Justin Wilson described taking Dale Coyne Racing's first ever IndyCar win as the most significant success of his career.
Starting from the outside of the front row at Watkins Glen, Wilson passed polesitter Ryan Briscoe in the early going and, after Briscoe rebounded from an unluckily timed first pit stop, drove away from the Australian in the final stages of the race to earn the win.
The victory was the first for a non-Penske or Ganassi driver in 10 IndyCar Series races dating back to last September when none other than Wilson won at Detroit for Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing. More importantly, it marked the first win for Coyne and wife Gail since they began racing Indycars in the CART PPG (later Champ Car) World Series in 1984. 558 starts and 25 years later, victory finally arrived.
"That didn't take long..." Coyne quipped.
For Wilson the win had a number of historic dimensions
"It's fantastic to get Dale's first win and also Gail's," he said. "The two of them put a lot into this, their heart and soul. It means a lot to me. I think this is the most important victory of my career.
"I got here early, so we're down in Watkins Glen walking around, and you see all those names on the pavement [outside the Watkins Glen Motor Racing Research Library], the guys that have won here. That's pretty cool. It's fantastic to get your name on the board of winning at Watkins Glen up there with some of the best."