Linus Lundqvist delivered on the promise of pre-season testing to score an extraordinary victory on his Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires debut at Barber Motorsports Park, Alabama (USA)…
On top form throughout the weekend, Lundqvist wasted no time to enter Victory Lane on the INDYCAR support bill, winning the very first race of the season in emphatic style.
Having led the way in free practice, and then shattered the previous Indy Lights lap record by nearly a second in qualifying, Lundqvist was never headed in Saturday’s season-opener and eventually won by over five seconds from Global Racing Group with HMD Motorsports team-mate Benjamin Pedersen (DEN).
Lundqvist becomes the second Swedish driver in history to win an Indy Lights race, after INDYCAR star Felix Rosenqvist.
“It’s incredible to win on my debut in Indy Lights; it really is a dream start,” says an elated Linus Lundqvist. “It was a perfect race but it had its challenges, like my first rolling start since karting, so I’m thrilled to have delivered this victory to kick off the season.“
In the second race of the double-header meeting, Lundqvist then shadowed team-mate David Malukas (USA) across the line in second place – the duo finishing a full half minute ahead of third-placed Devlin DeFrancesco.
The outcome means Lundqvist has snatched an early championship lead, leaving Alabama 13 points clear of DeFrancesco.
“I can’t be anything other than pleased with this weekend,” Linus Lundqvist concludes. “Big thanks to the team who have helped me get up to speed so swiftly. We clearly have the pace and it’s such an inspiration for everyone. To come away from here leading the championship is a nice bonus, but it’s a little early to be thinking about that at this stage.“
Linus Lundqvist and the rest of the Indy Lights fraternity are back on track as early as next weekend, with round two of the season taking place on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida.
VIDEO: Linus sums up the weekend
RESULTS
Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires
Rd. 1 | Barber Motorsports Park (USA)
Race 1
1: Linus Lundqvist (SWE), 30 laps
2: Benjamin Pedersen (DEN), +5.351s
3: Devlin DeFrancesco (CAN), +5.981s
4: Toby Sowery (GBR), +7.721s
5: Alex Peroni (AUS), +12.533s
View complete results
Race 2
1: David Malukas (USA), 35 laps
2: Linus Lundqvist (SWE), +6.389s
3: Devlin DeFrancesco (CAN), +32.132s
4: Toby Sowery (GBR), +33.143s
5: Kyle Kirkwood (USA), +33.549s
View complete results
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires
Top 5 | After 2/20 races
1: Linus Lundqvist (SWE), 57 p.
2: Devlin DeFrancesco (CAN), 44 p.
3: David Malukas (USA), 40 p.
4: Benjamin Pedersen (DEN), 39 p.
5: Toby Sowery (GBR), 38 p.
View complete standings
