Hinchcliffe Wins ‘Canadian Racer of the Year’ Award
The 2010 edition of their ‘Readers’ Choice Awards’ once again highlighted the best of Canadian talent, across all disciplines, but it was 24-year-old open-wheel stand-out, Hinchcliffe, who triumphed in the overall category to be crowned ‘Canadian Racer of the Year’ following a stellar season in the Firestone Indy Lights Series.
Many of the award winners were in Toronto on Saturday night to collected their awards at the annual Canadian Motorsports Expo but unfortunately James wasn’t able to be present having just completed his second two-day IndyCar test session with Newman/Haas Racing.
Speaking on the news of his award ‘Hinch’ commented;
“It’s obviously a huge honor and if I’m being honest also a little bit of a shock as you don’t tend to think of yourself in that light! At the same time, knowing that Canada’s got some of the best, most passionate open-wheel racing fans, to be recognized by them is quite the honor. A huge thanks goes out to Inside Track for holding these awards every year and of course to all the readers and fans that took the time to vote, it means a lot!"
James recorded a total of 130 laps in Newman/Haas Racing’s IndyCar at the 1.56-mile Sebring International Raceway on Thursday and Friday, 20th and 21st January. While bad weather hampered the Canadian’s track time on the final day, James continued to impress with his speed and approach as he sets his sights on graduating to the 2011 IZOD IndyCar Series.
“We had another solid couple of days down in Florida," stated Hinchcliffe. “Part of it was furthering my development and getting me as up to speed and prepared for the start of the IndyCar season with the intention of being there. We continued to work on developing the car and the team wanted to try and few more things out.
“I think it says a lot about the team’s belief in me that they entrusted me behind the wheel to test them. Overall it was very successful and I’ve left with even more knowledge of an IndyCar. I think the team was happy and that’s ultimately my goal as I’d certainly like them to keep me in the car!"