Steak ‘n Shake to Return as Sponsor of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Indy Car Entry for Third Season
February 15, 2017
Graham Rahal Aims to Carry Momentum from Recent Years to 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series Season and Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg Opener
March 7, 2017
BROWNSBURG, Ind. (February 28, 2017) – Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLLR) announced today that Fifth Third Bank has renewed their partnership as an associate sponsor in a multi-year agreement. The bank logo will appear on the Honda-powered No. 15 Verizon IndyCar Series entry of Graham Rahal.
“Our relationship with Fifth Third started in 2016 and we got to know their culture through various events with their customers as well as through their philanthropic outreach and we are proud to extend our partnership with such a group,” said Bobby Rahal, co-owner of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing with former CBS Late Show host David Letterman and Mi-Jack co-owner Mike Lanigan.
Events in St. Petersburg, Fla., Indianapolis, Ohio, and outside St. Louis, among others, have been identified as key markets, and the company is currently planning initiatives that align with their corporate goals for those markets. Fifth Third and the racing team will again join forces to make an impact on the local community, especially during the bank’s annual hunger initiative in the month of May.
“We are very excited about extending our partnership with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing,” said Steven Alonso, president and CEO of Fifth Third Bank, Greater Indiana Gateway Region. “Racing is a fabric of our community and a passion for many of our clients; and Graham is a first class individual on and off the track. We are thrilled to be associated once again with Graham, Bobby, and the whole RLL team.”
Rahal was a major factor in two of the most exciting races last season, the Honda Indy at Barber Motorsports Park where he finished second to eventual champion Simon Pagenaud, and in the Firestone 600, where he won by the closest margin of victory at Texas Motor Speedway and fifth closest in INDYCAR series history. For the second consecutive year, Rahal ended the season as the highest-ranked Honda-powered driver in fifth place after a total of four podium finishes and eight, top-five finishes.
The 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series season begins March 10-12 with the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg. Graham Rahal won the event in 2008 and won pole in 2009 – both feats earned him the distinction of being the youngest in series history to do so. For more details about the Series, please visit www.indycar.com.
About Fifth Third
Fifth Third Bancorp is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. As of Dec. 31, 2016, the Company had $142 billion in assets and operates 1,191 full-service Banking Centers, including 94 Bank Mart® locations, most open seven days a week, inside select grocery stores and 2,495 ATMs in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Florida, Tennessee, West Virginia, Georgia and North Carolina. Fifth Third operates four main businesses: Commercial Banking, Branch Banking, Consumer Lending, and Wealth & Asset Management. As of Dec. 31, 2016, Fifth Third also had a 17.9 percent interest in Vantiv Holding, LLC. Fifth Third is among the largest money managers in the Midwest and, as of Dec. 31, 2016, had $315 billion in assets under care, of which it managed $27 billion for individuals, corporations and not-for-profit organizations. Investor information and press releases can be viewed at www.53.com. Fifth Third’s common stock is traded on the NASDAQ® Global Select Market under the symbol “FITB.” Fifth Third Bank was established in 1858. Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender
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, former CBS Late Show host David Letterman and Mi-Jack co-owner Mike Lanigan. In 2017, the team will compete in their 26th year of open wheel competition and attempt to add to their 23 wins – including the 2004 Indy 500 from pole with Buddy Rice — their 29 poles, 91 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 moved to the GTLM class of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship with a two-car program and earned six podium finishes including four second-place finishes. In 2015, the team earned three wins, two poles and a total of eight podiums to finish second in the Manufacturer, Team and Driver championships and in 2016, BMW Team RLL added two poles and three podiums with their BMW M6 GTLM entries to bring their current total to 13 wins, 22 poles and 60 podium finishes.
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