Does David Letterman have Indy 500 car? Former late-night host co-owns IndyCar team

USA Today

23-05-2025

Does David Letterman have Indy 500 car? Former late-night host co-owns IndyCar team
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Takuma Sato starts middle of Row 1 for Indy 500
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing's Takuma Sato will start in the middle of row one for this year's Indianapolis 500.
"The Greatest Spectacle in Racing" never gets old for David Letterman.
The former TV talk show host first jumped into the IndyCar ownership ranks in 2004 – at almost the exact midpoint of his 22-year run on CBS's "The Late Show with David Letterman."
From the start, he's partnered with former Indianapolis 500 champion Bobby Rahal in what's now known as Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLL).
A native of Indianapolis, Letterman, 78, has said his earliest memory of the Indy 500 goes back to 1955 when he'd listen to the race on the radio with his family at their home, just miles away from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. And once again, he'll be back home in Indiana for this year's 500, which takes place Sunday, May 25.
Has David Letterman ever won the Indy 500?
If you mean the racing team Letterman co-owns, then yes.
Buddy Rice won the Indy 500 in 2004 for Rahal Letterman Racing, and Takuma Sato won it in 2020 for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.
Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing drivers in 2025 Indy 500
David Letterman's team will have four drivers in the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500.
Takuma Sato , a two-time Indy 500 (2017 and 2020), posted the second-fastest time in qualifying. He will start in the middle of the front row in the No. 75 RLLR Honda.
, a two-time Indy 500 (2017 and 2020), posted the second-fastest time in qualifying. He will start in the middle of the front row in the No. 75 RLLR Honda. Devlin DeFrancesco , a 25-year-old Canadian driver, is in his first season with RLL. He qualified 16th in the No. 30 Honda
, a 25-year-old Canadian driver, is in his first season with RLL. He qualified 16th in the No. 30 Honda Louis Foster: The British driver is a rookie in the IndyCar Series and will make his Indy 500 debut on Sunday. He starts 20th in the No. 45 RLLR Honda.
The British driver is a rookie in the IndyCar Series and will make his Indy 500 debut on Sunday. He starts 20th in the No. 45 RLLR Honda. Graham Rahal, the son of team owner Bobby Rahal and a six-time IndyCar series winner, is in his 18th season on the IndyCar circuit. He will start 28th in the No. 15 RLLR Honda. (Fun fact: Graham Rahal once presented a Top 10 list on Letterman's "Late Show" in 2013.)
How did David Letterman get into owning an IndyCar team?
In a recent interview with the Indianapolis Star, Letterman discusses how special the Indy 500 was in the life of his family and friends.
"I saw every weekend this kid named Bobby Rahal running up front. I started following him and was attracted to 'the guy,' not so typical of the drivers I was familiar with as a younger person. When he won in '86, he came on ("Late Night with David Letterman"), and that was the beginning of our acquaintance, and it developed into a friendship, and I would attend races around the country when I had time off. From that, he was nice enough to let me come in and be a bit of a partnership on the team."
Also in that interview, Letterman talks about what it was like to be part of the winning team at The Brickyard in 2004 and 2017.
David Letterman's first Indy 500
A few years ago, Letterman told the story of the first time he ever attended the Indianapolis 500 in person. In an interview with NBC Sports, Letterman revealed it was in 1966, when he was a student at Ball State University.
"(A) buddy of mine from Ball State, we drove down, and we found a old piece of Samsonite luggage. A big, like six-suiter or something, and we put as much beer in it as we could. And as the day heated up, all the ice melted, and we had a waterfall going down. And people beneath us [were like], 'What? Where is this?' And of course it was the idiots, the drunks, sitting up there."
2025 Indy 500 starting lineup
See where Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing drivers are on the starting grid.
(Car number in parentheses, followed by driver, team, manufacturer; R=rookie; W=former winner)
(83) Robert Shwartzman (R), Prema Racing, Chevrolet (75) Takuma Sato (W), Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Honda (5) Pato O'Ward, Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet (9) Scott Dixon (W), Chip Ganassi Racing, Honda (60) Felix Rosenqvist, Meyer Shank Racing, Honda (10) Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing, Honda (4) David Malukas, A.J. Foyt Enterprises, Chevrolet (7) Christian Lundgaard, Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet (28) Marcus Ericsson (W), Andretti Global, Honda (3) Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske, Chevrolet (76) Conor Daly, Juncos Hollinger Racing, Chevrolet (20) Alexander Rossi (W), Ed Carpenter Racing, Chevrolet (8) Kyffin Simpson, Chip Ganassi Racing, Honda (33) Ed Carpenter, Ed Carpenter Racing, Chevrolet (14) Santino Ferrucci, A.J. Foyt Enterprises, Chevrolet (30) Devlin DeFrancesco, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Honda (77) Sting Ray Robb, Juncos Hollinger Racing, Chevrolet (21) Christian Rasmussen, Ed Carpenter Racing, Chevrolet (17) Kyle Larson, Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet (45) Louis Foster (R), Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Honda (90) Callum Ilott, Prema Racing, Chevrolet (06) Helio Castroneves (W), Meyer Shank Racing, Honda (27) Kyle Kirkwood, Andretti Global, Honda (6) Nolan Siegel (R), Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet (23) Ryan Hunter-Reay (W), Dreyer & Reinbold Racing/Cusick Motorsports, Chevrolet (24) Jack Harvey, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing/Cusick Motorsports, Chevrolet (26) Colton Herta, Andretti Global, Honda (15) Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Honda (98) Marco Andretti, Andretti Global, Honda (66) Marcus Armstrong, Meyer Shank Racing, Honda (18) Rinus Veekay, Dale Coyne Racing, Honda *(2) Josef Newgarden (W), Team Penske, Chevrolet *(12) Will Power (W), Team Penske, Chevrolet
*Newgarden and Power were moved to the back of the grid for their team illegally modifying cars during qualifying
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