Big Machine Music City GP INDYCAR Season-Finale Up Next for Rahal, Fittipaldi and Lundgaard

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing

Big Machine Music City Grand Prix – Nashville Superspeedway

Pre-Race Notes

Round 17 of 17 in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES

DATE: September 14-15, 2024

PRACTICE BROADCAST: Live on Peacock Premium on Saturday from 11:00 – 12:30 p.m. and 5:15 – 7:00 p.m. ET. Also live on the INDYCAR Radio Network (IRN) and www.indycar.com (timing & scoring + live analysis).

QUALIFYING BROADCAST: Live on Peacock Premium, the IRN and www.indycar.com (timing & scoring + live analysis) on Saturday from 2:15 – 3:15 p.m. ET.

RACE BROADCAST: Live on NBC and Peacock on September 15 beginning at 3:00 p.m. ET. And also on IRN,

Sirius XM INDYCAR Nation 218 and SiriusXM NBC Sports Audio 85.

TRACK LAYOUT: 1.33-mile, D-shaped oval

RACE LENGTH: 206 laps / 273.98 miles

2008 WINNER: Scott Dixon

2008 POLESITTER: Helio Castroneves (204.519 mph)

RAHAL’S BEST OVAL START / FINISH: Pole (Kansas 2009) / 1st (Fontana 2015; Texas 2016)

RAHAL’S BEST START / FINISH AT NASHVILLE (OVAL): 10th in 2008 / 12th in 2008

RAHAL’S HIGHEST SERIES START / FINISH: 5 poles – Pole at St. Pete (street) 2009, Kansas (oval) 2009, Detroit Race 1 (street) 2017, IMS (road) 2023 August, Portland (road) / 6 wins – 1st in St. Pete in 2008, Fontana & Mid-Ohio 2015, Texas 2016, Detroit Race 1 & Race 2 2017

FITTIPALDI’S BEST OVAL START / FINISH: 10th (Phoenix, 2018) / 11th (WWTR, 2018)

FITTIPALDI’S BEST START / FINISH AT NASHVILLE (OVAL): First event here

FITTIPALDI’S BEST SERIES START / FINISH: 10th at Phoenix oval (2018) / 9th at Portland (2018)

LUNDGAARD’S BEST OVAL START / FINISH: 17th (Iowa 2, 2022) / 9th (Milwaukee 2024)

LUNDGAARD’S BEST START / FINISH AT NASHVILLE (OVAL): First race here

LUNDGAARD’S BEST SERIES START / FINISH: 2 Poles – IMS (road course) 2023, Toronto (street) 2023 / 1 Win – Toronto (street) 2023

RLL’S BEST START / FINISH AT NASHVILLE SUPERSPEEDWAY: 1st by Buddy Rice in 2004 / 4th by Danica Patrick in 2006

NEWS & NOTES:

NASHVILLE AND RAHAL LETTERMAN LANIGAN RACING

The 2024 Big Machine Music City Grand Prix will mark the return to oval racing in Nashville for INDYCAR, who has held three races on the streets of downtown Nashville most recently (2021-23). The series previously conducted eight races on the 1.33-mile Nashville Superspeedway oval from 2001-2008.The team’s highest start there was pole in 2004 by Buddy Rice and highest finish was fourth with Danica Patrick in 2006. The team will enter the No. 15 Fifth Third Bank Honda for Graham Rahal, the No. 30 5-hour ENERGY entry for Pietro Fittipaldi and the No. 45 Hy-Vee entry for Christian Lundgaard.

GRAHAM AT NASHVILLE SUPERSPEEDWAY

The 2024 season-finale will mark the second time Graham will race at Nashville Superspeedway. In 2008, he started 10th and finished 12th with Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing in a rain-shortened event. He participated in an INDYCAR test with a few other cars there on June 14 but is looking forward to getting to the track to get more track time.

“We tested at Nashville earlier this season, but it was a very short test so it’s a little hard for me to say exactly how it went. The Iowa and Gateway oval races were positive for us, but Milwaukee was challenging so we have some gains that need to be made which is something we will focus heavily on. Nashville is a very different track because it’s concrete and very, very bumpy as compared to the surfaces at other tracks that we go to. There is a big bump in Turn 4 on the second lane which is a major challenge as well. It’s very fast, your cornering speeds are very, very quick and it rubbers in very quickly, so it makes for a different challenge. The goal is to have a good, solid final race. I want to finish this season off on a positive note and put ourselves in a good position going forward.”

PIETRO FITTIPALDI AT NASHVILLE

It will be Pietro’s first time to race at this track, so he has reviewed a lot of historic data and spent time in the Honda simulator in preparation for the event.

“It’s been a long time since INDYCAR has raced at the track and we’ve done a lot of simulator work to prepare for it. I’ve looked at old race footage and on-board footage, but obviously the cars are very different compared to last time INDYCAR raced there. Tracks, throughout the years, evolve themselves so I think it’s going to be new for everybody when we arrive at the track. It’s a Super Speedway, not a short oval so it’s going to be very different from the ovals we’ve raced at recently, which were short ovals, so the speeds are going to be a lot higher. We don’t have asphalt there, it’s concrete so that’s going to make the car feel different as well. I’m looking forward to having a solid top 10 finish, that’s our goal. As a team, the ovals have been challenging so if we can turn it around and score a top 10 for all three cars, I think that’ll be a fantastic result for us. I’m very much looking forward to going to Nashville and ending the season on Super Speedway.”

CHRISTIAN LUNDGAARD AT NASHVILLE SUPERSPEEDWAY

Lundgaard will compete in his first race here. He is looking forward to having the opportunity to win another pit stop contest sponsored by team sponsor Hy-Vee on Friday in downtown Nashville and also having great pit stops and a strong race as the crew did in the previous events at Milwaukee.

“Going into the last race of the season, obviously we want to finish it on a high. After racing on the street circuit in Nashville the past few years, the finale is on the superspeedway, and I think all of us are quite excited to see what racing it produces. I know a lot of tire testing has been going on and I have heard a lot from that. Graham tested there as well. We want to end the season on a strong note. The Hy-Vee crew absolutely killed it in the pits at Milwaukee. We were in the top three overall in both races and had the fastest stop in Saturday’s race so I’m pretty excited to see if we can continue that in Nashville in Friday’s contest and also the race and end the season on a high.

“My most favorite memory of the season has probably been getting my first podium of the Month of May, getting that Indy GP trophy and showing everybody that we are able to execute at IMS when we have a strong car. Obviously, we didn’t win, but we did get that third-place trophy and that is my best memory of 2024.”

HY-VEE BATTLE ON BROADWAY AND OTHER EVENTS OVER THE WEEKEND

The three-day festival of speed kicks off with Freedom Friday, featuring NTT INDYCAR’s fastest pit crews as they compete for a $50,000 purse at the Hy-Vee Battle On Broadway, followed by Brantley Gilbert’s “World’s Largest Album Release Party.” The music continues after the on-track action, with an exciting music line-up including Riley Green, Daughtry, Gary LeVox, Brian Kelley, and more. Fans are encouraged to plan in advance and get their tickets while they last at www.musiccitygp.com.

POINTS BATTLE AFTER 16 OF 17 RACES

Heading into the season-finale, Lundgaard is in 11th place in the series standings with a total of 301 points, Rahal is 18th with 244 and Fittipaldi is 19th with 177.