Foster, Rahal and Schumacher Finished 14th, 19th and 22nd in the Mission Foods Grand Prix of Monterey INDYCAR Season Finale

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing

Mission Foods Grand Prix of Monterey

NTT INDYCAR SERIES

RACE NOTES / QUOTES – September 6, 2026

FOSTER, RAHAL AND SCHUMACHER FINISHED 14TH, 19TH AND 22ND IN THE MISSION FOODS GRAND PRIX OF MONTEREY INDYCAR SEASON FINALE

GRAHAM RAHAL, No. 15 Ship Station Global Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “We gained like 20 seconds on the group ahead of us at the very end. It’s weird because the last set of tires for me had no rear grip compared to the set of blacks (tires) before. The primary tires before were unbelievable for the stint. I don’t believe I dropped off more than a couple of tenths of a second for the entire stint. I was very surprised by that. I just fought hard to try to catch that group back up, and, obviously, got a couple positions, but we don’t want to finish 19th. But without any yellows, too, really, but strategy wise, it’s pretty hard to mix it up. We’ll keep soldering along. This year was full of goods and bads, but, what I can genuinely say is that I haven’t had a better time with a group of people ever. I really, really enjoyed this group of guys and gals on my team this year. And I hope we can keep it going next year.”

FAST FACTS: He started 22nd and utilized a four-stop strategy to finish 19th in a race that only saw one caution period from Laps 1-3… The 2026 race marked the seventh for Graham Rahal at the track. In his first six races here, his best start was eighth in 2019, and best finish is fourth in 2021. Race-by-race statistics are available upon request. He earned three podiums on road and street courses the first half of the season and hopes to return to that form for the season finale. Has SIX INDYCAR SERIES wins (2008 – St. Pete street course; 2015 – Fontana Super Speedway, Mid-Ohio road course; 2016 – Texas Super Speedway; 2017 Detroit Race 1, Detroit Race 2) and FIVE poles (2009 – St. Pete street course, Kansas oval; 2017 – Detroit Race 1 street; 2023 – IMS road/August, Portland road)… He dropped from 15th to 16th place in series point standings with a total of 302.

LOUIS FOSTER, No. 45 Desnuda Organic Tequila Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “The race was interesting. I need to look at how the race panned out for everyone else first to fully understand it because these races always get a bit confusing sometimes. Especially with how many stops people made today. I think we always pitted a bit too late from my perspective. It seemed like we just kept getting undercut on every pit stop by people. On top of that, our out-lap pace was really poor today. It’s always been an issue and we’ve always struggled as a team but today, we just didn’t have any tire temp. We were bottoming everywhere. The car was really, really hard to drive and try to keep on the track. So, I lost a lot of positions on the out laps when other cars could hold onto their position. So, we need to work on that but overall, we only lost five spots from our starting position so it is what it is. Winning pole and our pace at Markham was probably the highlight. We’ve had some shimmers of hope this year but we haven’t been able to execute. We had a fun year. We enjoyed it, but we want to be better next year. Simple as that.”

FAST FACTS: Qualified 11th and started ninth due to grid penalties ahead of him. In the race, he cycled up to third place before his first of four stops on Lap 22. He returned to the track in 16th place. Multiple pit strategies were at play and he ultimately finished 14th. Last year he qualified ninth in his INDYCAR rookie season but struggled with race pace and he ultimately finished 17th so he is looking forward to the opportunity to better that mark. He competed here four times in the INDY NXT Series where he won both NXT races in 2024 from pole. In his first two NXT races here in 2023, he qualified sixth and finished 18th in Race 1 and turned that into a podium performance with a third-place finish from a third place start in Race 2. A strong performance at Laguna Seca would be a great way to enter the off-season. He finished the season ranked 18th in the series point standings with 267.

MICK SCHUMACHER, No. 47 NEREUS™ Dallara/Honda/Firestone: “Obviously, we would have wanted to end it on a high, which we didn’t quite get there today. It just seemed like we had a couple of things that weren’t quite right on the car. And it just seemed like we ate through those tires pretty drastically; a bit faster than some other people. I feel like the first couple of laps on the alternate stint was really good; really strong. We were getting past Will, Marcus and Pato there. But then suddenly, as soon as I passed Pato, my tires one lap to another, just died. On that side, today, not amazing, but overall, I think it’s all about learning and that’s what we did this year and I’m ultimately very grateful to RLL and anybody involved like Graham and Louis, who’ve just helped me grow throughout this year. I’m, looking forward to 2027 now.”

FAST FACTS: Mick qualified 15th but started 13th in the race after two drivers ahead served grid penalties for unapproved engine changes. He lost a spot to Power on the opening lap and Rookie of the Year points leader Hauger was taken out by Sting Ray Robb. Which brought out a full course caution. To win ROY, Mick needed to finish eight place or better. He made his first stop from 12th place on Lap 17 and rejoined the field in 15th place once the field settled in. After three more stops, and an off-track excursion, which cost him multiple positions, he took the checkered flag in 22nd place and was second in the Rookie of the Year standings to Hauger, 228-213. His best start on a road or street course is 11th place in Markham (street course) and his best finishes of the season were eighth place on the Nashville oval and 11th on the streets of Washington, D.C… He finished the season 23rd in series standings with 213 points.