FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Speedway, Ind. (September 14, 2022) – Abel Motorsports has wrapped up their rookie season in the Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires Championship at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. The teams full-time driver, Jacob Abel, wrapped up his rookie campaign also, finishing 8th in the drivers’ championship standings.
The weekend did not get off how Abel had hoped, as the setup he and the Abel Motorsports team worked on at the test earlier in the year was not transferring to the much hotter track surface. Abel would finish practice in 9th.
Qualifying was split into two 12-minute sessions, so getting a fast lap in quickly was crucial. Abel began putting in the fastest laps he had run all weekend. As the session would end, Abel would wind up qualifying 7th for race 1, and putting in his fastest lap of the weekend qualifying him in 8th for race 2.
Abel got right to work on the opening lap in race 1, working his way from his 7th place qualifying position all the way up to 4th. From there, Abel had a fight on his hands with Pedersen for 4th. Skillfully, the Butler University Junior managed his tires while at the same time maintaining pace and putting a gap on 5th. The No. 51 Abel Construction car would match its best finishing position of the season in 4th.
The final race of the 2022 season was more of the same for Abel. Starting 8th, Abel got a great start and immediately worked his way to 6th on lap 1. As the laps began ticking away, Jacob Abel began to consistently run laps considerably faster than the car ahead of him in 5th. On lap 20, Abel completed the pass on Pedersen for 5th, and from there maintained in 5th for his second top-5 finish of the weekend.
“This was a great weekend to end my rookie year in Indy Lights. Race 1 going three-wide into turn 1 and getting to battle so close with everyone was a blast, and really shows the professionalism in this series. Overall, it was a solid first year for our team, and I can’t thank every one of my guys for their hard work all year long. I can’t wait to see what we can improve on during the off-season and testing, that we can carry into 2023. Finally, I have to thank my family, friends, and all of the amazing fans. Your support all year long really helped motivate me to keep pushing, so thank you all,” said Jacob Abel
It was unfortunately another up and down weekend for the Rookie out of Colorado, Flinn Lazier. Lazier once again got a great number of laps during practice and earned his best Indy Lights starting position of 11th for race 1.
Bad luck would strike Lazier once again, as before the green flag in race 1 a broken half-shaft on the No. 15 would bring Lazier back to the pits for a repair. Although the Abel Motorsports crew did a great job making the repair as quick as possible, Lazier would still wind up 7-laps down. The bright side in race 1 for Lazier was the fact that his lap times were quicker than most of the field, so he knew the speed was there.
Race 2 Lazier finally got the chance to run all 35-laps and battle with the other Indy Lights drivers in heat. Lazier got off to a great start, falling in line behind the other drivers logging laps and learning as much as he could. Getting into a rhythm, Lazier was able to make a pass on fellow Indy Lights competitor Christian Bogle for 12th on lap 5. From there, Lazier was able to fend of Bogle until lap 9 when the series veteran completed a pass on Lazier to take over 12th once again. Lazier was able to complete the rest of the 35-laps learning as much as he could at the same time. Lazier would bring the No. 15 Dallara home 13th position on the lead lap.
“Reflecting on the weekend, I think we have a lot of positives to take away from both weekends. We didn’t end up with the results we wanted, but we had really good race pace in both race 1 and race 2. I just need more time with the team and the car to hit qualifying right, so our race pace can show when it matters. I can’t thank everyone at Abel Motorsports enough for the opportunity and I hope we can work together again in Indy Lights,” said Flinn Lazier.
Abel Motorsports will now begin their off-season work including testing, preparing for the 2023 Indy Light Season. Stay up to date during the off-season with everything Abel Motorsports including announcements and news, by following @abelmotorsports on social media.
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Abel Motorsports including team Principal, Bill Abel, has been competing since 1972. Abel Motorsports is now on to the third generation with Jacob Abel being the flagship driver for the team. The team was able to capture the inaugural F3 Americas Championship in 2018, and currently competes in the top rung of the Road to Indy ladder, the Indy Lights Presented by Cooper Tires Championship. For more information visit the official team website at:www.abelmotorsports.com
Media Contact: Jacob Donahue
– Email: Jacobdonahue47@yahoo.com