James Davison laps the Speedway on qualifying day for the Indy 500. [Mark Walczak Photo]
Indianapolis, Ind. – James Davison has had a lifetime goal of racing in the Indianapolis 500, and he achieved that goal a week ago when he qualified the KVRT/Always Evolving Racing Chevrolet in the 28th starting position with a speed of 228.865 miles per hour. The 27-year old Australia native joins fellow KVRT drivers Sebastien Bourdais, Sebastian Saavedra and Townsend Bell in the starting field.
Speed comes naturally to Davison as his family has had a deep involvement in racing. His grandparents, Lex and Diana Davison, along with his father Jon, an uncle and two cousins are or have been racers. The Australian Grand Prix trophy is named after Lex Davison. Lex won the Australian Grand Prix four times prior to it becoming a F1 event.
His entry was a late one and since he was the 33rd driver to obtain a ride, the car appropriately carries No. 33. “I personally chose No. 33 for the car, knowing how important it was for the event to have a full field,” he said. “I thought it was an appropriate salute, but I certainly don’t plan to finish 33rd.”
For Davison, the 500 will be his first Verizon IndyCar Series race on an oval, but he did gain experience with the cars in a pair of road races a year ago. Davison did race here in a pair of Indy Lights events five years ago. According to the Aussie, his biggest challenge has been adapting to the faster IndyCar. “The IndyCars cars are more on edge than a Lights car, and with the IndyCar, it is a one groove track where with Lights you have two or three grooves. Also, the Freedom 100 doesn’t have the marbles element that the 500 will have.”
Davison starts immediately behind teammate Bell, and he hopes the two can work together.
Said Bell to his colleague, “Approach it like it is an airplane, keeping in the level of safety and knowing where the car set-up is. If you have any issues, you land the plane or bring the car down pit lane.”
The Davison entry is a partial one due to budget constraints¸ so the team took to the track late, starting with the mandatory rookie orientation evaluation. “We are a very limited program, but we are with a champion team and the car was Panther Racing’s primary oval car from 2013,” Davison said. “We have a reliable car, and we will get as much out of it as possible.”
Always Evolving is the primary resource behind the Davison entry. While maybe not a household name, the company is a car-culture brand that encompasses professional motorsports, authentic lifestyle and automotive collection operations. The late Roger Rodas and Erik Davis founded the company and after the death of Rodas, co-owner Davis and his team set up “Racing in Honor” as their internal mission for the 2014 season. (Rodas died in a fiery accident with actor Paul Walker.)
In addition to co-owner Jimmy Vasser and the three drivers, others guiding the Aussie are Al Unser, Jr. and Buddy Rice, the latter will be a spotter.
Davison’s goal is to finish the race, possibly in top-half of the field, hoping a solid performance will lead to more races. “I intend to drive the race with a level head and not drive into the darkness, be there for the final third and try to get a good finish,” said Davison with conviction.
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