Posted May 16, 2022 by Leo Nulty News

Jonathan Browne Scores First Pole Position at Indianapolis Grand Prix

Ireland’s Jonathan Browne scored his first pole position in the Indy Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires this weekend at the Grand Prix of Indianapolis Presented by Cooper Tires. The rookie claimed the top qualifying spot after putting together a flawless final lap on the 2.439-mile, 14-turn road course with a best time of 1:21.6771.

After an excellent start in Race 1, Browne held off the field to maintain the lead going into Turn 1 before making contact with the #90 car of Louis Foster while trying to correct the car coming out of Turn 2. Browne was able to continue on while Foster spun out and collected the #40 car of Jack William Miller, bringing out the double yellows on Lap 1.

When the race restarted on Lap 5, Browne took off once again to hold the lead over the rest of the field, and within two laps, the driver of the #2 car was almost one second ahead of the next car. The high didn’t last long, however, as Browne was issued a black flag for avoidable contact, calling him into the pits for a drive through penalty on Lap 8 and sending him back to P12.

With the work cut out for him to regain his lost positions, Browne spent the remaining laps working his way back up through the field to ultimately finish in a well-earned ninth position.

Jonathan Browne leads the field around Indianapolis Motor Speedway in his #2 Indy Pro 2000

Teammate Josh Green showed strong pace early on in the weekend, taking the fastest time in the first test session, but struggled to match that effort in qualifying, setting him back in a P13 starting position for Race 1. After the opening lap scuffles, Green worked his way up to P9 and readied to progress further on the Lap 5 restart. Unfortunately, he was tapped from behind going into Turn 1, causing him to spin and sending him to the back. Green was able to regain several positions throughout the remaining laps and finished Race 1 in P11.

Starting positions for Race 2 and 3 were determined by the next best qualifying lap times, putting Browne and Green P10 and P13 for the start of both races, respectively. Browne was able to climb as high as P7 during the 25-lap contest before going into the runoff at Turn 1, losing a couple of positions and finishing Race 2 in P9. Green carried the #3 car up to ninth following the first restart, and after some competitive racing, finished P11 for the second of three races.

After a rollercoaster of results in qualifying and the first two races, the Turn 3 Motorsport drivers were determined to get their best finishes in the third and final race of the weekend. A good start pushed Green and Browne up to tenth and eleventh after the first few laps. Green’s progress was deferred, however, when Browne mistakenly tapped him going into Turn 1 amidst a multicar bustle, spinning him around and forcing him to the back of the field. The event caused a drive through penalty to be issued to Browne, putting him at the back with his teammate.

A full course yellow with seven laps to go gave both drivers a last ditch effort for redemption, and with everyone on the attack on the restart, Green and Browne gave everything they had for an excellent finish of P7 and P9 in the final race.

#2 Jonathan Browne // Indy Pro 2000
Human Centred Movement / CRPS Awareness
“Overall, I have a lot of positives to take away from the weekend,” said Browne. “It was great to get my first pole in the series. Unfortunately, the races didn’t exactly go to plan, but the overall race pace was great, and I learned a lot from the weekend. Thank you to everyone at Turn 3 Motorsport for the weekend. They gave me a great car to drive!”