baseball is to Major League Baseball,” Herta says. “We race the same courses on the same weekend (as the IndyCar Series).”