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Focused On Indy, St. Pete Hazy For Rahal

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By TONY FABRIZIO

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 24, 2008

Updated: 05/24/2008 12:13 am

INDIANAPOLIS - Graham Rahal's life has been a blur since his historic victory in last month's Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.

At times, the 19-year-old rookie has forgotten he won the race.

"I've caught myself in conversations with people, they'd ask me if I want to go to Formula One," Rahal said. "I'd say, 'Well, I think I need to win a race here first.' And then you think about it and you're like, 'Oh, actually, that's already happened.'"

Since becoming the youngest driver to win a major American open-wheel race April 6, Rahal has appeared on "The Late Show With David Letterman" and raced at Long Beach and Kansas.

He has spent most of a wet May preparing for the biggest race of his life: Sunday's Indianapolis 500.

He'll start 13th in the race his father, Bobby, won as a driver in 1986 and as a team owner in 2004 with Buddy Rice. Al Unser and Al Unser Jr. are the only father and son 500 winners.
Graham Rahal knows what joining that pair would mean to his father.

"He's won as a driver and an owner, and the only thing left would be to win as a father," Rahal said. "It's certainly something I would like to do for him. But he understands more than anybody it's going to take time."
Bobby Rahal has no illusions that his son will win as a rookie. He's hoping for a safe race and a respectable finish. He has preached patience when asked for advice.

"I can't tell him how to drive, but I can tell him where the land mines are buried, the things he has to look out for," Bobby Rahal said. "He's done that, really, all by himself in many respects over the years that he's raced."

There is no prouder father in all of racing, though, and it often shows.

"When you think that he wasn't even in a race car five years ago, and here is driving the Indy 500 ... I mean I would say this whether he was my son or not, I would say, 'That kid can drive,'" Bobby Rahal said.

"I'm equally as impressed with the way he goes about his life ... the way he interacts with people, his persona."

Tall, photogenic and articulate, Graham Rahal could become one of the circuit's biggest stars if he stays. He is intrigued by Formula One but has no thoughts of bolting for NASCAR, saying he thinks it has "peaked" and that "the racing over here is more interesting."

And he has brought something to Indy that has been missing since 1992 - a Rahal, an Andretti and a Foyt all competing at the speedway together.

Marco Andretti, the 21-year-old son of Michael and grandson of 1969 winner Mario, is one of the race favorites. A.J. Foyt IV, the 23-year-old grandson of four-time winner A.J., starts in the back.
Bobby Rahal and the Andrettis had run-ins, and Graham Rahal sounds ready to take the rivalry on. He says becoming the youngest winner meant more because he took the honor from Marco Andretti.

"As dad always said, there's nothing sweeter than beating an Andretti on any given weekend," Graham Rahal said. "That's just the way it is."

Rahal never raced a high-horsepower car on an oval until finishing 12th at Kansas on April 27. His lack of experience hasn't been too noticeable at Indy.

He made an amazing save in his Newman/Haas/Lanigan car during practice, and he earned the highest starting spot among the teams transitioning from the defunct Champ Car series.

He did raise some eyebrows when he called out his team on television on pole day after there were no tires for a final qualifying run.

"Some people looked at me and said it was a good thing because it was kind like a junior Tony Stewart and this stuff," Rahal said. "But it's never a good thing. You need to be careful. As of right now, I don't have a job next year, so I need to make sure I'm on everybody's good side here."

Rahal has a job Sunday, and that's to carry on the Rahal name in the big race. When it's done, he may finally have time to relive the day he made history in St. Petersburg.

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