Making his first oval start, Brazilian Matheus Leist led all 40 laps to win the Indy Lights Freedom 100 during competition at Carb Day on Friday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Aaron Telitz finished second 0.7760 seconds behind and Dalton Kellett third.
2017 Indy 500: Indy Lights Freedom 100 results
Rookie Matheus Leist earned a victory in his first oval race.
Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
The Indy Lights is essentially the equivalent to what Triple-A baseball is to the IndyCar’s major leagues.
Leist led wire-to-wire after earning the pole position for the race earlier with an Indy Lights track record two-lap average 199.198 mph. His 199.268 mph first lap in qualifying also set a track record. For winning, Leist earned $1 million in scholarship money and a guaranteed a spot in at least three IndyCar races — including the 500.
There wasn’t much drama in Friday’s race. With just one yellow flag after a wreck on the first lap, there wasn’t much passing to be found in the race. With about seven laps to go, Telitz tried to make a move on Leist. However, after trying both inside and out, he found no success and dropped back.
The finish between Telitz and Kellett provided some last-lap excitement, with Telitz finishing just .0641 seconds sooner.
The first-lap wreck took out teammates Colton Herta and Ryan Norman, cutting the 14-car field down to 12.
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