The 2010 Indy Racing League Firestone Indy Lights season was the 25th Indy Lights season. It was contested over thirteen races beginning on March 28 on the streets of St. Petersburg, Florida, and ended on October 2 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Jean-Karl Vernay became the first European to win the championship title since Alex Lloyd in 2007, after taking five victories and ten top-five placings at the wheel of his Sam Schmidt Motorsports car. His championship title, guaranteed by just starting the final race at Homestead, also garnered him with the Rookie of the Year award, having moved into the series from Europe and the Formula 3 Euro Series. Another driver with ten top-fives, James Hinchcliffe finished second in the title race for Team Moore Racing, a race winner at Long Beach, Edmonton and Chicagoland Speedway. Third place was fought between AFS Racing/Andretti Autosport team-mates Martin Plowman and Charlie Kimball, with Plowman coming out on top by six points; Plowman won a race at Mid-Ohio, while Kimball finished four races in second place including three in succession early in the season. Other drivers to take wins were Wade Cunningham – winning the Firestone Freedom 100 for the third time – and Sebastián Saavedra at Iowa Speedway, while two drivers visited victory lane for the first time; Pippa Mann at Kentucky Speedway and Brandon Wagner at Homestead in their second seasons in the formula. Team and driver chart All drivers competed in Firestone Firehawk–shod, Dallara chassis. Schedule Open Testing Firestone Indy Lights Barber Open Test Friday February 26, 2010 Barber Motorsports Park, Birmingham, AL Testing weather: , Sunny Testing Summary: Indianapolis Open Test – Indy Lights Friday May 14, 2010 Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Speedway, IN Testing weather: Testing Summary: Race results Race summaries Round 1: Streets of St. Petersburg Sunday March 28, 2010 – 12:58 p.m. EDT Streets of St. Petersburg – St. Petersburg, Florida; Temporary street circuit, Distance: 45 laps / ; reduced to 35 laps / due to rain. Race weather: , overcast at start with rain falling later. Pole position winner: #2 James Hinchcliffe, 1:06.3496 sec, Most laps led: #7 Jean-Karl Vernay, 31 Race report: On turn one of the first lap, Philip Major divebombed the field, making contact with polesitter James Hinchcliffe, taking both out of the race. Later that lap, Adrián Campos Jr. who had made contact with Pippa Mann during the start nosed into the wall