MOTEGI, TOCHIGI, JAPAN – SEPTEMBER 18, 2011 – In the final IndyCar event in Japan, Kanaan, No. 82 GEICO – KV Racing Technology – Lotus, the team went with an alternative fuel strategy, however at exactly the wrong moment a caution flag came out negating the strategy.  Kanaan continued to battle throughout the contest and during the closing laps several drivers made crucial mistakes moving Kanaan into 17th place. This was Kanaan’s 14th start at Motegi.  In 13 oval events here (five in the CART Series and eight in the IndyCar Series) he finished in the top-10 nine times with five top-five showings, four podiums and a win in 2007.

“It was a very tough race and our strategy didn’t play the way we expected,” Kanaan said.  “Starting from the back you got to take some chances in order to move forward but this time it just didn’t work out as expected, but I’m glad that we still maintained our 5th spot in the championship. I’m sad that this was our last race in Japan, I’ll really miss this place.”