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The Infiniti / Indy Pro Series made its debut in mid-2002 with an inaugural season of
seven races run in conjunction with the Indy Car Racing Series.
In 2008 the championship was renamed the Firestone Indy Lights Series when Firestone tires became the primary sponsor.
The fifteen-race schedule kicked off with a doubleheader at Saint Petersburg and concluded in early October at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Drivers compete in the Dallara IPS, designed and manufactured for the Infiniti Pro Series. The open-wheel, single-seat racer is equipped with a ground-effect underbody and outboard wings front and rear. The monocoque chassis is constructed using carbon fiber and composites. The Dallara has a minimum weight of 1,430 pounds, which includes all lubricants and coolants used during the event, but does not include fuel or the driver. Firestone Firehawk racing tires are mounted on 15-inch diameter x 10 front and 15-inch diameter x 14 rear wheels. The car is powered by a 3.5-liter Infiniti Q45 engine which produces approximately 450 horsepower and is fitted to a Ricardo six forward gear transmission with a sequential shifter. Infiniti Pro Series costs are tightly controlled by the Indy Racing League, with the Dallara IPS costing $137,900 (including the data acquisition system). Round eight of the 2009 Firestone Indy Lights Series was held at Watkins Glen International. The Corning 100 was a thirty-lap contest around the eleven-turn 3.337-mile road course.
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The points leader, J.R. Hildebrand, collected his first win of the season at Long Beach and earned his second in round eight at Watkins Glen International. Hildebrand qualified fourth fastest in the No. 27 AGR-AFS Racing Dallara IPS. His first pass was on lap-10 when he moved ahead of his teammate, Sebastian Saavedra, for the second spot. On lap-14, Hildebrand got by James Davison for the lead and victory. |
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Finishing 0.550-seconds behind J.R. Hildebrand was Australian James Davison. Before round eight, he had several top-ten results but had not stepped on the podium. Davison grabbed the pole at Watkins Glen International driving the No. 21 Vision Racing prepared Dallara IPS. He would lead the first fourteen laps before surrendering first place to the eventual winner, J.R. Hildebrand. |
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Brazilian Felipe Guimaraes didn’t make his Firestone Indy Lights Series debut until round eight at Watkins Glen International. Guimaraes proved to be a quick study as he qualified sixth fastest driving the No. 29 Bryan Herta Autosport Dallara IPS. The retirement of James Hinchcliffe and the pass on Charlie Kimball moved him to fourth. On the final lap, Guimaraes got by Sebastian Saavedra for third place. |
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Charlie Kimball was the fifth fastest qualifier in round eight at Watkins Glen. The driver of the No. 35 Team PBIR moved into fourth place on lap-7 when James Hinchcliffe crashed but lost the position when he was passed by Felipe Guimaraes. On the final lap, Kimball had contact with Sebastian Saavedra in the ‘Bus Stop’ chicane. Saavedra was penalized for avoidable contact and Kimball went on to finish fourth. |
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Title contenders, Wade Cunningham and Mario Romancini had a miserable weekend at Watkins Glen International. Entering the weekend, Romancini trailed the championship leader, J.R. Hildebrand, by nineteen points. He started tenth in the No. 5 Revita / Win Brazil / Allied Dallara IPS. Unfortunately, he retired on lap-14 with transmission issues. Romancini was now fifty-eight markers behind Hildebrand. |
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| FINISH | START | DRIVER | CAR | LAPS | RETIREMENTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | J.R. Hildebrand | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 2 | 1 | James Davison | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 3 | 6 | Felipe Guimaraes | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 4 | 5 | Charlie Kimball | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 5 | 9 | Richard Philippe | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 6 | 7 | Daniel Herrington | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 7 | 18 | Gustavo Yacaman | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 8 | 14 | Pablo Donoso | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 9 | 16 | Ana Beatriz | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 10 | 11 | Martin Plowman | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 11 | 5 | Mike Potekhen | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 12 | 6 | Stefan Wilson | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 13 | 13 | Andrew Prendeville | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 14 | 17 | Pippa Mann | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 15 | 20 | Ali Jackson | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 16 | 18 | Sergey Mokshantsev | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 17 | 21 | Rodrigo Barbosa | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 18 | 15 | Sebastian Saavedra | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 30 | - |
| 19 | 7 | Wade Cunningham | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 26 | Accident |
| 20 | 22 | Mario Romancini | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 14 | Transmission |
| 21 | 14 | James Hinchcliffe | Dallara IPS / Infiniti | 7 | Accident |
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