Rahal set to make 300th IndyCar start

Bobby Rahal’s IndyCar career started in 1982 and ended after 17 seasons and 264 starts with the "Rahal’s Last Ride" tour in 1998. His son Graham is in his 19th season of IndyCar competition and has 299 starts to date; Sunday night’s green flag at World Wide Technology Raceway will mark the 300th.

With a few more years left on his contract with the family-owned Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing team, the 36-year-old isn’t readying a "Last Ride" tour of his own, but he is appreciative of the longevity in the sport.

“Three hundred races is hard to comprehend, if I’m honest,” said Rahal, who owns six IndyCar wins, five poles, and 29 podium visits since making his Champ Car debut in 2007. “It feels like yesterday was the first and I don’t feel old enough to be at 300. I think back on a lot of great memories and a lot of relationships built over the years.”

Rahal's IndyCar career began in what were then called Champ Cars, in this Newman/Haas Panoz DP01 in 2007. Reuben Canales/Getty Images

Rahal has been in a stable situation with RLL since joining the team in 2013, but his early days in IndyCar was filled with change. After driving for Newman/Haas Racing from 2007-09, jumps to Sarah Fisher Racing, a one-off at Indy with RLL, a one-off at Iowa for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, a partial season with Newman/Haas, and two years in Chip Ganassi Racing’s "B team" filled 2010-12.

He also has one start for DRR/Cusick Motorsports in 2023 when he failed to qualify at Indy and subbed for the injured Stefan Wilson.

“There are a lot of special, long-lasting relationships that will stay with me forever and, certainly, it’s a very special time to celebrate,” Rahal added. “There have not been a lot of guys that made it to 300 so it’s a big deal to me and I take a lot of pride in that.”