Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing is an auto racing team that currently races in the American Le Mans Series and part–time in the IndyCar Series. Based in Hilliard, Ohio, it is co–owned by 1986 Indianapolis 500 winner Bobby Rahal, television talk show host David Letterman, and businessman Mike Lanigan.
The team was established in 1991 as Rahal-Hogan Racing, became Team Rahal in 1994, and was known as Rahal Letterman Racing from May 2004 until December 2010.
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Following the 1991 CART season, Bobby Rahal left the Galles-Kraco Racing team. Despite consistent top finishes, Rahal actually won only two races from 1989-1991. Likewise, Danny Sullivan left the Patrick Racing team, following a dismal season with the Alfa Romeo engine. The two drivers essentially swapped rides. Sullivan joined Galles, and Rahal joined Patrick. By the winter of 1991, however, Patrick Racing started to collapse due to financial and legal issues regarding the Alfa Romeo engine. Rumors had surfaced that Patrick had based parts of the Alfa-Romeo engine on the Chevrolet Indycar engine.
Around December 1991, Rahal and new partner Carl Hogan acquired the assets of Patrick Racing. A new team was formed, known as Rahal-Hogan Racing. In 1992, the team won the IndyCar World Series title on their first try, with owner-driver Bobby Rahal driving the "tried-and-true" Lola-Chevrolet IndyCar.
In late 1992, Rahal-Hogan absorbed the Truesports racing team, which Rahal had been a part of from 1982-1988. The team moved its headquarters from Indianapolis to Hilliard, into the old Truesports facility. Along with the acquisition, they attempted to take over the two-year old Truesports all-American chassis program. Rahal began the season with an updated version of the Truesports chassis, with the intention of introducing a brand-new Rahal-Hogan (R/H) chassis later in the year. A second place finish at Long Beach offered some promise. The success was short-lived however, as the chassis proved uncompetitive on superspeedways. AfterRahal failed to qualify at Indianapolis, the team switched to a more conventional Lola, while team driver Mike Groff attempted to salvage a season out of the R/H. Eventually the team abandoned the chassis project.
In 1994, Rahal–Hogan introduced the Honda HRX Indy V-8 engine to the IndyCar World Series, but split with the manufacturer after Rahal finished a disappointing tenth place in the standings. At Indianapolis, the engine proved uncompetitive, and Rahal risked missing the race for the second year in a row. He borrowed two Penske-Ilmor machines, and finished third in the race. In 1996, Carl Hogan left the team, and started his own racing operation. As a result, the team changed its name to Team Rahal and Hogan started Hogan Racing.
In early 1996,[1] Rahal's longtime friend, and avid race fan, comedian David Letterman, purchased a small share of the team.
Over the next few years, the team would employ Bryan Herta, Max Papis, Kenny Bräck and Michel Jourdain, Jr., getting closest to another title in 2001, when Bräck finished 2nd in points. Rahal himself retired from driving at the end of 1998.
The team changed its name again to Rahal Letterman Racing in May 2004. For the 2005 season, RLR's three drivers were Buddy Rice, who won the 2004 Indianapolis 500 while driving for the team, Vitor Meira, who finished second in the 2005 & 2008 Indianapolis 500s, and Danica Patrick, who finished fourth in the 2005 Indianapolis 500, and had the highest finish of any female driver (3 previous) in the history of the Indianapolis 500. Also in the 2005 Indianapolis 500, former team member Kenny Bräck, who was replaced by Rice when he suffered a serious injury in 2003, replaced Rice when he was injured in pre-race practice. Rice was able to recover in time to race in the next IndyCar race.
The Rahal Letterman team had high hopes for 2006. Meira had left the team after the 2005 season to join Panther Racing. He was replaced by Paul Dana who brought an Ethanol sponsorship.[2] The team placed three cars in the top eight for the Toyota Indy 300 during March 25, 2006, qualifying (Patrick third, Rice sixth, Dana ninth), and expected good things to come the next day for the race at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Unfortunately, tragedy took place during final practice Sunday morning. Vision Racing's Ed Carpenter crashed in turn two and the car slid down the 20-degree banking. Dana, who seemed to not receive the signal from the spotter, ran into the gearbox section of Carpenter's car, sending Dana's car flying on the backstretch. Dana died in the hospital later that afternoon, and the entire team, including Patrick and Rice, withdrew immediately.
Patrick and Rice raced together at St. Petersburg with the third car vacant out of respect, but effective the Bridgestone Indy Japan 300 at Motegi, Japan, Jeff Simmons was added as the team's third driver. In mid-2006 the team switched from Panoz to Dallara chassis. Rice finished 15th in points, Patrick finished 9th, and Simmons finished 16th.
Prior to the 2006 Monterey Sports Car Championships, Rahal Letterman Racing announced that the team would be fielding a Porsche 997 GT3-RSR in the American Le Mans Series in 2007.
For the 2007 IndyCar Series, RLR fielded two cars, one for Simmons and one for IndyCar veteran Scott Sharp. They were unable to find sponsorship to field a third car for 2004 Indianapolis 500 champion Buddy Rice, who moved to Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. However, after 11 races, released Simmons and picked up former Champ Car driver Ryan Hunter-Reay,[3] who earned a 7th place finish at the Honda 200. Consistent finishes gave Ryan and the team the Rookie of the Year award despite making only six starts.
In the 2008 IndyCar Series season, RLR fielded just one car driven by Ryan Hunter-Reay. The team scored a win at the IndyCar Series event at Watkins Glen International and Hunter-Reay finished 8th in points. However at the end of the season the team's ethanol promotion council sponsorship left and it was unable to find full-time sponsorship for 2009.[4]
RLR did not participate in the 2009 season due to a lack of sponsorship.[5] With the sponsorship of DAFCA they participated in the 2009 Indianapolis 500, where driver Oriol Servià, after starting on the ninth row, advanced to tenth place but completed only 98 laps before being forced to quit due to mechanical problems.[6]
In 2010, the team again failed to secure sponsorship for the full season. At the 2010 Indianapolis 500, the team arranged a one–race sponsorship entry for Graham Rahal.[7] Rahal ran in the top ten until a blocking penalty shuffled him back in the standings, and he finished 12th.
In December 2010, Mike Lanigan, former co-owner of Newman-Haas-Lanigan Racing with Carl Haas and actor Paul Newman, became co-owner of what was renamed Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.[8]
Jay Howard has signed to drive the #88 car with Service Central sponsorship for the 2011 Indy 500. Bertrand Baguette will also compete for the team at the 500.
Rahal Letterman fielded a Porsche 911 GT3 in the 2007 American Le Mans Series season. In 2009 they will field the BMW's works-backed M3 E92. They will continue to compete in the GT2 class.[9]
On October 2, 2010, BMW Rahal Letterman Racing won the American Le Mans Series GT Manufacturer and Team Championships at the 13th annual Petit Le Mans. [10]
CART/Champ Car drivers
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IndyCar drivers
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