Photo Credit: IndyCar
BROWNSBURG, Ind. (April 14, 2015) – Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLL) announced today that the team will prepare an entry for veteran Oriol Servia for the 99th running of the Indianapolis 500 on May 24. Servia competed for the team in the Indy 500 in 2009 and in four races in 2014.
The 2015 Indy 500 will be Servia’s seventh in the famed race and third with RLL. His best finish overall is fourth in 2012 with Dreyer & Reinbold and best start is third in 2011 with Newman/Haas Racing. In the 2009 Indianapolis 500 with RLL, Servia was in ninth place halfway through the race when a mechanical failure led to his retirement in 26th place. In 2014, he competed for the team in Long Beach, at Barber Motorsports Park and two events at Indianapolis Motor Speedway where he led seven laps in the road course race but finished 12th, qualified 18th for the Indy 500 and finished 11th.
“I honestly couldn’t be any happier to announce that I will be entering the 99th Indianapolis 500 with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing,” said Servia. “There is a saying in Spanish “A la tercera va la vencida” (Third time lucky) that I feel fits our effort very well. This will be our third attempt together to cross the most famous brickyard first after 500 miles. The first two efforts were very promising and encouraged all parties to go for it again with the most ambitious aspirations. I have followed closely all the changes that the team has gone through over the winter and I am really excited as I have worked with most of the new hires. I believe the whole team is perhaps the strongest and most talented group in the whole Indy car paddock. I must thank the whole team and especially the bosses, Mr. Rahal, Mr. Letterman and Mr. Lanigan for their confidence and support. I can’t wait to jump in the car and team up with Graham again. This will be a great month of May.”
“Oriol is a very talented driver,” said Bobby Rahal, co-owner of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing with CBS Late Show host David Letterman and Mi-Jack co-owner Mike Lanigan. “He’s a smart driver and he’s got a lot of experience so we’re looking forward to bringing him back to run the Indy 500 with us for the third time. Having teamed with Graham before at Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing and again last year, their setups seem to be quite similar so you can really take advantage of having a multi-car team. When we looked at who the best driver was to join us for the Indy 500, Oriol was our first choice. He’s competitive; he’s smart, has good race craft and brings it home.”
Servia, a native of Pals, Spain, has made 195 starts in CART, Champ Car and the IndyCar Series since his rookie season in 2000. His Indy car highlights include one win (Montreal 2005) and one pole (Surfers Paradise, Australia 2005) as well as a total of 19 top-three, 51 top-five and 101 top-10 finishes. He will participate in the open test at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Sunday, May 3.
About Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, based in Hilliard, Ohio and Brownsburg, Ind., is co-owned by three-time IndyCar Champion and 1986 Indianapolis 500 winner Bobby Rahal, CBS LATE SHOW host David Letterman and Mi-Jack co-owner Mike Lanigan. In 2015 the team will compete in their 24th year of open wheel competition and attempt to add to their 20 wins – including the 2004 Indy 500 from pole with Buddy Rice — their 29 poles, 81 podium finishes and 1992 series championship. The team also competed in the American Le Mans Series from 2009-2013 as BMW Team RLL where they won both the Manufacturer and Team Championships in the GT category in 2010 and swept all three GT titles in 2011 – Manufacturer, Team and Driver. In 2012, the team finished second in the Team Championship and third in the Manufacturer Championship and in 2013, the team finished second in the Driver, Team and Manufacturer Championship. In 2014, BMW Team RLL competed in the GTLM class of the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship with a two-car program and earned six podium finishes including four second-place finishes. In 2015, the team opened the season by scoring their 50th podium finish of second place at the Rolex 24 at Daytona and will attempt to add to their 10 wins.
– RLL –
