Just days after retiring from late-night television, David Letterman is attending the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday.
2015 Indy 500: David Letterman on hand to watch his team race
David Letterman isn’t just a figurehead in Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, and he’s in Indianapolis Sunday to see how his team does.
That Letterman ventured to Indianapolis Motor Speedway is no surprise. A native Hoosier, his love of the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing” runs deep. He is the co-owner of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, which fields two entries in Sunday’s race for drivers Oriol Servia and Graham Rahal.
“This is the best,” Letterman told SB Nation. “I grew up here. I used to hear the track from where I used to live. I’d stand in my yard and just listen. Everyone in the neighborhood used to listen to it. It was great fun.”
Letterman’s favorite moment of the race he grew up cherishing is even less of a surprise than his presence Sunday. In 2004, RLL won the Indianapolis 500 with driver Buddy Rice.
“When we won it in 2004 -- that was a pretty great memory,” Letterman said. “That was really special.”
Oriol Servia's car pays homage to its co-owner. pic.twitter.com/iIRIkzWTZI
— Jordan Bianchi (@Jordan_Bianchi) May 24, 2015 Despite his obligation to host The Late Show, Letterman was actively involved in the day-to-day operation of RLL, Rahal said Thursday during Indianapolis 500 media day. Graham, whose father, Bobby, is an RLL co-owner, said Letterman would have input into key decisions and would speak with Bobby a couple times during the week to get updates.
“Dave’s love for this place is extreme,” Graham Rahal said. “He pays attention and knows exactly what’s happening. To get another win for him here would mean as much as for my dad or anyone else. It would be pretty powerful.”
Letterman ended his 33-year run as late-night host on Wednesday. His final show included numerous appearances from the who’s who of Hollywood, as well as a cameo from Peyton Manning, formerly of the Indianapolis Colts.
There were no drivers shown, however, nor any clips from when Dale Earnhardt, Jeff Gordon and others appeared as guests. That fact wasn’t lost on Rahal, who starts 17th Sunday.
“I saw that, no drivers,” Rahal said. “They did show Paul Newman (a former IndyCar owner) several times, which was cool. I liked that.
“I was surprised they didn’t show any clips of Dave and the 500. They did show ‘Intern Todd’ when he came out to the Speedway last year. But no drivers.”
See More:
