Rahal Letterman Lanigan RacingSonsio Group Grand Prix at Road America
NTT INDYCAR SERIES – Round 8 of 17
RACE NOTES / QUOTES – Sunday, June 12, 2022

RAHAL, LUNDGAARD AND HARVEY FINISHED EiGHTH, 10TH AND 13TH IN THE SONSIO GRAND PRIX AT ROAD AMERICA

GRAHAM RAHAL, No. 15 Fifth Third Bank Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “We were P8 (position eight) on the day here with really good strategy, good pitstops, and the Fifth Third Bank guys kept their heads down. We spent most of the day fuel saving but we were able to get some really good lap times considering and I think that’s what really made the difference in the race for us today. We don’t want to be P8 but we will take this. As I just said to the boys it’s great to get a decent result today, not only for me but Christian at 10^th and Jack just behind him. Overall, it was just positive momentum for us. We’ve got two test days before we race next. One in Iowa and one in Sebring, Florida. In the heat of the summer in Sebring, we will try to work on our dampers a little bit, try to find some more. We want to win, but this is refreshing to at least have a decent result.” 

• FAST FACTS: Rahal started 22^nd and utilized the third caution to pit early while later helped him run as high as second and gain valuable track position. He was running seventh in the final restart with three laps to go and lost a spot to McLaughlin and took the checkered flag in either place… The Sonsio Grand Prix at Road America was Graham Rahal’s ninth Champ or Indy car race here and 13th overall. In his eight previous Indy car races here, he has two third place finishes (2007, 2016), a fourth place (2019), sixth (2018) and eighth (2017). Last year he ran at the front in each session, with the exception of qualifying and the race. After starting 14^th, he cycled as high as fourth before his first stop but struggled with the handling of his race car at various times throughout the race and finished 11^th. A full list of results is 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 in 15th place in series point standings with a total of 159.

CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD, No. 30 Fleet Cost & Care Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “We got to lead a lap at Road America which is obviously nice. It was a long race with a lot of yellows. It’s a tough one honestly, I think we had more – I thought we had more than what we ended up having so I’m a little disappointed in that. You know it’s racing. Graham did a good job making the strategy work.  He was lucky with the yellow at the end of the race. But we got a solid top 10 with two two cars in the top-10 so that’s definitely very important for the team as well. The Fleet Cost and Care car looked amazing out there. I love the blue color. Even though red is my favorite color I love the blue, it’s fantastic.”

• FAST FACTS: He started 13th, conserved his fuel while maintaining a strong pace and cycled into the lead for his second of three stops on Lap 30 of 55. He went on to take the checkered flag in 10^th place. On Saturday, he was a mere 0.01 from progressing to Group 2 and ended up seventh in his qualifying round… This is Lundgaard’s first race here. He has competed in eight INDYCAR SERIES races with a best start of 4^th place (IMS road course 2021) and best finish of 9^th (IMS road course, 2022)… He moved up one spot to 16^th place in the point standings and is the highest ranked rookie with 140.

JACK HARVEY, 45 Hy-Vee Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “We started 20^th and finished 13th so we obviously made some progress during the race here at Road America. I think we went a good step with the car and direction. I think there’s maybe one or two small bits in strategy that I would tweak for next time, but it was a day of progress anyways so let’s carry that on to Mid-Ohio.”

• FAST FACTS: He started 20^th, utilized good pace while stretching his fuel and had quick stops to take the checkered flag in 13th for his fifth race here… In the previous three of Jack’s four races at Road America, he has started 3^rd (2021), 2^nd (2020 Race 1) and 9^th (2020 Race 2). A variety of factors, most out of his control, limited his best finish to 15^th (2019). His highest series finish is third place at the IMS road course in 2019. He moved up two spots in the standings to 20th with a total of 105 points. 

NEXT UP: The series will take its first weekend off since May 7-8 next weekend and will return to action for the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, July 1-3. The team will test at Iowa Speedway on Monday, June 20 and at Sebring International Raceway on Monday, June 27.