The Second Day of Practice Led to More Gains in Preparation for the Indy 500; Fast Friday is Up Next

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing106th Running of the Indianapolis 500
NTT INDYCAR SERIES
PRACTICE NOTES/QUOTES – May 19, 2022

THE SECOND DAY OF PRACTICE LED TO MORE GAINS IN PREPARATION FOR THE INDY 500; FAST FRIDAY IS UP NEXT

1)         Takuma Sato               227.519 mph   
13)       Christian Lundgaard    225.248 mph               
14)       Jack Harvey                 225.077 mph
27)       Graham Rahal              223.803 mph

GRAHAM RAHAL, No. 15 United Rentals Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “My race car is phenominal bt my qual car needs a little more work. It looks like we are struggling for speed, I think, in qual trim. But we are going to try tonight to figure some stuff out, but in race trim at the end of the day there we felt really good. Yes, I could use a little reduction of understeer like everybody. But finally when I got to the front I could lead, and when I was second I could go smoking on by the leader. I think if you’re fourth, fifth, sixth, 20th in line your life is going to be tough no matter what, but you need to be able to pass when the opportunity is there and we were able to do that on the last run. Running on used tires when I think a lot of guys are running stickers here at the end of the day. All in all pretty pleased, keep putting our heads down and have a good Fast Friday tomorrow, hopefully a good weekend ahead.”

  • FAST FACTS: Will be his 15th Indy 500. His best qualifying position in the Indy 500 is fourth in 2009 with Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing and best finish is third with Service Central Chip Ganassi Racing in 2011 and RLL in 2020. Detailed Indy 500 information available upon request… Has SIX IndyCar Series wins (2008 – St. Pete street course; 2015 – Fontana Super Speedway, Mid-Ohio road course; 2016 – Texas Super Speedway; 2017 Detroit Race 1, Detroit Race 2) and THREE poles (2009 – St. Pete street course, Kansas oval; 2017 – Detroit Race 1 street) and his highest series season-ending standing is fourth place in 2015… He is currently 12th in series standings with 98 points.

CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD, No. 30 PeopleReady Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “Tomorrow is Fast Friday, we are going to have a windy day tomorrow so it’s good to get the job done today. We improved up the ranks which is good, we seem to sort of be in the midfield both with a tow and without a tow. We have some work to do but we’re definitely going the right direction which is positive. Honestly it was a good day, we had some traffic running in the afternoon at the end of the day. We did some hot stops and are feeling good; the guys are on it. Let’s be on it on race day.”

  • FAST FACTS: This will be Lundgaard’s first Indy 500 and second oval race. He started 24th and ran in the top-10 in his oval racing debut at Texas Motor Speedway in the late stage of the race but ultimately retired I 19th after contact with Herta. He has competed in six INDYCAR SERIES races with a best start of 4th place (IMS road course 2021) and best finish of 9th (IMS road course, 2022)… He is the highest ranked rookie in 17th place in the point standings with 79.

JACK HARVEY, 45 Hy-Vee Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “I think that was an okay day for the #45 Hy-Vee Honda. I think there’s work to do on the qualifying car, and a little bit of work on the race car. A little bit of work across the board, but I think we are making positive steps every day so that’s good. We just need to make sure we keep making those positive steps the remainder of this month.”

  • FAST FACTS: The race will mark the sixth time for Harvey to compete in the Indy 500. His best start in the Indy 500 is 20th, two times (2020-2021) and best finish is ninth (2020). His highest overall series start is second place and he has accomplished the feat three times, including here (2020 – IMS road course, Road America Race 2; 2021 – St. Pete). The IMS road course is also the site of his highest series finish of third place in 2019. He is ranked 21st with 61 points.  

NEXT UP: Fast Friday will take place tomorrow with practice from 12-6 p.m. ET. Get a behind-the-scenes look at preparations for the 106th Indianapolis 500 via the Digital Ally Garage Camera on www.rahal.com.