Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
Children’s of Alabama Indy Grand Prix
Round 4 of 17 in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES
RACE NOTES/QUOTES – Sunday, May 4, 2025
RAHAL FINISHED 14TH IN THE CHILDREN’S OF ALABAMA INDY GRAND PRIX; DEFRANCESCO WAS 24TH AND FOSTER 26TH AFTER BRIEFLY RUNNING OFF COURSE
GRAHAM RAHAL, No. 15 Hendrickson Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “It was a straightforward race. We raced a lot of good guys in our group. Our group had good pace so overall it was a straightforward race and the boys did a good job in the pits. We need to qualify better because it forced our hand on strategy and getting into a fuel save race.”
- FAST FACTS: Rahal started 21st for his 15th race here and finished 14th. His best finish is second, two times (2015-2016) in his previous 14 races here. In 2024, he started seventh on a two-stop strategy, ran in the top five hoping the timing of the caution periods would play into the team’s favor but they did not, and he ultimately finished 11th. 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 five poles (2009 – St. Pete street course, Kansas oval; 2017 – Detroit Race 1 street; 2023 Indy road course, Portland road course) and his highest series season-ending standing is fourth place in 2015… He moved up one position in the point standings to 16th with 61.
DEVLIN DEFRANCESCO, No. 30 EVTEC Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “The problem is that we were just stuck; we were trapped. And all that stems from our bad Saturday (qualifying). This one really hurts. I feel like we had a car to get through the top-12 at least; if not challenge for the fast six. That just made Sunday so hard. You’re stuck driving under people and boxed in. In hindsight, maybe it would have been better to start on primary tires but we’ll analyze that to learn. Now we move forward to a track we know we’re going to be strong at next week. We’re looking forward to that now.”
- FAST FACTS: He started 27th in his third INDYCAR race here and finished 24th. His top start is 18th in 2023 and his top finish is 17th in 2022. He also competed in two INDY NXT races here in 2021 and finished third two times. He is ranked 26th in series point standings with 30.
LOUIS FOSTER, No. 45 Mi-Jack Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “We had a very positive start to the race, I got a few positions. We were eleventh for a while and then stayed long on the stint, had a good start to the race. And then on the black tires we had some issues. We had zero grip, nothing at all. We really struggled to find any performance in them and from there on, it went downhill. And then I had a small off (the track) as well on those blacks. It was just not our day. There are things to improve on as a team and a driver; it’s what rookie seasons are for I guess but, I’m disappointed with the result. We should have done better today but we’ll come fighting back at IMS next week.”
- FAST FACTS: He qualified 12th for his first INDYCAR race here. He briefly went off course on Lap 55/90 and ultimately finished 26th… He competed at Barber in two INDY NXT races with a best finish of fifth place. In 2023, he qualified third but retired in 14th place after contact after completing 25 of 35 laps. His top finish of fifth came in 2024 after starting last in the field in 21st due to electrical issues. His top INDYCAR start of the season is 10th place at Thermal and his top finish of 16th at Long Beach, which is also the highest start/finish for a rookie this year. He is currently ranked 25th in series point standings with 30 points.
NEXT UP: The Sonsio Grand Prix of Indianapolis will take place next Friday-Saturday May 9-10, at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.