DAN CLARKE in INDY LIGHTS 2010
INDY LIGHTS WEBSITE DAN CLARKE Page on Indy Lights Website
Saturday,
September 04
Drive Smart. Buckle-Up Kentucky 100
Kentucky Speedway
Sparta, KY
Round 12
‘Speedy’ Dan Clarke had opposing fortunes – after a good early race in 5th spot, Clarke dropped down the order and landed in 10th place by the 40th lap. With only Barbosa behind him (by a clear lap), it would be where Clarke remained for the duration.
Click on the Indy Lights Website Link above for race reports and photographs
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DAN CLARKE 'Gaining in Confidence'
Round Nine
Mid-Ohio 100
Lexington, OH
Sunday,
August 08
Click on the Indy Lights Website Link above for race reports and photographs
Dan Clarke finished a creditable second in round nine of The 2010 Firestone Indy Lights Championship
Dan Clake on Twitter
Pumped to finish P2 today! Car was understeerin something chronic but we held on. Next time we'll do better. Kudos to Walker Racing!
Martin Plowman started on the pole for the first time in his 24 Firestone Indy Lights races. He led his first laps in two seasons of competition. And the Englishman won his first race since competing in the Asian-Pacific (karting) Championships in Japan.
Dan Clarke finished 0.8443 of a second behind in the No. 40 Wasteco Deans Knight Special for Walker Racing, tying his season high. Charlie Kimball finished third for his seventh top five.
"I really credit a lot of this to Derrick, not only putting me in the car and getting me back in a race car, but also just all the dedication he's put in just making sure that everybody's doing their absolute best and we're getting the best out of everything," Clarke said. "That's really why we've got this momentum now.
"We're in the top three, top four every session. I feel it's great to get another podium. The championship's pretty messed up for us, missing that first race, having a couple of bad races. But I think maybe sixth or fifth place is in grab if we keep this momentum going."
Next Round:
August 22nd 2010
Infineon Raceway
Carneros 100
Sonoma, CA
BARBER MOTORSPORTS PARK
Birmingham, AL, USA April 11th 2010
A number of drivers made their Firestone Indy Lights debut at Barber Motorsports Park this weekend with Champ Car veteran Dan Clarke joining Walker Racing.
Clarke, who finished runner-up to Will Power in the Champ Car rookie of the year standings in 2006, is racing in Firestone Indy Lights with a goal of joining the full series with his sights set on the IZOD IndyCar Series in 2011. He qualified 11th for the April 11th Race.
“I couldn’t be more thrilled to join Walker Racing and to be back racing in the USA,” the native of Mexborough, England said. “Since 2006 I’ve focused my career on the U.S. open wheel scene. After unification I feel my career is back on track and competing this year in the Firestone Indy Lights Series is a great place for me to do it.”
Dan Clarke shared row six with Pippa Mann, but their races developed very differently. Clarke, making his debut, climbed four places finished seventh and later declared “Speedy Dan is back – just shook the rust off, got to fix qualifying next”.
Next Round: STREETS of LONG BEACH, Long Beach, CA, USA April 18th 2010
March/ April 2010
Walker Racing announced that British driver Dan Clarke will drive the team's Firestone Indy Lights #40 entry this weekend at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama.
DAN CLARKE (No. 40 Wasteco Deans Knight Special): " I couldn't be more thrilled to join Walker Racing and to be back racing in the USA. Since 2006 I've focused my career on the U.S. open wheel scene. After unification I feel my career is back on track and competing this year in the Firestone Indy Lights Series is a great place for me to do it."
DERRICK WALKER (owner, Walker Racing): "I have always been impressed with Dan's speed when we raced against him in the Champ Car years. Back in those days the 'Road to Indy' was not as clear as it is now, so we share the same objective in racing in the Firestone Indy Lights Series, our aim is the IZOD IndyCar Series and the Indianapolis 500."
A1 GP Round 7, Brands Hatch, England. Team GBR rounded off a difficult season with a strong performance and a charging drive from Dan Clarke. Despite limited running and having never been on the full Brands Hatch Grand Prix Circuit, Dan was pushing for fast times right from the start of practice on Friday.
Frustrated by traffic in qualifying for the sprint race meant that Dan lined up 13th on the grid. In qualifying for the feature race however Dan was regularly near the top of the time sheets but in a cruel twist in the natuve of the rules, his fastest lap was disallowed because Team Switzerland had gone off at Paddock Hill Bend triggering a yellow flag caution. The result was a determined Dan Clarke starting 14th on the grid.
“Well we know the speed is tlere,” said Dan, “but it’s really frustrating to lose a top five grid slot for the feature race through no fault of our own.”
The sprint race was largely uneventful for Dan and Team GBR, the car was suffering from understeer, which made it impossible to attack, Dan finished where he started in 13th place.
The Feature race was a different story all together. An extensive engineering debrief had led to a number of set up changes for the race. Lining up 14th on a circuit where passing is very difficult but now with a car working to his liking, was the perfect scenario for the spectacular Speedy Dan to step forward. Setting a blistering pace from the start, Dan worked his way up the order with a display of driving virtuosity including the overtake of the year, when he sliced up the inside of Team Australia into the daunting Paddock Hill Bend. During a sequence of stunning laps Dan in his Team GBR machine was the fastest car on the circuit, setting what would eventually be the fourth fastest lap of the race.
Just as he caught the gaggle of cars ahead though, a sudden vibration signalled the end of his charge, a broken exhaust meant a drop in power. With the car sounding sick and the resulting drop in performance, Dan managed to nurse his ailing car to the end, successfully defending his seventh place from Team Australia.
“A vibration set in with a dozen laps to go and I thought at first that it was an out of shape wheel rim, but it soon became clear that it was the exhaust.”
“Setting the race’s fourth fastest lap shows just how the car came on through the course of the meeting.
“You also have to consider that A1 Team Great Britain has had a tough time over the past few rounds, it’s not every team that has its race engineer running around carrying tyres.
“The team has great potential, though, and I really want to spend the summer racing in the US and then come back and run the whole season, to build on what we’ve achieved.”
As someone who hasn’t raced in his home country for years, Clarke was clearly moved by the home support.
“I’d really like to thank the fans waving Union Jacks around the circuit. Their support was really appreciated. It’s just that I was too busy to wave to them until the slowing down lap…” Said Dan
For Dan's own website www.speedydan.com
CLICK HERE
Dan Clarke Wikipedia
Saturday,
September 04
Drive Smart. Buckle-Up Kentucky 100
Kentucky Speedway
Sparta, KY
Round 12
‘Speedy’ Dan Clarke had opposing fortunes – after a good early race in 5th spot, Clarke dropped down the order and landed in 10th place by the 40th lap. With only Barbosa behind him (by a clear lap), it would be where Clarke remained for the duration.
Click on the Indy Lights Website Link above for race reports and photographs
March/ April 2010
Walker Racing announced that British driver Dan Clarke will drive the team's Firestone Indy Lights #40 entry this weekend at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama.
DAN CLARKE (No. 40 Wasteco Deans Knight Special): " I couldn't be more thrilled to join Walker Racing and to be back racing in the USA. Since 2006 I've focused my career on the U.S. open wheel scene. After unification I feel my career is back on track and competing this year in the Firestone Indy Lights Series is a great place for me to do it."
DERRICK WALKER (owner, Walker Racing): "I have always been impressed with Dan's speed when we raced against him in the Champ Car years. Back in those days the 'Road to Indy' was not as clear as it is now, so we share the same objective in racing in the Firestone Indy Lights Series, our aim is the IZOD IndyCar Series and the Indianapolis 500."
A1 GP Round 7, Brands Hatch, England. Team GBR rounded off a difficult season with a strong performance and a charging drive from Dan Clarke. Despite limited running and having never been on the full Brands Hatch Grand Prix Circuit, Dan was pushing for fast times right from the start of practice on Friday.
Frustrated by traffic in qualifying for the sprint race meant that Dan lined up 13th on the grid. In qualifying for the feature race however Dan was regularly near the top of the time sheets but in a cruel twist in the natuve of the rules, his fastest lap was disallowed because Team Switzerland had gone off at Paddock Hill Bend triggering a yellow flag caution. The result was a determined Dan Clarke starting 14th on the grid.
“Well we know the speed is tlere,” said Dan, “but it’s really frustrating to lose a top five grid slot for the feature race through no fault of our own.”
The sprint race was largely uneventful for Dan and Team GBR, the car was suffering from understeer, which made it impossible to attack, Dan finished where he started in 13th place.
The Feature race was a different story all together. An extensive engineering debrief had led to a number of set up changes for the race. Lining up 14th on a circuit where passing is very difficult but now with a car working to his liking, was the perfect scenario for the spectacular Speedy Dan to step forward. Setting a blistering pace from the start, Dan worked his way up the order with a display of driving virtuosity including the overtake of the year, when he sliced up the inside of Team Australia into the daunting Paddock Hill Bend. During a sequence of stunning laps Dan in his Team GBR machine was the fastest car on the circuit, setting what would eventually be the fourth fastest lap of the race.
Just as he caught the gaggle of cars ahead though, a sudden vibration signalled the end of his charge, a broken exhaust meant a drop in power. With the car sounding sick and the resulting drop in performance, Dan managed to nurse his ailing car to the end, successfully defending his seventh place from Team Australia.
“A vibration set in with a dozen laps to go and I thought at first that it was an out of shape wheel rim, but it soon became clear that it was the exhaust.”
“Setting the race’s fourth fastest lap shows just how the car came on through the course of the meeting.
“You also have to consider that A1 Team Great Britain has had a tough time over the past few rounds, it’s not every team that has its race engineer running around carrying tyres.
“The team has great potential, though, and I really want to spend the summer racing in the US and then come back and run the whole season, to build on what we’ve achieved.”
As someone who hasn’t raced in his home country for years, Clarke was clearly moved by the home support.
“I’d really like to thank the fans waving Union Jacks around the circuit. Their support was really appreciated. It’s just that I was too busy to wave to them until the slowing down lap…” Said Dan