Sebastian Saavedra gave Bryan Herta Autosport its second podium finish in a row in the Firestone Indy Lights series, finishing third at the Barber Motorsports Park road course in Alabama on Sunday.

Saavedra rebounded after a disappointing 12th-place finish in the Indy Lights season opener at St. Petersburg, Fla.

“For me it was a very important and very good race for the No. 29 crew,” Saavedra said. “I made a good start, moved up one place, and that was it really. I couldn’t quite catch Charlie Kimball in front of me but I’m very happy for the points.”

J.K. Vernay won the Indy Lights race, his second in a row. Charlie Kimball, a driver from Camarillo, finished second in the race in Alabama.

Stefan Wilson, Saavedra’s teammate at Bryan Herta Autosport, finished sixth in the race in Alabama. Wilson was third in the St. Petersburg race and is third in the Indy Lights standings after two races.

“The car was handling really well,” Wilson said. “The race was kind of dictated from where you started after qualifying. I made a clean start, kept my position, and from there on it was very processional because it was very hard to overtake. I felt sixth today was a good haul of points. We’re still third in the points leaving here so that’s pretty good.”

Herta, a Hart High graduate, said passing on the Barber Motorsports Park course was difficult, which made the finishes for his drivers all the more impressive.

“This is a really great track but passing is at a premium,” said Herta, who lives in Valencia. “There wasn’t a single pass for position among the top six after the start. Sebastian got past (Martin) Plowman right at the start and that was it. He didn’t quite have the pace to catch Charlie but he had the measure of everybody else so just kind of ran there. Even if he had been faster it wouldn’t have made any difference. He couldn’t pass unless someone made a mistake.”

Saavedra is in fifth place in the Indy Lights standings after two races and is looking forward to Sunday’s race at the Grand Prix of Long Beach.

“That was the important thing here, to keep our momentum going to Long Beach,” Saavedra said. “I’m very positive about the car right now. We were fast in St. Pete, we were fast here, so we’re going with a lot of confidence to Long Beach.”

Go to Haddock in the Paddock for more on races from Toyota Speedway at Irwindale and look for more coverage of the Grand Prix of Long Beach.