RLL to Enter to No. 45 Hy-Vee Honda in the Detroit Doubleheader INDYCAR SERIES Races for Santino Ferrucci

BROWNSBURG, Ind. (June 7, 2021) – Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLL) announced today that team partner, Hy-Vee, Inc. – an employee-owned supermarket chain that operates more than 280 retail stores across eight Midwestern states – will expand its program to include primary sponsorship of a third entry for the team in the Chevrolet Dual in Detroit doubleheader races on June 12-13 for Santino Ferrucci.
 
Hy-Vee sponsored RLL entries in the past two Indianapolis 500 races, with Ferrucci piloting the No. 45 Hy-Vee Honda on May 30 to his third straight top-seven finish in the event with a sixth-place result. In April, the team announced that Hy-Vee would be the primary sponsor of Graham Rahal’s NTT INDYCAR SERIES entry at Road America (June 20) and World Wide Technology Raceway (August 21) as well as the primary sponsor of Ferrucci’s entry for the 105th running of the Indianapolis 500 and be a full-season associate sponsor on Rahal’s car.
 
“I’m excited to compete in the two races in Detroit after a fantastic run at the Indy 500,” said Santino Ferrucci, who has competed in four races on Belle Isle in Detroit in 2018-2019 with a best finish of tenth place in Race 2 in 2019. “To carry the momentum into Detroit is massive for the team. Hy-Vee is partnering with Frito-Lay so we will have Chester Cheetah and the Cheetos brand on the car, which I think is pretty awesome. It’s a fantastic track, and I’m excited to be returning to Detroit since we didn’t get a chance to race there in 2020.
 
“The excitement and energy that the Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing team brings forth to our partnership is like none other,” said Randy Edeker, Chairman, CEO and President of Hy-Vee. “The team truly cares about its fans just like we care about our customers at Hy-Vee. Since signing on as a sponsor last year, we’ve heard from people all over the country about our involvement in racing and look forward to what the rest of the season has to offer.”
 
Hy-Vee first joined the team as the primary sponsor of Graham Rahal’s entry for Race 2 at the Iowa Speedway in 2020 where he finished third. The company was also the primary sponsor of the team’s entry for Spencer Pigot at the Indy 500 and an associate sponsor of Rahal’s entry for the legendary race.
 
After two full INDYCAR SERIES seasons in 2019-2020 and a partial one in 2018, Ferrucci joined RLL for the Indy 500, where he finished sixth. To date, his best Indy car start is second place at Mid-Ohio (Race 2) in 2020 – he has finished in fourth place four times. In 2021, Ferrucci competes part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving for Sam Hunt Racing.
 
The 2021 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season continues with the Chevrolet Dual in Detroit doubleheader which will be broadcast live on NBC on June 12 at 2 p.m. EDT and on June 13 at 12 p.m. EDT.  All future on-track action can be seen on NBC, NBCSN or NBC’s Peacock Premium streaming service. For more information about the series or team, visit www.indycar.com and www.rahal.com.
 
About Hy-Vee, Inc.
Hy-Vee, Inc. is an employee-owned corporation operating more than 280 retail stores across eight Midwestern states with sales of $11 billion annually. The supermarket chain is synonymous with quality, variety, convenience, healthy lifestyles, culinary expertise and superior customer service. Hy-Vee ranks in the Top 10 Most Trusted Brands and has been named one of America’s Top 5 favorite grocery stores. The company’s more than 85,000 employees provide “A Helpful Smile in Every Aisle” to customers every day. For additional information, visit www.hy-vee.com.
 
About Santino Ferrucci
Ferrucci began his karting career at age five and was a multi-time champion by age 11 and was featured in an article in GQ magazine on being a karting prodigy. He also competed in six Formula 2000 races, never finishing worse than fourth in any race. In 2013 he competed in the Skip Barber Racing Series, winning his debut race at Homestead and collecting five wins, two poles and three fastest laps. His career took him to England in 2014 where he competed in British Formula 3, winning two races – both at Brands Hatch, which made him the youngest winner in British Formula 3 history at 16 years, 2 months and 30 days. In 2015, he finished third in the Toyota Racing Series New Zealand with a win and five podium finishes and also competed in the FIA Formula 3 European Championship. In 2016, he competed in the GP3 Series as a rookie with DAMS with a best finish of third place at Spa-Francorchamps and joined Haas F1 as a test driver for a July test at Silverstone and became the first American driver to test an American F1 car since 1977. He also made his sports car debut that year, winning his first race in the Lamborghini Blancpain Super Trofeo North America event at Circuit of The Americas. In 2017, he continued his role as a development driver with Haas F1, testing at Hungaroring in August. He also made six GP3 starts with DAMS before moving to FIA Formula 2 with Trident. In 2018, he competed in FIA Formula 2 with Team Trident, scoring a best finish of sixth at Baku and served as a Haas F1 development driver for a third consecutive season. He also made his debut in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES for Dale Coyne Racing in 2018 with a best finish of 11th at the season-finale at Sonoma and competed in a total of four events (Detroit doubleheader, Portland). In 2019, he competed in the full INDYCAR SERIES season and finished 13th in series standings for Dale Coyne Racing with a best finish of fourth at Texas, Pocono and World Wide Technology Raceway. He was named Indianapolis 500 Rookie of the Year after an impressive performance en route to a seventh-place finish. Ferrucci returned for his second full season in the series in 2020 with Dale Coyne Racing with Vasser-Sullivan with a best finish of fourth place in the Indy 500 and 13th place, season-ending rank. Always open to new challenges, Ferrucci currently competes part-time in the NASCAR Xfinity Series, driving for Sam Hunt Racing.