Lyons secures Formula Nippon title
Sunday, 7 November 2004 13:38Ulsterman Richard Lyons secured the Formula Nippon title for 2004 in fine style with a controlled drive to third place in the ninth and final round of the series at Suzuka today.
After topping the timesheets in Friday practice and yesterday's qualifying, Lyons led confidently from pole position for the first 19 of 46 laps.
A slow wheel change at his pit stop and a slight baulking by another competitor at his get-away meant he dropped to second.
With title rival Andre Lotterer out of the points, Lyons knew that a top three finishing position was enough for him to carry off the prestigious title.
"I'm absolutely delighted," said Lyons when he stepped from the podium. "It's a tremendously satisfying feeling to have brought DoCoMo Dandelion their first title. It's been a lot of hard work this year and I'd just like to thank everyone at the team for all their efforts."
He added: "I made a good start and led through the first corner. The race went to plan up to the pit stop which didn't work out. After that it was a case of trying to look after my tyres and staying out of trouble. I was right on Ide's tail at the finish in case there was any late place swapping but all in all it worked out perfectly."
"Formula Nippon has got to be the best preparation for Formula One that there is and I'm very proud to be following in the footsteps of the likes of Ralf Schumacher in winning this title," he continued.
