Dempsey snatches stripes off stars

Ashbourne driver Peter Dempsey showed some real Royal County mettle when he pounced late to win at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Friday. 

The recent Firestone Freedom 100 winner achieved the victory in a four-car-wide sprint to the line getting the better of his competitors by a mere .0026 seconds. 

It was the first victory for Dempsey who also became the first Irishman to win the event. 

The finish (click on link below to see video) was the closest ever in the history of the iconic oval and is being touted as one of the most incredible finishes in the history of the series and the speedway.

“I can’t believe we pulled it off and won the Firestone Freedom 100,' commented the Meath driver who was a nominee in the Meath Chronicle / Cusack Hotel Group outstanding achievement award category in 2009.

That award was collected by his mother on his behalf as he was racing in the USA at the time. See photo of Michelle Dempsey (Peter's mother) accepting the award from  Micheal O Muircheartaigh with Mary McGuigan (Meath Chronicle) and Jonathan Cusack (Cusack Hotel Group) in January 2010 at Knightsbrook Hotel.

Continuing his comments about his dramatic victory, Peter Dempsey added:

'I have to give a huge thank you to my team and to Brian Belardi.  I know how much effort everyone put in to win this race, and I’m glad I was the man to get the job done.'

'This win is as much for Belardi Auto Racing as it is for me.  That finish was incredible.  I wasn’t sure if I had a shot at winning coming off of turn four, but when [Munoz, Karam, and Chaves] went three-wide, my car just snuck up right along beside them. 

'They left me just enough room to squeeze past, and it was an amazing finish.  I can’t believe it.  I have to thank all my sponsors, Liberty Engineering, OMP, Bell Helmets, Slick Locks, BT Indy, and G&G Inc. 

'To be able to win the Firestone Freedom 100 as my first Firestone Indy Lights race is unbelievable.  I couldn’t think of a better place to do it than at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. 

'This is a really special moment for me in my career, and I couldn’t think of a better team to get this win with than Belardi Auto Racing.  I’m excited to move on to the next race now to try to continue our great form,” he concluded.
 
To follow Peter’s progress www.peterdempsey.com and www.indycar.com. 

Conall Collier