2001 Indy Lights season

2001 Indy Lights season
2001 Indy Lights season
PPG/Dayton Indy Lights Championship Powered by Buick
Season
Races	12
Start date	March 11
End date	November 4
Awards
Drivers' champion	Townsend Bell
Teams' champion
Rookie of the Year	Dan Wheldon
	← 2000 2002 (IPS) →

The 2001 CART PPG/Dayton Indy Lights Championship Powered By Buick consisted of 12 races. It was dominated by Townsend Bell who captured six victories on his way to the championship. It was the last Indy Lights season, as the series organizer, CART, decided to drop the Indy Lights series and concentrate its efforts on the Toyota Atlantic Championship.^[2] Most former Indy Lights teams that wished to stay in business went either to the Atlantic series, which replaced Indy Lights as the support race at most CART events, or the new Infiniti Pro Series, which ran in support of Indy Racing League events.

Drivers and teams[]

All teams utilized Lola T97/20 chassis with Buick V6 engines.

Team	No.	Drivers	Sponsor	Notes
	2	Larry Mason	King Taco/Trench Shoring	Long Beach only
	3	Andy Booth		Long Beach only
Conquest Racing	11	Kristian Kolby		Rounds 1–8
	11	Matt Halliday		in No. 11 for Fontana
	21	Matt Halliday	Mi-Jack	Rounds 4–11
	21	Nilton Rossoni		Monterrey only
	30	Townsend Bell	DirecWay
	31	Damien Faulkner
	32	Jon Fogarty	Thomas Fogarty Winery	Suffered herniated disc before Portland round, returned at Road Atlanta & Laguna Seca^[3]^[4]
	32	Geoff Boss	Thomas Fogarty Winery	Injury replacement at Toronto & Mid-Ohio
Indy Regency Racing	12	Cory Witherill	WSA Healthcare, Casino Morongo	Missed Texas round
	15		Starlight Diamonds
	16	Derek Higgins	Starlight Diamonds
PacWest Lights	1	Dan Wheldon	Gemstart
PacWest Lights	17	Mario Domínguez	del Valle, Corona
	64	Rolando Quintanilla	Telmex
	65	Luis Díaz	Telmex

Calendar[]

Rnd	Date	Track	Location	Pole position	Fastest race lap	Most laps led	Winning driver	Winning team
1	March 11	Fundidora Park	Monterrey, Mexico	Derek Higgins	Mario Domínguez	Derek Higgins	Derek Higgins
2	April 8	Long Beach street circuit	Long Beach, California	Mario Domínguez	Townsend Bell	Dan Wheldon	Townsend Bell
3	April 28	Texas Motor Speedway	Fort Worth, Texas	Damien Faulkner	Jon Fogarty	Damien Faulkner	Damien Faulkner
4	June 3	Milwaukee Mile	West Allis, Wisconsin	Townsend Bell	Townsend Bell	Townsend Bell	Townsend Bell
5	June 24	Portland International Raceway	Portland, Oregon	Townsend Bell	Townsend Bell	Damien Faulkner	Damien Faulkner
6	July 8	Kansas Speedway	Kansas City, Kansas	Mario Domínguez	Damien Faulkner	Townsend Bell	Kristian Kolby	Conquest Racing
7	July 15	Exhibition Place	Toronto, Canada	Townsend Bell	Townsend Bell	Townsend Bell	Townsend Bell
8	August 12	Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course	Lexington, Ohio	Townsend Bell	Townsend Bell	Townsend Bell	Townsend Bell
9	August 26	Gateway International Raceway	Madison, Illinois	Townsend Bell	Dan Wheldon	Townsend Bell	Dan Wheldon	PacWest Lights
10	October 5	Road Atlanta	Braselton, Georgia	Townsend Bell	Jon Fogarty	Townsend Bell	Dan Wheldon	PacWest Lights
11	October 14	Laguna Seca Raceway	Monterey, California	Townsend Bell	Luis Díaz	Townsend Bell	Townsend Bell
12	November 4	California Speedway	Fontana, California	Townsend Bell	Mario Domínguez	Townsend Bell	Townsend Bell

Race summaries[]

Monterrey[]

March 11, 2001
Fundidora Park, Monterrey, Mexico
Pole position: Derek Higgins, 1:25.345, 88.750 mph (142.829 km/h)

Top Five Finishers
Fin. Pos	St. Pos	Car No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time	Laps Led	Points
1	1	16	Derek Higgins		35	54:48.128	35	22
2	3	30	Townsend Bell		35	+0.179	0	16
3	5	32	Jon Fogarty		35	+5.799	0	14
4	4	17	Mario Domínguez	PacWest Lights	35	+6.334	0	12
5	10	1	Dan Wheldon	PacWest Lights	35	+9.437	0	10
Race average speed: 80.625 mph (129.753 km/h)
Lead changes: 0
Cautions: 0

Long Beach[]

April 8, 2001
Long Beach street circuit, Long Beach, California
Pole position: Mario Domínguez, 1:15.968, 93.260 mph (150.087 km/h)

Top Five Finishers
Fin. Pos	St. Pos	Car No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time	Laps Led	Points
1	6	30	Townsend Bell		38	57:13.430	5	20
2	3	1	Dan Wheldon	PacWest Lights	38	+3.775	33	17
3	5	16	Derek Higgins		38	+5.342	0	14
4	1	17	Mario Domínguez	PacWest Lights	38	+5.862	0	13
5	7	11	Kristian Kolby	Conquest Racing	38	+12.326	0	10
Race average speed: 78.412 mph (126.192 km/h)
Lead changes: 1 between 2 drivers
Cautions: 3 for 11 laps

Texas[]

April 28, 2001
Texas Motor Speedway, Fort Worth, Texas
Pole position: Damien Faulkner, 0:29:060, 183.593 mph (295.464 km/h)
The CART race that weekend was cancelled due to track incompatibility, so this was the only race completed that weekend.

Top Five Finishers
Fin. Pos	St. Pos	Car No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time	Laps Led	Points
1	1	31	Damien Faulkner		67	39:35.632	65	22
2	4	16	Derek Higgins		67	+0.349	1	16
3	3	11	Kristian Kolby	Conquest Racing	67	+0.529	0	14
4	7	65	Luis Díaz		67	+0.737	0	12
5	10	64	Rolando Quintanilla		67	+1.127	0	10
Race average speed: 150.491 mph (242.192 km/h)
Lead changes: 3 between 3 drivers
Cautions: 2 for 8 laps

Milwaukee[]

June 3, 2001
Milwaukee Mile, West Allis, Wisconsin
Pole position: Townsend Bell (qualifying rained out; grid determined by championship points)

Top Five Finishers
Fin. Pos	St. Pos	Car No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time	Laps Led	Points
1	1	30	Townsend Bell		100	43:27.503	100	21
2	6	17	Mario Domínguez	PacWest Lights	99	-1 lap	0	16
3	5	1	Dan Wheldon	PacWest Lights	98	-2 laps	0	14
4	9	65	Luis Díaz		97	-3 laps	0	12
5	8	15			97	-3 laps	0	10
Race average speed: 142.481 mph (229.301 km/h)
Lead changes: none
Cautions: 1 for 4 laps

Portland[]

June 24, 2001
Portland International Raceway, Portland, Oregon
Pole position: Townsend Bell, 1:04.991, 109.067 mph (175.526 km/h)

Top Five Finishers
Fin. Pos	St. Pos	Car No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time	Laps Led	Points
1	3	31	Damien Faulkner		38	58:58.791	16	21
2	8	15			38	+16.134	0	16
3	7	13	Derek Higgins		38	+20.501	0	14
4	10	21	Matt Halliday	Conquest Racing	38	28.936	0	12
5	9	64	Rolando Quintanilla		38	+28.936	0	10
Race average speed: 76.116 mph (122.497 km/h)
Lead changes: 1 between 2 drivers
Cautions: 3 for 8 laps

Kansas[]

July 8, 2001
Kansas Speedway, Kansas City, Kansas
Pole position: Mario Domínguez, 0:30.252, 180.881 mph (291.100 km/h)

Top Five Finishers
Fin. Pos	St. Pos	Car No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time	Laps Led	Points
1	6	11	Kristian Kolby	Conquest Racing	67	40:25.322	19	20
2	7	31	Damien Faulkner		67	+0.001	0	16
3	4	1	Dan Wheldon	PacWest Lights	67	+0.213	0	14
4	3	21	Matt Halliday	Conquest Racing	67	+0.962	3	12
5	2	30	Townsend Bell		67	+0.017‡	27	11
Race average speed: 151.323 mph (243.531 km/h)
Lead changes: 9 between 4 drivers
Cautions: 2 for 7 laps

‡Townsend Bell was penalized two positions for aggressive driving.

Toronto[]

July 15, 2001
Exhibition Place, Toronto, Ontario
Pole position: Townsend Bell, 1:04.202, 98.408 mph (158.372 km/h)

Top Five Finishers
Fin. Pos	St. Pos	Car No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time	Laps Led	Points
1	1	30	Townsend Bell		43	51:18.593	43	22
2	1	17	Mario Domínguez	PacWest Lights	43	+7.002	0	16
3	4	31	Damien Faulkner		43	?	0	14
4	9	21	Matt Halliday	Conquest Racing	43	+8.333	0	12
5	6	65	Luis Díaz		43	+10.658	0	10
Race average speed: 88.959 mph (143.166 km/h)
Lead changes: none
Cautions: 3 for 6 laps

Mid-Ohio[]

August 12, 2001
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Lexington, Ohio
Pole position: Townsend Bell, 1:13.809, 110.133 mph (177.242 km/h)

Top Five Finishers
Fin. Pos	St. Pos	Car No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time	Laps Led	Points
1	1	30	Townsend Bell		34	50:19.940	34	22
2	2	1	Dan Wheldon	PacWest Lights	34	+0.235	0	16
3	3	31	Damien Faulkner		34	+0.466	0	14
4	4	11	Kristian Kolby	Conquest Racing	34	+1.771	0	12
5	5	21	Matt Halliday	Conquest Racing	34	+2.148	0	10
Race average speed: 91.518 mph (147.284 km/h)
Lead changes: none
Cautions: 3 for 9 laps

Gateway[]

August 26, 2001
Gateway International Raceway, Madison, Illinois
Pole position: Townsend Bell (qualifying rained out; grid determined by championship points)

Top Five Finishers
Fin. Pos	St. Pos	Car No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time	Laps Led	Points
1	3	1	Dan Wheldon	PacWest Lights	80	43:31.081	11	20
2	4	17	Mario Domínguez	PacWest Lights	80	+23.822	0	16
3	8	21	Matt Halliday	Conquest Racing	80	+624.573	0	14
4	5	16	Derek Higgins		79	-1 lap	0	12
5	2	31	Damien Faulkner		79	-1 lap	0	10
Race average speed: 140.080 mph (225.437 km/h)
Lead changes: 1 between 2 drivers
Cautions: 1 for 6 laps

Road Atlanta[]

October 5, 2001
Road Atlanta, Braselton, Georgia
Pole position: Townsend Bell, 1:14.883, 122.110 mph (196.517 km/h)

Top Five Finishers
Fin. Pos	St. Pos	Car No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time	Laps Led	Points
1	6	1	Dan Wheldon	PacWest Lights	29	42:57.299	1	20
2	1	30	Townsend Bell		29	+0.256	28	18
3	3	31	Damien Faulkner		29	+2.536	0	14
4	5	17	Mario Domínguez	PacWest Lights	29	+4.780	0	12
5	2	32	Jon Fogarty		29	+5.791	0	10
Race average speed: 102.889 mph (165.584 km/h)
Lead changes: 1 between 2 drivers
Cautions: 1 for 4 laps

Laguna Seca[]

October 14, 2001
Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey, California
Pole position: Townsend Bell, 1:16.313, 105.576 mph (169.908 km/h)

Top Five Finishers
Fin. Pos	St. Pos	Car No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time	Laps Led	Points
1	1	30	Townsend Bell		34	44:34.521	34	22
2	2	32	Jon Fogarty		34	+2.963	0	16
3	4	65	Luis Díaz		34	+9.974	0	14
4	6	31	Damien Faulkner		34	+16.433	0	12
5	5	1	Dan Wheldon	PacWest Lights	34	+17.532	0	10
Race average speed: 102.423 mph (164.834 km/h)
Lead changes: none
Cautions: none

Fontana[]

November 4, 2001
California Speedway, Fontana, California
Pole position: Townsend Bell (qualifying rained out; grid determined by championship points)
This was the last CART-sanctioned Indy Lights race.

Top Five Finishers
Fin. Pos	St. Pos	Car No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time	Laps Led	Points
1	1	30	Townsend Bell		44	29:22.667	44	21
2	5	1	Dan Wheldon	PacWest Lights	44	+0.051	0	16
3	7	11	Matt Halliday	Conquest Racing	44	+17.354	0	14
4	8	16	Derek Higgins		44	+17.356	0	12
5	9	17	Mario Domínguez	PacWest Lights	44	+17.361	0	10
Race average speed: 182.334 mph (293.438 km/h)
Lead changes: none
Cautions: 1 for 3 laps

Final points standings[]

Pos	Name	MTY	LGB	TEX	MIL	POR	KAN	TOR	MDO	GTY	ATL	LAG	FON	Pts
1	Townsend Bell	2	1	8	1*¹	6	5*	1*	1*	R9*¹	2*	1*	1*¹	193
2	Dan Wheldon	5	2*	R10	3	R10	3	7	2	1	1	5	2	149
3	Damien Faulkner	7	R13	1*	7	1*	2	3	3	5	3	4	7	141
4	Mario Domínguez	4	4	6	2	R11	R10	2	6	2	4	10	5	120
5	Derek Higgins	1*	3	2	DNS	3	R11	9	R12	4	6	6	4	113
6	Matt Halliday				9	4	4	4	5	3	8	7	3	89
7	Luis Díaz	11	9	4	4	9	7	5	R11	6	7	3	6	88
8	Kristian Kolby	6	5	3	6	8	1	R10	4					80
9		8	8	7	5	2	R9		7	7		9	8	67
10	Rolando Quintanilla	10	R11	5	8	5	8	8	9	8	9	8	9	62
11	Jon Fogarty	3	R12	R9	10						5	2		48
12	Cory Witherill	9	7		R11	7	6	R11	8	R10	R10	11	R10	44
13	Geoff Boss							6	10					11
14	Andy Booth		6											8
15	Larry Mason		10											3
16	Nilton Rossoni	R12												1
Pos	Name	MTY	LGB	TEX	MIL	POR	KAN	TOR	MDO	GTY	ATL	LAG	FON	Pts

Color	Result
Gold	Winner
Silver	2nd place
Bronze	3rd place
Green	4th & 5th place
Light Blue	6th–10th place
Dark Blue	Finished (Outside Top 10)
Purple	Did not finish
Red	Did not qualify (DNQ)
Brown	Withdrawn (Wth)
Black	Disqualified (DSQ)
White	Did not start (DNS)
Blank	Did not participate (DNP)
Blank	Not competing

In-line notation
Bold	Pole position (1 point)
Italics	Ran fastest race lap
*	Led most race laps (1 points)
¹	Qualifying cancelled no bonus point awarded

Note: Race 4 no additional point for the qualifying was awarded due to rain, starting grid were determined by championship points standing. Race 9 no additional point for the qualifying was awarded due to rain, starting grid were determined by championship points standing.

Complete Overview[]

first column of every race

10

= grid position

second column of every race

10

= race result

R9=retired, but classified NS=did not start

Place	Name	Country	Team
1	Townsend Bell	USA		3	2	6	1	2	8	1	1	1	6	2	5	1	1	1	1	1	R9	1	2	1	1	1	1
2	Dan Wheldon	United Kingdom	PacWest Lights	10	5	3	2	5	R10	5	3	2	R10	4	3	3	7	2	2	3	1	6	1	5	5	5	2
3	Damien Faulkner	Ireland		6	7	4	R13	1	1	7	7	3	1	7	2	4	3	3	3	2	5	3	3	6	4	6	7
4	Mario Domínguez	Mexico	PacWest Lights	4	4	1	4	6	6	6	2	5	R11	1	R10	2	2	7	6	4	2	7	4	3	10	9	5
5	Derek Higgins	Ireland		1	1	5	3	4	2	3	NS	7	3	9	R11	5	9	9	R12	5	4	8	6	7	6	8	4
6	Matt Halliday	New Zealand	Conquest Racing	–	–	–	–	–	–	11	9	10	4	3	4	9	4	5	5	8	3	4	8	8	7	7	3
7	Luis Díaz	Mexico		11	11	11	9	7	4	9	4	4	9	11	7	6	5	6	R11	7	6	5	7	4	3	10	6
8	Kristian Kolby	Denmark	Conquest Racing	7	6	7	5	3	3	4	6	6	8	6	1	7	R10	4	4	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
9		Mexico		8	8	12	8	9	7	8	5	8	2	8	R9	–	–	10	7	6	7	–	–	9	9	3	8
10	Rolando Quintanilla	Mexico		12	10	10	R11	10	5	10	8	9	5	5	8	11	8	12	9	9	8	10	9	10	8	2	9
11	Jon Fogarty	USA		5	3	2	R12	8	R9	2	10	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	2	5	2	2	–	–
12	Cory Witherill	USA	Indy Regency Racing	9	9	8	7	–	–	12	R11	11	7	10	6	10	R11	11	8	10	R10	9	R10	11	11	4	R10
13	Geoff Boss	USA		–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	8	6	8	10	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
14	Andy Booth	New Zealand		–	–	9	6	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
15	Larry Mason	USA		–	–	13	10	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
16	Nilton Rossoni	Brazil	Conquest Racing	2	R12	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–

References[]

^ "Dan Wheldon wins Rookie of the Year award". Press release. DanWheldon.com. November 5, 2001. Retrieved June 10, 2011.
^ "CART to drop Indy Lights, focus on Atlantic". Press release. CART. September 10, 2001. Retrieved June 10, 2011.
^ "Jon Fogarty out for remainder of 2001". Press release. Dorricott Racing. August 13, 2001. Retrieved June 10, 2011.
^ "Dorricott Racing season finale Fontana preview". Press release. Dorricott Racing. November 1, 2001. Retrieved June 10, 2011.

External links[]

2001 season data from Motorsport.com

[1] "Dan Wheldon wins Rookie of the Year award". Press release. DanWheldon.com. November 5, 2001. Retrieved June 10, 2011.

[2] "CART to drop Indy Lights, focus on Atlantic". Press release. CART. September 10, 2001. Retrieved June 10, 2011.

[3] "Jon Fogarty out for remainder of 2001". Press release. Dorricott Racing. August 13, 2001. Retrieved June 10, 2011.

[4] "Dorricott Racing season finale Fontana preview". Press release. Dorricott Racing. November 1, 2001. Retrieved June 10, 2011.

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1

v t Indy Lights seasons
USAC Mini-Indy Series	1977 1978 1979 1980
CART American Racing Series	1986 1987 1988 1989 1990
CART Firestone/Dayton Indy Lights	1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001
IRL Infiniti/Indy Pro Series	2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
Firestone Indy Lights Series	2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
Indy Lights Series presented by Cooper Tire	2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 ~~2020~~ 2021 2022