Racing is a momentum-based sport. You can spend years trying to get it. That’s why once you do have it, not only is it hard to stop, but it’s also crucial to keep it too.

For Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, they’re hopeful that their newly found momentum helps boost them again this weekend in Iowa.

Before we get to now, you have to rewind just a couple of months ago.

Christian Lundgaard won the pole for May’s GMR Grand Prix. Then the bottom dropped out for the Indy 500 and even on the streets of Detroit. That caused team owner Bobby Rahal to have had enough. It was time for changes. The team was winning in 2019 and even in 2020 but over the last 2 1/2 years have slipped to a low point.

He couldn’t take it anymore.

“You know, we came out of Indy really very, very disappointed and really kind of — it would have been hard — you would have been hard-pressed to believe we actually won the race two years earlier, and now we’re on the back row, and one guy didn’t make it in the race. At least in our car,” Rahal admitted.

“That kind of shook us to our core I think, but I have to say I think, frankly, the race that maybe had a bigger negative affect was Detroit because we were just — we were not good at all.

“After Indy, the month of May took — I’m 70 years old, and the month of May took a real toll on me.

“I wasn’t sleeping well at night. We’re here to win. We’re not here to fricking play around or to be part of it. We’re here to win.

“I’m telling you, it was bad. So much so that I thought my physical health had been — you know, a year ago in June I had open heart surgery. This May, I mean, it knocked me back a few steps because I’m not here just to show up. I’m here to win.

“All the effort this young man and Graham and Jack and our team, everybody is working their butt off, and it haunted me. It pained me.

“That’s why I just said right after Indy, I said, we’re going to create and instill and initiate the Indy recovery plan, which we’re in the process of doing, which is all about looking into why we performed so poorly and fixing those issues so that next May we’re fighting for the pole, and that’s our goal.

“I’ve got great people to help me do that: Steve Eriksen, Stefano Sordo, Ricardo Nault.

“Anyway, May was hell for me. That’s why we made the decisions that we made, and they weren’t easy. I think we’re getting the results of those, but I don’t take any confidence that we’re there yet.

“That’s when we decided to make the changes that we made internally.”

Those changes have sparked a nice revival.

“I think we’re finally starting to make changes with the car, as I just said, that they’re responding the right way, the way you’d expect them to, and it’s nice. It’s nice to feel that,” Graham Rahal said earlier this month in Mid-Ohio.

In Road America, they qualified 7-13-24 and finished 7-11-26. They had a week off to regroup before heading to their home race in Mid-Ohio.

Graham Rahal qualified on the front row. Lundgaard started fifth. Harvey was in 11th. Lundgaard led the way with a fourth-place run and even with two bad pit stops, Rahal still came away with a seventh-place result.

Rahal said that it was nice to see the looks on everyone’s faces again.

“More than me, I think it’s just for these guys, to see the smiles on the mechanics’ faces, those guys, they’ve never had an ounce of quit in them, and they could have for years. To see them excited is worth it,” he said.

In saying that, Graham Rahal wasn’t too optimistic heading to Toronto. He felt like Detroit worried him in regards to pace for another street race this weekend.

It’s no secret that the street course program for RLL is lacking in comparison to the natural road courses. They finished 6-9-22 in St. Pete, 12-13-14 in Long Beach and 16-17-25 in Detroit.

Lundgaard never wavered in his approach. He was looking at the bigger picture. While yes, they were down on street courses, they were though better in most areas than last. He felt like a top four finish was something he was capable of.

Boy was he right.

Lundgaard not only scored a pole, but he gave RLL their first win since 2020. Rahal came from last to finish ninth.

“I think we’ve seen the results of that change,” Bobby Rahal admitted. “We’ve had great events since then. There’s I think a very good vibe within the team. Of course, today helps that immensely. Nothing like winning; right?

“I have to tell you it was emotional for me because of the hell that we went through in the last six weeks and to have a race like we had this weekend, and to see Graham going from 27th to 9th, I mean, Jesus.

“I’m just very proud of the team, very proud of the working relationships we have within the team, whether it’s with Christian and Graham and Jack or the engineers or what have you.

“The response to the disappointment of Indy, and of course, maybe even the bigger disappointment of Detroit, really the response to that is due to their commitment to this organization and to themselves, each of them, and together.”

Now it’s onto Iowa for a doubleheader. This is another test to see how real this momentum is and that it can translate to on track success.

“So yeah, I don’t want to be a pessimistic. I think we have a good chance next weekend to figure in the race,” Rahal continued. “We have a reasonable test out there, but it’s like anything. I don’t think you can count anything for granted. I think you have to go in there and try to do your best every day and see what happens.”

See, ovals have been RLL’s Achilles Heel. They struggled on them last year and on them so far this season, they went 18-19-24 in Texas and 18-19-33 in Indy.

However, with their bump in improvement on a street course last weekend, it makes them feel like the momentum swing in their favor could be here to stay.

They had a strong test here last month. They also had double top 10’s in Race 1 last year with Rahal in 9th and Lundgaard 10th. While they took a step back in Race 2, they’re hopeful this resurgence will lead to more Top 10’s on Saturday and Sunday.

“Iowa Speedway is a great place to go racing,” said Graham Rahal. “I’m excited to go back. The track has aged further and the bumps have gotten more extreme which makes it more challenging, particularly in Turns 3 and 4.

“Last year in Race 2, I thought we had a really, really good car but unfortunately, we went down a few laps by pitting early on the first stint which ruined the rest of our race. We have to keep our heads down this time around and make sure we put ourselves in a good position, don’t get caught out by the yellows (flags) like we did last year and hopefully put on a good show for Blue Compass RV and Hy-Vee, who has put so much into this event.

“I am confident after the test we had there last month that we will have a good weekend. I feel like our race car ought to be very good. At the test, it seemed like our race car was solid but we have some work to do on our qualifying setup. We have to find some things that will help us qualifying further up the grid.”

Lundgaard agrees with Rahal on all fronts.

“Iowa Speedway is a pretty cool, fun track,” Lundgaard said. “It’s very challenging, very bumpy. It is fast and what I like is that once the pace comes down in the race, everybody can really drive side by side, which I think makes great racing.”

The thing is, there’s also added pressure to the team this weekend too. This is their own event with Hy-Vee pumping a lot of money into it.

“For Hy-Vee, who have stood with us through thick and thin to win this race, I mean, they’re the biggest fans we have, frankly. My phone is blowing up with people from Hy-Vee. Oh, that’s great! Now they’re going to expect that next weekend,” Rahal said last week.

Lundgaard feels the pressure too.

“What Hy-Vee does for that event, bringing four concerts to the track and bringing people together is great for the sport. Now being in the Hy-Vee car, I obviously need to perform,” he said. “I know there will be pressure on me but I’m just going to go out there and enjoy the weekend. I know from our test that we are moving forward in terms of performance. I do think we can do something great.

“We haven’t been fast on street circuits but we went to Toronto and put it on pole and won so anything can happen. We also need to be realistic. We haven’t been the fastest car on the ovals but we’re making progress which is exciting. And it will definitely be easy to find the Hy-Vee pit since we earned pit-out.”

The 2023 Hy-Vee INDYCAR Weekend doubleheader will mark Graham Rahal’s 17th and 18th races here. He has earned 11 top-10 finishes in 16 starts with his best being fourth in 2015. Last year, in Race 1 he started 16th, fell to the back of the field early on and worked his way back up to a ninth place finish. In Race 2, he started 23rd, fell to the back in 26th and then worked his way back up to 13th in the closing stage of the race but was passed by Palou with six laps to go and took the checkered flag in 14th. In 2020, he started his 13th race here from 21st place and stayed on the lead lap until Lap 23 of 250. The team was on a four-stop strategy and the handling appeared to improve mid-to-late race but he reported a vibration and struggled with the handling of the car so he made another stop from 10th place on Lap 227 and ultimately finished 12th. In Race 2, in the Hy-Vee Honda, he set the eighth fastest time in the pre-race practice and started from 19th place. He extended his stint the longest and made his first stop from the lead on Lap 63. Due to track position, he went a lap down but was able to get it back by Lap 84 before he made his second stop from the lead on Lap 119 under caution for Carpenter once the pits opened. He returned to the track in fourth place and closed on third place Power before passing him on Lap 129 for third. He cycled back into the lead on Laps 171-174 before his third stop on Lap 175 and had moved into sixth a few laps later when Hunter-Reay brought out a caution. After the pits opened, a few drivers made stops and he restarted in fourth place. Once third place Daly made his stop, Rahal moved into third on Lap 216 and held it until the checkered flag. 

For Lundgaard, last year, in Race 1, he qualified 20th and drove to his highest career oval finish of 10th place. In Race 2, he qualified 17th and was running 15th when he pit due to brake issues after completing 112 of 300 laps. The team was unable to repair the car in time to return to the race and he retired in 26th place.  After running well during a test at Iowa Speedway on June 21, he is optimistic of being able to have a competitive run in the doubleheader races, one of which is on his 22nd birthday on Sunday, July 23.

You also can’t count out Jack Harvey either.

Last year, Harvey was the top qualifier for the team in seventh place for both races.

For Race 1, he started seventh and finished 18th and in Race 2, he qualified seventh but Herta served a nine-position grid penalty and he started sixth. He held a position in the top-10 for the first 26 laps but ultimately finished in 2oth place.

Jack also competed in the doubleheader at Iowa Speedway in 2020 and earned seventh place finishes in both races with a best start of sixth place in Race 2 and ninth in Race 1. H

He also competed at Iowa Speedway in the 2015 Indy Lights race where he started third and finished fifth. He is hoping to replicate the qualifying pace from last year and put the information gained from the recent test there to good use in the races.

“Qualifying was very good but the races were more of a struggle last year,” he says. “The inability to use multiple lanes hurt us quite a lot. We tested there last month and I think we have already made improvements in that department so if we can maintain our qualifying performance but just make the race car better, we should be in for a good weekend.

“Hy-Vee has pulled out all the stops once again. Whether you are talking about elevating the concert lineup, their work to get more people in by building more grandstands and suites or whatever, they’ve taken something that people already thought was cool and figured out a way to keep it sustainable. Everyone can do something cool one time but the ability to make it even better in the second year, I think, is pretty amazing.

“One of the things I like about Hy-Vee is their commitment to their communities and obviously they’re huge in that part of the country. For them to be doing what they’re doing now with their activation within INDYCAR, fits with how they are in their communities.

“Both races will be great. Obviously, it’s a huge weekend for our team because we want to do as good of a job as we can in front of one of our biggest sponsors. Let’s go and have a great one.”

Not Out Of The Wood Yet..

While RLL is hopeful of going on another second half of the season surge, Rahal won’t admit that they’re out of the woods just yet.

“I don’t think we’re out of the woods. If you look at earlier in the year, we were not too bad in St. Pete. Graham finished 6th I think it was,” he said.

“Now, maybe it might have been some attrition ahead of him to get to 6th, but nevertheless, P6, so okay. Long Beach, we were average, at best. Barber, we were not too bad. Indy Grand Prix, pole sitter, so not too bad.

“Now, we didn’t win. We ended up 4th because to some degree I think we didn’t know. Here we are in the front role on pole, and I kind of think our guys — we haven’t been there very often, so I’m not sure we thought we knew what to do when you are up there.

“Yeah. So on road courses, not too bad. Although, as I say, Detroit really — that bothered me more than Indy because we should have been — I mean, we won Detroit several years ago, the two races. We won that race. Then to go back there and be so out of it, that just really bothered me.

“So, anyway, you have to make changes that you think are right, and thankfully we’ve had some good results since then, but we’ve got to keep doing what we’re doing. You just can’t rest on our laurels. We have to keep pushing.”

Lundgaard just wanted to get a win before seasons end, now, the sights have to be set on multiple wins.

Lundgaard feels like the momentum is there still and that most of these tracks at the end of the schedule are perfect places to finish even further up than they did a year ago.

“Honestly, right now obviously we’re optimistic, leaving Mid-Ohio,” he told me. “I think last year the best car qualified 13th, which was just not transferring from the first qualifying group. This year we had two cars in the Fast Six and one on the Front Row and me in 5th, and we had Jack up in 11th as well.

“Just looking at that specific race from last year to this year, we moved a lot, and we really struggled at Mid-Ohio last year. Now we’re coming into a track where we didn’t necessarily struggle as much, but we built a good foundation for Nashville at Toronto last year, and we were very competitive at Nashville.

“So coming in here, I do think, just looking at that, that it is sort of a turning point, at least I hope so. We want to continue building on what we’re building on now and basically don’t really leave those performances.”

RLL was able to pick up test days recently in Sebring and at Iowa too. It was the Sebring test a year ago for which propelled them forward. Does the Iowa one this year do the same?

In 2022, in the same street races preceding Toronto, RLL finished 7-11-13 in St. Pete, 7-15-18 in Long Beach and 14-15-26 in Belle Isle. They went to work at Sebring in the middle of the summer to help them learn for Toronto and Nashville.

It paid off.

RLL went 4-8-19 in Toronto and 8-10-23 in Nashville.

Rahal went on a nice run to end the season last year with 5 top 10’s over the final 8 races including a pair of top five results. He had 4 top 10’s in the previous 9 with a best finish of 7th in that span.

Lundgaard also had 5 top 10 finishes in the same final 8 races including a pair of top five finishes too but one of those was a runner-up result on the Indy road course. That’s the same place he just earned a pole at a couple of months ago and remember, we go back next month. He had 2 top 10 finishes in the first 9 races.

3 of the final 4 races this season are on natural road courses which are their strengths. If they’re stronger on these tracks this year compared to last and can get momentum rolling further and further, watch out.

This could be a sleeper team to watch the rest of the way.

“Luckily, we have another Indy GP later this year, in August, and we’ve been competitive there. I had my first podium, had my first pole there, so I might as well get my first win at the speedway,” Lundgaard said on Wednesday. “I really do think that we have that opportunity at that race. We just need to nail it during that weekend.

“Again, there might be other opportunities. We know we’ll be strong at the two road courses at the end of the year, and I do think we’ll be strong at Nashville as well. We just need to figure Iowa and St. Louis out, and I think we can at least finish around sixth or seventh in the championship if we really do things well.

“I’m definitely hoping for a podium, definitely hoping for a win. We’ve come close a couple of times this year. So I’m definitely hoping we get to that.”

Lundgaard feels the comfort in the series now too.

“I’d say I was pretty much comfortable as soon as I basically — I mean, last year we saw certain tracks where it took me a while to just figure stuff out, but I would say this year we’ve been fast in pretty much all Practice 1 sessions,” he noted to me.

“To me that just indicates I’ve been to all these tracks now. I’m comfortable in the team. I’m comfortable in the series. I’m comfortable in the car. I didn’t really need to go out early in the session just to run laps. We’re actually going out straight away with our run plan and not having to deal with all the trying to figure stuff out.

“I guess to really answer your question, I’m very comfortable in the car. I know exactly what I need, exactly what I want, and that’s where the three drivers come in, where it’s tougher for a team to fix and get a car that fits three different driving styles.”