IndyCar: Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing still eyeing third car for 2019?

Rahal Letterman Lanigan had been rumored to be looking at fielding a third full-time car for the 2019 IndyCar season. Will this happen?

This past summer, it was rumored that Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing were exploring the possibility of running three cars on a full-time basis in the 2019 IndyCar season. However, has not been anything publicized about this matter since then.

With the offseason between the 2018 and 2019 seasons being more than halfway over and with under two and a half months remaining until the 2019 is scheduled to get underway, is there a chance that the team will still field a third full-time car next year?

More than likely, the answer to this question is no.

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Graham Rahal, who has driven the #15 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda in each of the last six seasons, signed a five-year contract extension to continue driving for the team that is co-owned by his father, three-time IndyCar champion and 1986 Indianapolis 500 champion Bobby Rahal.

Takuma Sato, who returned to the team this past season as the driver of the #30 Honda after he spent five seasons away from the team following the 2012 season, the season during which he drove the #15 Honda for the team, signed a contract extension toward the end of the 2018 season to continue driving for team in the 2019 season.

Jordan King, who began driving in IndyCar this past season as the driver of the #20 Ed Carpenter Racing Chevrolet in the the season’s 11 road and street course races, has been confirmed as Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s third driver for the Indianapolis on Memorial Day Sunday.

However, nothing more has been said about the matter since this past summer. Here is what Bobby Rahal had to say about it at the time, according to RACER.

"“There’s a couple of good opportunities out there, so I’m much more sure of us having a three-car program next year than I’ve ever been. It’s not there yet, but it’s a strong chance, and that’s exciting for us. Other than Graham, we don’t have commitments with anybody. And we’d like to keep Takuma with us. After the last couple of races, I think he’s happier about the year so far.”"

The 2018 season was the first season during which Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing operated as a two-car full-time team since the 2013 season when James Jakes drove the #16 Honda as a teammate to Graham Rahal, who was in his first season driving the #15 Honda.

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing have not been a three-car full-time team since the 2006 season when they were still known as Rahal Letterman Racing. The team’s three full-time drivers that season were Buddy Rice, who drove the #15 Honda, Danica Patrick, who drove the #16 Honda, and Jeff Simmons, who drove the #17 Honda.

While it would not be completely unforeseeable for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing to become a three-car full-time team again in the 2019 season, especially given the current upswing that IndyCar has been on since before the 2018 season, which was the first season during which the new UAK18 aero kit was used, as far as the number of full-time entries is concerned, it would be quite a bit surprising to see one of the sport’s smallest teams become one of its largest teams by tripling their full-time car total in under a year and a half.

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Will Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing field a third full-time car in the 2019 IndyCar season like they have been rumored to? Nothing has been said about the matter for a few months, but expect to know more about the situation in the very near given the fact that the 2019 season is scheduled to get underway on Sunday, March 10, 2019 with the Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in St. Petersburg, Florida.