Simi Valley's Adrian Starrantino wins F1600 Championship Series opener

Adrian Starrantino, an 18-year-old from Simi Valley, won the first two rounds of the F1600 Championship Series at Virginia International Raceway over the weekend.
Starrantino, a graduate of Royal High School, will be competing for Bryan Herta Autosport in the open-wheel developmental series.
Starrantino made his debut for the team in the 2012 season finale at Watkins Glen in New York, where was the runner-up in his first race in the F1600 Championship Series.
Go to the Ventura County Star for more on Starrantino and the F1600 Championship Series.

Photo: Adrian Starrantino from Simi Valley won the first two rounds of the F1600 Championship Series season at Virginia International Raceway.

Alex Tagliani to drive for Bryan Herta Autosport IndyCar Series team

Alex Tagliani will drive for Bryan Herta Autosport's Izod IndyCar Series team in 2012, the team announced on Monday.
Tagliani is a veteran of the IndyCar, CART and Champ Car World Series. He won the pole for the Indianapolis 500 in 2010 and won one race and four poles in an eight-year career in the CART and Champ Car World Series.
Bryan Herta Autosport won the Indianapolis 500 last year with Dan Wheldon as the team's driver. Wheldon died in an on-track crash at the IndyCar Series season finale at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Bryan Herta Autosport will be using the new Lotus cars in the IndyCar Series as a factory partner team. It is the team's first full season in the IndyCar Series.
Go to Hometownstation.com for comments from Tagliani and Herta.

Photo: Alex Tagliani will drive for Bryan Herta Autosport in the 2012 Izod IndyCar Series. (Courtesy of BHA)

How Bryan Herta, Sam Schmidt and Charlie Kimball helped Dan Wheldon win the Indy 500

Dan Wheldon won his second Indianapolis 500, but if not for a trio of Southern Californians, he might have never made it to the finish line at the Brickyard on Sunday.
The owner of the Wheldon’s car is Valencia’s Bryan Herta.
The team that provided the car for Wheldon to drive is owned by Sam Schmidt, who grew up in the San Fernando Valley, graduated from Pepperdine and went to Village Christian in Sun Valley.
The driver of the car who played a role in the last-lap crash that took out leader JR Hildebrand was Camarillo’s Charlie Kimball.
Without those three people, Wheldon probably doesn’t have a car to drive nor is he in position to win the Indy 500.
Wheldon, driving for Bryan Herta Autosport, took the lead for the first time in the race on the last lap when the rookie Hildebrand crashed into turn 4 wall.
Hildebrand was leading the race, but tried to pass Kimball on the outside. Hildebrand slid into the turn 4 wall allowing Wheldon a chance to take the lead and win the race. Hildebrand skidded across the finish line in second place.
It led to a surprising finish, with Wheldon leading only the last few hundred yards of the race. He became the first driver in the history of the Indy 500, which was celebrating its centennial anniversary, to win the race leading only the last lap of the race.
“When I saw him crash, I mean, I knew it wasn’t serious. As soon as I knew it was not serious, there was a little smile on my face, I will say,” Wheldon said. “From that point, it was just making sure that I didn’t do anything silly. Then I think I got on the radio and started crying.”
Bryan Herta Autosport is a part-time player in the Izod IndyCar Series. Herta has a team that runs the entire Firestone Indy Lights series, but only one IndyCar Series race. He entered the Indy 500 last year with Sebastian Saavedra as his driver and had the last car to qualify in the 33-car field.
In the second start for Bryan Herta Autosport at the Indy 500, Wheldon put Herta’s car on the second row, qualifying sixth, and in a much better position to contend for a win. Herta knew his chances of winning were slim, but with Wheldon as his driver, he had confidence.
“Dan has done such a great job. One of the things he did for us is bring an attitude and a belief we could win this race,” said Herta, who graduated from Hart High School in Newhall. “On paper, based on our previous effort, anything, on paper we really had no business believing we could win it. But Dan believed in us so strongly he made us believe it, too. I really think over the course of this last two weeks, he made the crew guys believe it, he made a lot of people on the outside believe it, because so many people were coming up to us the week of the race saying, ‘We think you’re going to win.’ It was so uplifting.”
Schmidt had his own two-car effort in the Indy 500. One of his drivers, Alex Tagliani, won the pole. Schmidt had good cars, but they were still considered inferior to the ones put together by Roger Penske, Chip Ganassi and Michael Andretti. Wheldon said he didn’t see a Penske car in front of him the entire race. Ganassi’s drivers, Scott Dixon and Dario Franchitti, led the Indy 500 at various points, but fell out of contention when their fuel strategies failed. Danica Patrick, driving for Andretti Autosport, led late in the race, but had to pit for fuel.
Schmidt’s cars meanwhile were strong and fast.
“They dug all month. The 77 (Tagliani) and 99 (Townsend Bell) worked really well together and had fast cars,” Schmidt said. “Unfortunately, they both got a little out of sequence. We probably should’ve finished at least second or third when all was said and done. You can’t second-guess what happens in the race, and that is what this place is all about. At least we got a little piece of that car rolling up on victory circle right there. It was Bryan’s, and that's cool.”
Kimball turned out to be the unfortunate X factor in Wheldon’s win. Hildebrand came up on Kimble, the last car on the lead lap, on the final turn of the race. Instead of letting up on the throttle and coasting to the finish line, Hildebrand tried to pass Kimball. Kimball did nothing wrong, but Hildebrand made the mistake of trying to pass Kimball on the outside. Hildebrand crashed and Wheldon was the surprise and teary-eyed winner of the Indy 500.
“I’m not normally that emotional,” Wheldon said. “But having been through what we’ve been through, being able to deliver this for everybody is certainly very gratifying. Proud of everybody. In terms of what it will do for the future, it will make me a happier person on the beach. In terms of more races, you'll have to ask these guys.”

Photo: Dan Wheldon won his second career Indianapolis 500 driving for Bryan Hertra Autosport. (Photo by LAT)

Dan Wheldon wins Indy 500 for Bryan Herta Autosport

Dan Wheldon took the lead in Sunday's Indianapolis 500 on the last turn of the last lap and won the race for the second time in his career.
It was an unlikely finish to the 100th anniversary of the first Indy 500. Wheldon, driving for Valencia's Bryan Herta, was making his first and probably only start of the Izod IndyCar Series season.
Herta, the owner of Bryan Herta Autosport, was entered in his only IndyCar Series race of the season and making only his second career start as a team owner.
The two teamed up to win the Indy 500 taking advantage of a last-lap crash by JR Hildebrand, who slid in to the turn 4 wall trying to pass a lapped car.
Go to Hometown Station.com for more on Bryan Herta Autosport winning the Indy 500.

Photo: Valencia's Bryan Herta, left, driver Dan Wheldon, and Steve Newey talk to the media at Indianapolis Motor Speedway after winning the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday. (Dana Garrett)

Bryan Herta Autosport secures final spot in Indianapolis 500

The Indy car for Bryan Herta Autosport was in pieces. The driver was in the hospital. Valencia’s Bryan Herta, the owner of the team, didn’t know if he was in or out of the Indianapolis 500 until he was on his way to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway tech center after qualifying was over on Sunday.
Sure enough, Herta’s team was in the Indianapolis 500 field, the last car in. Sebastian Saavedra will start 33rd for Bryan Herta Autosport in the 33-car field, the last car on the last row.
Herta, with a rookie driver, one car, limited resources and boundless hope, will make his first start in the Indy 500 as an owner.
“You know, we were well aware that we were going to have a roller coaster, that our race was to make the race, and we knew that we were going to be part of whatever is happening today, that it was going to be touch and go,” said Herta, a Hart High graduate. “But never in a million years could we have imagined the scenario that actually unfolded. Thank God. I already had a hard enough time sleeping.”
The scenario that unfolded involved one of the more active and eventful Bump Days in recent memory for the Indy 500. Saavedra put his car in the field on Bump Day, the last day of qualifying when drivers and teams can withdraw times to improve their positions in the race and bump other drivers out of the starting field.
Saavedra’s qualifying run was far from a lock to make the field of 33 cars. He was one of the drivers bumped out of the field as other drivers posted better qualifying speeds than his.
Saavedra was on the bubble and took his car out for practice in preparation for another qualifying run, but crashed in turn one. Herta thought his chances of making the field were gone.
His chances were revived when two drivers withdrew their times and put Saavedra back in the field.
Paul Tracy was one of those drivers. But he didn’t improve his qualifying run and Saavedra maintained his hold on the 33rd spot.
Jay Howard went out to try and improve his qualifying effort, but he too did not produce a better run.
When Bump Day was over, Saavedra was in the Indy 500 field, and on his way to the hospital to be evaluated after his crash.
“I had just turned on the television in my hospital room and I saw an interview with Bryan and my crew jumping up and down,” said Saavedra, a 19-year-old from Colombia. “My family started jumping in celebration. This is wonderful for me and my country. I’m still trying to process it. I want to thank Bryan Herta Autosport and William Rast for believing in me and making my dream come true.”
Herta said he never experienced the range of emotions in one week, let alone one day, through his years of racing in the Indianapolis 500.
“Three times. Three times we thought we were out when we crashed,” Herta said. “We were pretty confident that we were going to have to bump our way back into the race. So when we crashed we thought, ‘Oh, that’s it.’ And then we got bumped out the first time. And OK, thought, OK, you’re out, that’s it. And then time withdrew in front of us, we got back in.”
Saavedra had an MRI as a precautionary measure at the hospital. The results were negative. The car, the only one Bryan Herta Autosport has for the race, is in pretty bad shape.
“We broke the gearbox, bell housing, underwing, rear wing attenuator, left front suspension is junk,” said Steve Newey, who owns the team with Herta and is the team's race engineer. “Left rear suspension. Obviously, I could go on and on. There’s a lot. Honda wants to take a look at the engine.
“We’re going to have the engine over to Honda tomorrow to see how much damage there is. The tub appears to be OK. So there is a lot of damage, and our guys are coming in and we’re going to go shopping for used parts tomorrow.”

Photo: Sebastian Saavedra, driver for Bryan Herta Autosport, qualified for the Indianapolis 500 and will start 33rd in the 33-car field. (Bryan Herta Autosport)

Bryan Herta Autosport gears up for the Grand Prix of Long Beach

Bryan Herta Autosport got off on the right foot in the first day of practice for the Firestone Indy Lights race at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach. Sebastian Saavedra, one of two drivers for Bryan Herta Autosport, was the fastest in practice and is in good position to capture the pole for the race.
The team, owned in part by Hart High graduate Bryan Herta, is in its second year of operation. Saavedra is the 2009 Indy Lights rookie of the year, with two wins under his belt already.
Stefan Wilson, the other driver for Herta's team, is the younger brother of Izod IndyCar Series driver Justin Wilson.
For more on the drivers and the team, go to the story in the LA Daily News.
Go to KHTS, AM 1220, for more on Herta's decision to expand to two Indy Lights teams and enter the Indianapolis 500.

Photo: Bryan Herta, left, talks with his driver, Sebastian Saavedra. Herta has a two-car team in the Firestone Indy Lights series. Both cars will be racing in the Grand Prix of Long Beach on Sunday. (Bryan Herta Autosport)

Bryan Herta Autosport prepares for inaugural Firestone Indy Lights Grand Prix of Alabama

The Firestone Indy Lights series is headed for the inaugural Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park. The drivers for Bryan Herta Autosport had productive tests at the 2.38-mile road course during the off-season and are looking forward to the first race at the Alabama track.
Bryan Herta Autosport, owned in part by Bryan Herta, a Valencia resident and Hart High graduate, has two drivers, Stefan Wilson and Sebastian Saavedra.
Wilson gave Bryan Herta Autosport its first podium finish of the season with a third place at the Indy Lights opener at St. Petersburg, Fla.
“I drove the track for the first time at the open test a month ago and really enjoyed it,” the 19-year-old Wilson said. “It’s a great facility, a great track. Overtaking is going to be pretty difficult but we had a good car and I think we’ve improved it since the test so I’m feeling confident. I’m interested to see how we shape up against the opposition, but coming off a strong result at St. Pete gives me a lot of confidence to look for another good result and maintain our momentum in the championship.”
Saavedra led the first lap of the St. Petersburg race, but collided with another car and finished 12th.
“It’s going to be a very interesting weekend,” the 20-year-old Saavedra said. “We had a very productive test at Barber. It was our first test with the team and we left with very high expectations for the championship, so we are very positive about what we can do. We know we have a great car, we have a great setup and, after St. Pete, we come with a much more mature mentality. We’re going to go for the points -- that’s for sure the most important thing right now -- and I’m very positive about how everything is going to come out.”

Bryan Herta Autosport expanded, improved for Firestone Indy Lights season

The Firestone Indy Lights season opens in St. Petersburg, Fla., on Sunday and Bryan Herta Autosport will have two cars in the race.
Drivers Stephan Wilson and Sebastian Saavedra give Bryan Herta Autosport, the team owned by Valencia’s Bryan Herta, a new look and a higher expectations. Herta is entering his second season as an owner in the Indy Lights series. His team expanded from one driver to two.
Wilson is the younger brother of Izod IndyCar Series driver Justin Wilson. Saavedra is a two-time winner in Indy Lights and comes over from Andretti Autosport after winning the rookie of the year in 2009.
Wilson made six starts in the Indy Lights series last year, his best finish a fourth place in Toronto.
“I am really looking forward to this weekend,” said the 20-year-old Wilson. “I had a so-so race here last year. It was my first race and only my second day in the car after a shakedown test. I jumped in with a very steep learning curve but I felt we were competitive even straight out of the box. Unfortunately, I made a few unlucky mistakes that cost me some decent finishes. I am looking forward to coming back with a bit more experience and with a really competitive team in Bryan Herta Autosport.”
Wilson, driving for the First Racing/Walker Racing team, finished 13th in one of the doubleheader races in the season-opener at St. Petersburg last year.
Wilson said his pre-season testing with Bryan Herta Autosport has gone well.
“The first time I drove the car I was impressed with how well it handled,” Wilson said. “I have gelled really well with the team and enjoy working with my engineer Brian Page. I am very excited to have Sebastian as a teammate. He brings a lot of experience with a full season of Indy Lights and I know that is going to help me. He knows what a good car feels like and what we want to achieve.”
Saavedra won the pole and finished second in one of the season-opening races in St. Petersburg last year.
“St. Petersburg is one of my favorite tracks, and I am very confident coming here for the second time after the good results last year,” said the 19-year-old Saavedra. “Testing has gone great. Our main objective was to get to know each other and start working together, for me to learn how Steve [Newey] works and for him to know how I work. I am very happy with how everything has come together.”
Newey and Herta are ownership partners in the team. Part of the team’s expansion in 2010 was to enter Saavedra in the Indianapolis 500.
“It is great that he is entered in the Indy 500,” Wilson said. “It really strengthens the whole team. It will be exciting to be there and witness my team compete and, hopefully, it will give me a lot of experience as that is what I am striving to do next year. For now, I am looking forward to the race this weekend. This is one of my favorite tracks on the calendar and I am looking for a good finish here. I am confident we will be a really strong force to be reckoned with this season.”
Saavedra said he has enjoyed working with his new teammate and preparing for the Indy Lights season opener.
“My relationship with Stefan is great,” Saavedra said. “He is a very good driver who wants to win and that has helped us to have a very good relationship. We have been working well together to make the cars as good as possible. We found some very interesting things at our last test at Sebring which worked very well and will help us this weekend. I think we both will have cars capable of winning. We have the right tools, the right engineering and the right mentality to come to this first race.”

Bryan Herta Autosport adds driver, heading to Indy 500

Bryan Herta Autopsort added another driver to its Firestone Indy Lights team. Colombian Sebastian Saavedra joins Stefan Wilson on the team’s two-car effort for the 2010 season.
Team owner Bryan Herta, a Valencia resident and Hart High graduate, is also entering Saavedra in the Indianapolis 500 in a car backed by Bryan Herta Autosport.
“This is a very proud day for Bryan Herta Autosport,” said Herta. “Sebastian and Stefan will make a very formidable driving team and will help to raise our program to the next level. I know they will be pushing us and each other all season long. And to be able to announce our entry into the Indy 500 this year is another step in the plan Steve and I set for the team when it was formed just one year ago. There is much work ahead for us but today we want to take a breath and enjoy this moment. We can’t wait for the season to get started.”
Saavedra will be the third driver from Colombia to enter the Indianapolis 500. Juan Pablo Montoya and Roberto Guerrero have raced in the Indy 500. Montoya won the Indy 500 in 2000 in his first start in the race. Guerrero has two runner-up finishes in the Indy 500.
“I have been talking to Bryan for some time and now everything is underway and I am very excited,” said Saavedra. “The program looks amazing. It is something we can build on for the future. It will be great to have Stefan as a teammate and to work with Bryan and Steve who know what winning is like. I will be working hard to be the best-prepared mentally and physically. My goal for the championship is to bring the gold home.”
Saavedra is entering his second year of competition in the Indy Lights series. He was third in the Indy Lights standings driving for Andretti Green Racing last year. He won two races and finished on the podium seven times.
Both drivers from Bryan Herta Autosport will be testing this weekend at Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama.

Bryan Herta Autosport expands Indy Lights team for Mid-Ohio

Bryan Herta Autosport is expanding for the next two races in the Firestone Indy Lights series.
Felipe Guimaraes is returning to the auto racing team owned by Valencia’s Bryan Herta for this weekend’s race at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and the following race at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma.
Guimaraes, a driver from Brazil, will join Daniel Herrington on Herta’s team. Guimaraes made his debut with the team at Watkins Glen in New York and finished on the podium, in third place.
The drivers from Bryan Herta Autosport are working with James Davison, a driver from Vision Racing, in a three-car effort.
Herta said he likes his chances at Mid-Ohio and Sonoma.
"Should gives us a good 1-2-3 punch for the next two races," Herta said via e-mail.
Herrington is coming off a sixth-place finish at Kentucky Speedway.

Photo: Felipe Guimaraes will drive for Bryan Herta Autosport in the next two Firestone Indy Lights races.

Herrington, Bryan Herta Autosport sixth in Indy Lights race at Kentucky

After a weekend of weepers and rain, Daniel Herrington, driving for Bryan Herta Autosport, posted a sixth-place finish in the Firestone Indy Lights race at Kentcuky Speedway on Saturday.
Qualifying for the race was cancelled because of weepers, water seeping through the creases of the track. The starting grid was set on drivers standings, putting Herrington seventh.
"It wasn't too bad a run but with qualifying cancelled we were a little disappointed because we feel like we could have qualified a little higher up and that could have helped us," said Herrington, driving for the team owned by Valencia's Bryan Herta. "We really needed all of that practice to get the car where we needed it and ended up with a pretty comfortable racecar. We stayed with the lead pack for the most part, but we lacked a little bit of pace to get by some people and move up to the front. We definitely hung with them the whole way."
Wade Cunningham, driving for Sam Schmidt Motorsports, won the race. He was followed by Sebastian Saavedra in second and Ana Beatriz in third.
The race ended under caution, resulting from a James Hinchcliffe spinout. Hinchcliffe did not make contact with the wall or another car, but track officials could not get the track ready for a final restart.
"It's encouraging after a few back-to-back frustrating weekends," Herrington said. "To get back on an oval and run with the leaders feels pretty good and hopefully we can keep the momentum going."

Kimball fifth, Herrington ninth at Edmonton Indy Lights race

Camarillo’s Charlie Kimball finished fifth in the Firestone Indy Lights race at the Grand Prix of Edmonton on Saturday at the Edmonton City Centre Circuit, a temporary street course.
Daniel Herrington, driver for Bryan Herta Autosport, finished ninth. He started ninth, but dropped back early in the race and had to battle back to finish in the top 10. It’s was a similar pattern to how the race in Toronto unfolded.
"That’s twice, at both Toronto and Edmonton, that we’ve started out slow but built up speed and by the end of the race we were one of the faster cars out there and catching a lot of guys,” Herrington said. “In this case, we lost so much ground in the first 25 laps that it was too much to make up. We’ll take a look at this race and try to figure out what I need to do to be more aggressive at the beginning of races to stay in the mix so that at the end we can keep being as strong as we really are and pick a few people off to get some better results.”
Valencia’s Bryan Herta is part owner of the Bryan Herta Autosport team. Herrington is in seventh place in the Indy Lights standings.
J.R. Hildebrand won the Edmonton race, his third of the season, and extended his lead in the Indy Lights standings.

Photo: Daniel Herrington, a driver for Bryan Herta Autosport, finished ninth in the Firestone Indy Lights race at the Grand Prix of Edmonton on Saturday. (Bryan Herta Autosport)

Bryan Herta Autosport adds driver

Bryan Herta Autosport has a new driver in the Firestone Indy Lights Series. Brazilian Felipe Guimaraes, 18, will make his first start for the team at Watkins Glen International in the Corning 100 on Saturday. For the time being, it is the only race Guimaraes will run for Bryan Herta Autosport.
“I am really looking forward to my first race in the USA, especially at such a legendary circuit as Watkins Glen, which is very special as it is where fellow Brazilian and manager Emerson Fittipaldi won his first Formula 1 race,” Guimaraes said. “I expect some tough competition from the rest of the Firestone Indy Lights field, but I also feel I'll be working with a great team here.”
Guimaraes has been racing for Brazil in the A1 Grand Prix and has recorded one podium finish in the international series. He was second in the race at Kyalami in South Africa.
“We are looking forward to running Felipe in the No. 29 BHA entry at Watkins Glen,” said Herta, a Valencia resident and Hart High graduate. “He is a talent with great potential and will be a welcome addition to our established drivers Daniel Herrington and James Davison of Vision Racing. We are all approaching the race at the Glen with a great deal of optimism.”

Herrington falls from second to ninth in Indy Lights race at Iowa Speedway

Daniel Herrington ran as high as second, but ended up in ninth place in the Firestone Indy Lights race at Iowa Speedway on Saturday night.
The driver for Bryan Herta Autosport qualified a season-best fourth and was challenging for the lead when he made contact with Mike Potekhen on lap 93 of the 115-lap race. Herrington’s car suffered damage to the front wing and Herrington had to drop back in the field.
"Wade (Cunningham) and I came up on a lapped car and Wade went by him on the inside,” said Herrington. “It looked like he left me room and I started going by him on the inside but for whatever reason we had contact. I was trying my hardest to give him enough room. I was trying to be cautious since we were sitting there in second place and I didn’t want to blow our position but we still managed to make contact (front wing damage). From then on I was just trying to hold on.”
Ana Beartriz, a driver for Sam Schmidt Motorsports, won the race. She led the final nine laps and won the first race of her career. Cunningham was second, followed by James Hinchcliffe.
With his ninth-place finish, Herrington moved up to sixth place in the Indy Lights standings.
“I’ve never been so happy and disappointed to finish ninth,” Herrington said. “It’ll pull the heart right out of your chest to be running second and have contact with a lapped car. It’s disappointing but then it’s also a positive to be running up there with the leader and be running strong especially when we haven’t gotten the opportunity to show what we can really do this year to date. As tough as it was to end the race that way, it’s also reassuring that we’ve made some gains with the car and seem to be there speed wise. We sure would like to go out there and show that we have the potential to win a few of these. For the whole season we have been kind of chasing the AGR and Schmidt guys, so to be up there running and racing with them and being competitive is really reassuring. I’m looking forward to the next one.”

Kimball in top 10, Herrington crashes in Milwaukee Indy Lights race

Daniel Herrington, driving for Valencia’s Bryan Herta and his Bryan Herta Autosport team, finished 14th in the Firestone Indy Lights race at The Milwaukee Mile on Saturday. He spun out on lap 86 of the 100-lap race and crashed into the inside wall at the track.
“We had a little bit of push in the car all day and that was the first time it gave any indication that it was loose and so then it stepped out pretty suddenly and that caught me off guard; then I was just along for the ride,” said Herrington. “It was a pretty disappointing way to end the race because there wasn’t very much further to go in the race and we had a decent run up until then. That’s not the way that I saw this weekend going, but sometimes you have those (accidents).”
It was Herrington’s first DNF of the season and the second of his Indy Lights career. It was also his worst finish of the season. In his five previous races, Herrington has posted four top 10s and one top five.
Mario Romancini won the pole, led every lap and won the race at Milwaukee.
J.R. Hildebrand, the leader in the Indy Lights series standings, finished third.
Camarillo’s Charlie Kimball, driving for the Palm Beach International Raceway team, was 10th.
The race will be televised on Versus at 1 p.m. PDT.

Bryan Herta's big plans for the future

Bryan Herta, who made his debut as a race car team owner in the Firestone Indy Lights season opener in St. Petersburg, Fla., last weekend, talks about his plans for the future. His immediate goal is to win an Indy Lights race. His long-term goals include moving up to the IRL IndyCar Series and perhaps entering this year's Indianapolis 500.
Read about his plans and his thoughts on racing in the Grand Prix of Long Beach at The Signal.

Bryan Herta Autosport posts two top 10s in St. Pete

Bryan Herta Autosport posted a pair of top 10s in its first races in the Firestone Indy Lights series. His team was fifth in Sunday's race at St. Petersburg, Fla., and was seventh in the race on Saturday.
After the race on Saturday, Herta said he expected a little better result, but was happy with how his team performed in its first race.
“With two races in one weekend, it also gives us a chance to make some changes, hopefully improve our cars and improve our finishing positions (Sunday)," said Herta, a Valencia resident and Hart High of Newhall graduate. "That’s what we’ll try to do.”
Herta's team did improve, making up two spots and cracking the top five. Junior Strous won both of the Indy Lights races. Daniel Herrington, Herta's driver, is fourth in the Indy Lights standings after two races.
“I think we did pretty much what we set out to do," Herrington said after his race on Saturday. "We wanted to run a nice, consistent race for our first time here and our first race towards the championship and we kind of got hurt a bit by the qualifying procedure. So we ended up running kind of where we were speed-wise from practice and qualifying, which was good, but we still left some time out there to try and figure out to get back overnight. We are still lacking just a little bit here and there to get to that next level and to get in the top-three."
For photos and video highlights from the race, click here.
For more on the race from IndyCar.com, click here.

Bryan Herta Autosports seventh in first Indy Lights race

Bryan Herta Autosport completed its first Firestone Indy Lights race in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Bryan Herta is an IndyCar Series veteran, former Indy Lights champion, lives in Valencia and graduated from Hart High School.
Daniel Herrington, the driver for Bryan Herta Autosport, finished seventh in his first race with the team. The Indy Lights drivers will race again tomorrow in St. Petersburg.
Here is a link to some video of one of Herrington's laps around the course on Saturday.
In following Herta on Twitter, he said, "stayed smooth and consistent. We just need to find some more speed tomorrow"
Follow Bryan Herta Autosport here.