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Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach

Sixth place finish for Jonny

Race, 16th April:

Team KOOL Green’s Jonny Kane started from the pole and dominated the first 34 laps of today’s season-opening Indy Lights race. With four laps to go, Kane missed the entry of the first turn while trying to fend off Scott Dixon on a re-start. Kane recovered, but Dixon went on to enjoy a 3.753-second margin of victory over Jason Bright and Felipe Giaffone in third.

Kane’s teammate Jeff Simmons started fifth and finished fourth in his Indy Lights debut. Simmons held his ground all day long and finished comfortably ahead of Casey Mears, who was fifth. Kane had fallen to seventh after his miscue, but passed Rodolfo Lavin to finish sixth.

Jonny commented:

"I’m so sorry for all the guys at Team KOOL Green. They worked very hard this weekend and gave me a great car to win the pole. The race was going perfectly. I had a few re-starts, which were all quite good. I didn’t have to defend into the first turn. My car was obviously working well as we went further into the race. I wasn’t pushing that hard and I was pulling away.

" Unfortunately, we had another yellow at the end and I didn’t quite have as a good a re-start. I tried to defend down the inside into turn one and I locked up the front tires. I fell to seventh and I gained one spot to finish sixth. It’s not nice when you make a mistake… driver error."

Race results - top 12:

Jonny claims first pole of the season

Final qualifying, Saturday 15th April:

British driver Jonny Kane put his Team KOOL Green Lola on pole today at the Grand Prix of Long Beach, earning him his third career Indy Lights pole. Conditions were perfect for the final qualifying session in which Kane fired off a blistering lap of 1:15.155 seconds, more than 0.5 seconds ahead of the second qualifier Scott Dixon. Dixon will start on the front row next to Kane after posting a time of 1:15.715 (93.572 mph). Rookie Jason Bright and Indy Lights veteran Felipe Giaffone will share row two ahead of Jeff Simmons and Casey Mears in the third row.

The Team KOOL Green crew solved the problem with yesterday's misfire to allow Kane, the only British driver in the series to gain pole position for tomorrow's 38 lap/75-mile race. Jonny started the session on new tyres having saved a set from yesterday's qualifying session. He turned several consistent laps that would have been good enough for pole.

The green flag for tomorrow's Indy Lights season-opener falls at 10:20 a.m. Pacific Time. Highlights will be shown during Eurosport's coverage of the Champ Car Race. ESPN2 will broadcast the race at 10:00 p.m. PT on Monday, Apr. 17th and Tuesday, Apr. 25th.

Jonny commented:

"It's excellent to get the pole for Team KOOL Green. I think qualifying went really well. We saved our tyres from yesterday and I think that was in our favour. We had a hold up at the start of qualifying which shortened the session, so we decided to start on new tyres and put in several laps quick enough for pole straight away. Unfortunately on the second set of tyres we got caught in traffic and were unable to improve our time.

"The car feels really good. We ran a lot of miles on old tyres yesterday and this morning and the balance was very good. I think that bodes well for tomorrow's race. It's important to get a good start, keep out of trouble and make no mistakes. The car is working very well and the KOOL guys have done a great job."

Eddie Jones, Chief Engineer for the Team KOOL Green Indy Lights car said:

"It is always great to win pole, particularly at a street circuit. I predict we will be strong tomorrow and hopefully get the result we want."

Today's performance sets Jonny up for a promising race in Sunday's opening round of the Dayton Indy Lights Championship.

An excellent start - 4th on the provisional grid

Provisional qualifying, Friday 14th April:

Team KOOL Green's Jonny Kane was fourth fastest in provisional qualifying today at the Grand Prix of Long Beach. Kane clocked a lap of 1:16.744 seconds, averaging 92.317 mph around the 11-turn street circuit. Kane's rookie team-mate Jeff Simmons was strong in morning practice, but watched much of qualifying after clipping a tire barrier early in the session. Simmons still managed the 13th best lap of the day, completing the 1.97 mile course in 1:17.948 seconds (90.891 mph). Jason Bright earned the provisional pole as the session ended, crossing the finish line with a time of 1:16.178 seconds (93.003 mph). Scott Dixon was second with his quick time of 1:16.549 seconds (92.552 mph), while Tony Renna was third with a lap of 1:16.721 seconds (92.345 mph).

JONNY KANE, #27 Team KOOL Green Lola T97/20:

"I was second-quickest this morning in practice, two-tenths off the fastest time. Fourth this afternoon isn't bad and I think the quickest guy went out there on new tires. I know one of the three cars that went out in front of me in the closing minutes went out on new rubber. He wasn't quick before the tire change, so hopefully that means we're not too far behind. If we sort out a slight misfire we experienced with the KOOL car I think we'll get back up to the front.

"I'd say the circuit is a little bit easier than last year, although there's one corner that's a little faster than before. The new part of the circuit is fairly wide, making for a wide exit in one corner and a wide entry for another. It takes a little while to get used to that because the second corner tightens up on the exit. You need to be careful there."

Dayton Indy Lights Championship

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