Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach - Streets of Long Beach
IZOD IndyCar Series
RACE NOTES/QUOTES - Sunday, April 21, 2013
RAHAL EARNED HIS FIRST PODIUM WITH HIS FATHER'S TEAM WITH SECOND PLACE IN THE TOYOTA GRAND PRIX OF LONG BEACH
GRAHAM RAHAL, No. 15 Midas / Big O Tires Dallara/Honda/Firestone: "We performed the way we ought to each and every weekend here in Long Beach. We came out here and the Midas / Big O Tires car was right there all the time. Qualifying was a little disappointing but we were in the top-five almost every session and I felt, going into the race that's exactly what we could do here. To be honest it just feels phenomenal to get this result. God, I was so close to winning yet again. On the last restart, I think that if (Charlie) Kimball wasn't in the way we would have had a great run at it. Man it feels so good to be on the podium here. There is so much history in Long Beach. The only problem is that I think this is the fifth time a Rahal has finished second here so we're going to have to break the curse eventually. I can't thank these guys enough; they have done a great job."
FAST FACTS: With his second place finish and 12th Indy car podium, he jumped to seventh in series points with 66… Was his seventh Champ/Indy car race here, eighth overall, and first for his father's team. His previous best start/finish here came in 2007 when he started fifth but the pit strategy of others and slow fuel flow related to teething problems for the all-new Panoz Champ Car on two stops limited his finish to eighth place. In the 2006 Champ Car Atlantic Series race here he started seventh and finished fifth. He was in podium contention several times but various challenges took him out of that possibility… This is Rahal's first full season at RLL, sixth in the IZOD IndyCar Series and seventh in a top open wheel racing series (CCWS 2007)... The Ohio native recorded 92 starts between the Champ Car World Series and IZOD IndyCar Series (2007-2012) capturing one win, two poles, 19 top-five and 44-top 10 finishes. He led a total of 28 laps in 2012 - 27 at Texas Motor Speedway where he nearly claimed his second series victory but brushed the wall and finished second -- had an average start of 12.4 and average finish of 11.2, earned three podium finishes and completed 87.2 percent of the laps run (1,841 of 2,111).
RAHAL LETTERMAN LANIGAN RACING AT LONG BEACH… 2013 marks the 22nd consecutive season of competition for the team and 14th Indy car race in Long Beach… In total, the team won three poles (Bryan Herta 1998, Jimmy Vasser 2002, Michel Jourdain, Jr. 2003); made five front row starts including an all-Team Rahal front row in 1998 (2nd - Rahal 1998, Kenny Brack 2001); earned their best finish of second place FOUR times (Rahal 1992-1993, Vasser 2002, G. Rahal 2013) and earned six podiums(2nd - Rahal 1992-1993, Vasser 2002, G. Rahal 2013; 3rd - Herta 1998-1999).
