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BHA Continues Canadian Tour in Edmonton

Topics: Sebastian Saavedra, Stefan Wilson, Edmonton 100

BHA Continues Canadian Tour in Edmonton

Andrew Herta
Bryan Herta Autosport
July 22, 2010

Bryan Herta Autosport remains north of the border this week for Round Eight of Firestone Indy Lights competition as the series moves to the second of two stops inCanada following last weekend’s race in Toronto. The Edmonton City Centre Airport will host Sunday’s 50-lap race on a 1.96-mile, 14-turn course – a physically-demanding layout which is both fast and bumpy.

BHA endured mixed results on the streets of Toronto last Sunday with Stefan Wilson flying the lone colors for the team after Sebastian Saavedra was sidelined with a gearbox problem. Wilson finished fifth with an impressive drive from 14th which netted fastest lap of the race and the For Earth Hard Charger Award for improving the most positions.

Wilson, whose brother Justin is a former winner at Edmonton, will be turning his first laps on the Edmonton track while Saavedra brings experience from a third-place finish in last year’s race.

Championship-wise, 16 points separate positions two through five in a tight battle at the top. J.K. Vernay currently leads by 68 points over second-place James Hinchcliffe with Saavedra within striking distance of Hinchcliffe in fifth. Wilson is currently sixth and trails Saavedra by 35 points.

Of Note:

Wilson will be making his first career start at Edmonton
Wilson has 13 Indy Lights starts to his credit with a best finish of third at St. Petersburg earlier this year; his best qualifying effort of second came at Watkins Glen three weeks ago
Saavedra qualified fifth and finished third at Edmonton last year
In 21 Indy Lights starts, Saavedra has claimed three wins [Kansas/Toronto in 2009 and Iowa] and three poles [St. Petersburg/Toronto in 2009 and Iowa]

Stefan Wilson, #28 Dallara/Firestone: “I’ve never been to Edmonton so it’s going to be a big learning curve for me. I’ve heard it’s a difficult track, really fast and really bumpy, but I don’t fully know what to expect until I try it myself. I’ve worked hard in the gym so I’m hoping that will pay off this weekend. It’s going to be important to run as much as possible, and finish the race to get some good points because right now I need to try and close the gap to the top three. We gained some good ground last Sunday [in Toronto] and I want to continue to work on that gap and try and improve our position in the championship.”

Sebastian Saavedra, #29 William Rast Dallara/Firestone: “Edmonton is a very physical track, very tough, and I’m hoping that the experience I have from last year when I had a third-place finish will help me again this time with Bryan Herta Autosport. I’m looking forward to it. It’s a track that I like very much and I’m ready to start fighting back for the championship again.”