Lundgaard, Rahal and Harvey Make the Most of a Busy Practice 1 for the Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix

Rahal Letterman Lanigan RacingChildren’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix
Round 4 of 17 in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES
PRACTICE NOTES/QUOTES – Friday, April 28, 2023

LUNDGAARD, RAHAL AND HARVEY MAKE THE MOST OF A BUSY PRACTICE 1 FOR THE CHILDREN’S OF ALABAMA INDY GRAND PRIX

1)         Scott McLaughlin        1:06.6610 / 124.211 mph      
6)         Christian Lundgaard   1:07.0200 / 123.545 mph
12)       Graham Rahal              1:07.3181 / 122.998 mph         
20)       Jack Harvey                 1:07.7399 / 122.232 mph      

GRAHAM RAHAL, No. 15 One Cure Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “It was a really messy session for us. On the black tires, we didn’t get a new-tire run. Every lap was in traffic. I wasn’t even within two seconds of pushing so that was frustrating. And actually, the alternate tire run was the same. I didn’t do my lap until lap four or five which was way, way too late. Traffic was a battle for everybody. We made some improvements on the One Cure car but we need to hone it in a little more. It’s a little uncomfortable still.” 

  • FAST FACTS: Rahal will compete in his 13th race here… His best start here is second place in 2019 to bring the team a 1-2 start… He played a major factor in the most exciting races of the 2015 and 2016 seasons as he challenged for the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama win but earned his best finish here of second place both times… 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.

JACK HARVEY, No. 30 AMADA Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “It was a little bit of a scruffy session, honestly. I had a little bit of a spin on the first run and there was a red flag that came out so I didn’t get to finish that. We went back out and I think it looked okay, I just had a couple of flat spots and vibrations. I went out on reds and didn’t even get a chance to do a proper lap. Everyone was backing off and I was trying to get a gap. It was scruffy but we’ll be okay.”

  • FAST FACTS: It will be Harvey’s fourth INDYCAR race at the track and eighth overall.  He competed in Indy car races here in 2019 and 2021 with a best start and finish of 11th in 2021. He also competed in two doubleheader Indy Lights events here in 2014 and 2015 where he started second twice and earned three podiums in four races with his top finish being second place in Race 1 and 2 in 2015.

CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD, No. 45 Hy-Vee Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “Practice 1 was good. We were more competitive, which is a big positive. It was a good start to the weekend and starting off strong means everything. I went out and it felt great.”  Obviously having had the test here helped. We were competitive then too so it means a lot now but we’ve got to keep that going into qualifying tomorrow. We always want to roll off the truck competitive because it sets your weekend up right from the start. We struggled a lot in Practice 1 in St. Pete and I never felt like we really recovered from that so this is a great start of the weekend for us and we’ll see what it leads to.”

  • FAST FACTS: Christian returns to the site of his first experience in an Indy car (July 26, 2021).  Last year, he started 14th here and ran as high as ninth before his first stop, which was delayed by David Malukas entering the pit ahead of him as he needed to depart which dropped him many positions and he ultimately finished 15th.  

RLL AT BARBER: In 2019, the team qualified 1-2 for the race here, which was the first time the team locked out the front row of an Indy car race since the September 11, 2005 race at Chicagoland when Danica Patrick won pole and Buddy Rice started second. Sato led 74 of 90 laps en route to victory. The 2023 Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix will mark the 11th INDYCAR SERIES race for the team at Barber Motorsports Park (BMP).

NEXT UP:  Practice 2 will take place from 12-1 PM and qualifying from 3:00-4:15. All times eastern.  The Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix will be televised on NBC from 1:00-3:00 PM ET Sunday, April 30.