Justin finishes 11th at Iowa Speedway

Newton, Iowa (24 June 2013) – Justin Wilson returned to Iowa Speedway over the weekend and finished a disappointed 11th in the No. 19 Boy Scouts of America Honda as the IZOD IndyCar Series staged Round 10 of the championship. The very quick 7/8-mile oval saw Justin persevere with a car that didn’t have the balance needed to be a consistent challenger on the fast and notoriously tricky banked oval.

Justin started the race from 10th on the grid as the event opened on a very ‘green’ track with rains earlier in the day having washed away much of the rubber put down during the previous night’s heat races.

The race opened at a furious pace with the field running 18-second laps. Justin ran among the top-10 throughout his first stint and began encountering lapped traffic just 30 laps into the race. The first of three cautions was displayed on Lap 38 and Justin’s Dale Coyne Racing team took advantage of the yellow flag to bring the Boy Scouts of America Honda to pit lane on Lap 40 for his first stop for fuel and tires.

Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda and Justin Wilson, Dale Coyne Racing Honda

Photo by: Chris Jones

Justin was one of the last to pit under green as the race approached half distance, leading the field briefly before coming in for fuel and tires on Lap 120. He emerged in 14th and gained two positions during the stint, but the No. 19 car was unable to stay in touch with the leaders and narrowly avoided being lapped just before the second caution of the race on Lap 138.

Running 12th, but last on the lead lap, Dale Coyne Racing called Justin to pit lane to top off his fuel under yellow on Lap 143, which saw the No. 19 Boy Scouts of America machine out of sequence with the leaders. He returned to the track 12th in the order and by virtue of his bigger fuel load was able to stay out longer than the others, seeing him take over the lead again on Lap 214. But the gamble to stay out longer failed to pay off when the No. 19 car again struggled for pace. Justin made his final pit stop under green flag running with 33 laps to go, but emerged a lap down in 11th, making it impossible to work his way back into the top-10 in the closing stages.

“We had kind of an up and down day with the Boy Scouts of America Honda,” said Justin. “We went forward at times and backwards at others. Iowa Speedway is such a tough track to get right and it doesn't take much to lose your momentum. The middle of the race my car was good but in hindsight I asked for the wrong change on the last stop. I think we also stayed out a little long before the last stop and lost some ground, but we will learn for the next race."

Next up for the IZOD IndyCar Series is Pocono Raceway on July 7 as the series visits the unique 3-turn, 2.5-mile track for the first time since 1989.

Justin Wilson