Racing driver Ed Jones, born and bred in Dubai, is currently taking America by storm, and now leads the Indy Lights championship as his career moves up a gear.
Jones, who made a name for himself racing in the UAE, moved to the top of the standings on 108 points after a superb weekend at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama, where he scored a victory and a second place.
Speaking to Sport360 after rounds four and five of the 18-round series, Jones, 21, said: “We’ve been working so hard and it had been so long since we’d last had a win.
“We’ve had the speed pretty much everywhere but, for whatever reason, the cards hadn’t fallen our way until Barber. It was fantastic to be back on top again and awesome for the team to come away with a one-two. The result was a real shot in the arm for us all.”
In truth the result came as no surprise, in fact it was expected of him as he had a meteoric first season in Indy Lights last year. Now he is maximising his experience, with the title his goal in what is the feeder series to Indycars – the premier single seater series in the USA and only second to Formula 1 on the global motorsport scene.
Things are looking up: Ed Jones.
Talking about the value of his Indy Lights rookie season last year, Jones said: “It was a massive learning year for myself and the team. We were both completely new to all the tracks in America.
“Every weekend we were starting on the backfoot relative to our competitors. Despite this we had some very impressive results and then progressed even more in the off season. Last year, I also made a number of mistakes by taking risks which weren’t necessarily needed,” conceded Jones. “I have tweaked my approach. Consistency is key this year with the field being so competitive.
“Our aim is of course to win every race on our good days, but more importantly to minimise our losses on the bad days. I feel that is what is going to win the championship.”
Jones is climbing the ladder to the top of the sport in the traditional manner, having started his racing in the UAE karting scene where he won seven national championships before campaigning in the European single seater scene.
He moved to the USA and Indy Lights for the 2015 season where he made his mark in his debut and was the outstanding rookie, often outclassing his team-mate Max Chilton who had F1 experience under his belt.
Now the goal is Indycar. Jones revealed: “I have had conversations with a number of Indycar teams as the objective is to secure a full-time drive next year. It’s still early in the season so a lot can happen. Things are changing all the time but I am confident an opportunity will arise soon.”
Now based in Florida to be close to his team, Jones said: “I always have times when I miss home in Dubai and being around the place where you have so many memories. The good thing is I live in Brickell, which is the financial district of Miami and very similar to Dubai!
“At the same time I am so focused on my racing and turning what once was a dream into a reality. This is my priority. Right now we are working as hard as ever to be prepared for the next two races at Indianapolis with the goal of scoring more podiums.”
The next races are at the Indianapolis Speedway, on the Grand Prix circuit layout, on May 12 to 14.
