Christian Lundgaard, the Hy-Vee Driver at Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing

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Speakers: Bruce Martin & Christian Lundgaard

[Music Playing]

Bruce Martin:

IndyCar fans, it's time to start your engines. Welcome to Pit Pass Indy, a production of Evergreen Podcasts. I'm your host, Bruce Martin, a journalist who regularly covers the NTT IndyCar Series.

Our goal at Pit Pass Indy is to give racing fans an insider's view of the exciting world of the NTT IndyCar Series in a fast-paced podcast featuring interviews with the biggest names in the sport.

I bring nearly 40 years of experience covering IndyCar and NASCAR, working for such media brands as nbcsports.com, si.com, ESPN Sports Ticker, Sports Illustrated, Autoweek, and Speed Sport.

So, let's drop the green flag on this episode of Pit Pass Indy.

Welcome to this week's edition of Pit Pass Indy presented by Hy-Vee as we continue our fourth season of giving IndyCar fans a behind the scenes look at the NTT IndyCar Series and the drivers that compete in the Indianapolis 500.

Our friends from Hy-Vee are back, serving as a presenting sponsor Pit Pass Indy this month. Beginning in March, our friends from Penske Truck Rental return for most of 2024.

Penske Truck Rental and Hy-Vee will share the show in April and June of 2024, gearing up to one of the highlights of the season, the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend at Iowa Speedway July 12th through the 14th.

This year's schedule includes a night race at Iowa Speedway on Saturday, July 13th, with another full race scheduled for Sunday July 14th. Four of the biggest names in entertainment will perform before and after each race, including Luke Combs and Post Malone. Two more major entertainers will be announced by Hy-Vee soon.

Combs will perform on the Hy-Vee stage on Saturday, July 13th, before the first NTT IndyCar Series race of the unique Doubleheader Weekend.

Post Malone will rock the stage on Sunday, July 14th, following the final IndyCar series Race of the Weekend. It will be the first time the famed entertainer has performed in central Iowa.

The start of the 2024 NTT IndyCar Series season is the March 10th Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg and teams are using the next month to prepare for the season.

There was a private test at Homestead Miami Speedway recently that was widely attended using the spec that will start the season without the Hybrid Assist Unit. After that test, more Hybrid Assist testing was conducted at Homestead and the results were extremely positive as none of the cars in that test experienced any issues with the revised and updated unit.

IndyCar announced in December that the Hybrid Assist Unit would not be implemented until sometime after the 108th Indianapolis 500 on Memorial Day Weekend.

The recent test yielded some positive results as IndyCar continues to test the unit before it hits the track for real competition scheduled for later this year.

On Monday, February 5th, IndyCar made some big news off the track. A behind the scenes look at the NTT IndyCar Series leading into the 108th Indianapolis 500 will return on The CW with Season 2 of 100 Days to Indy.

The six-part unscripted series will debut later this spring, leading into the Memorial Day Weekend Indianapolis 500.

This season reigning Indianapolis 500 champion Josef Newgarden returns to defend his epic race day triumph with an abundance of generational talent hot on his heels.

This includes rising star Pato O’Ward whose dynamic and energetic personality continues to earn him a legion of enthusiastic supporters across the globe.

Indy 500 champion Marcus Ericsson, who placed second via a dramatic last lap pass in 2023, and IndyCar champion, Alex Palou, who led for 36 laps in last year's Indy 500 also returned with unfinished business to settle.

The 2024 edition of the famed competition will also see one of racing's great champions, NASCAR Cup Series driver, Kyle Larson make a special bid for motorsport glory in his first attempt at the Indy 500.

The new IndyCar season kicks off this march on the sunny streets of St. Petersburg, Florida before arriving in the southern California desert for a brand new $1 million challenge at the scenic Thermo Club.

Every step of that journey will be chronicled on 100 Days to Indy, totaling six Indy car races and the entire epic month of May at the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

100 Days to Indy is produced by Penske Entertainment. Emmy Award winners, Patrick Dimon and Adam Marinelli serve as co-executive producers.

The CW Network is one of America's major broadcast networks and reaches 100% of US television households.

We'll be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

Welcome back to Pit Pass Indy presented by Hy-Vee.

Now, that we are up to speed with some of what is happening in the IndyCar recently, let's continue our Hy-Vee theme by talking to the Hy-Vee driver, Christian Lundgaard of Rahal Letterman Lanigan racing.

The 22-year-old from Hedensted, Denmark is driving the No. 30 Hy-Vee Honda for the second year in a row as he prepares for his third season at Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.

Lundgaard finished eighth in the 2023 NTT IndyCar Series standings and scored his first IndyCar victory in the Honda Indy Toronto on July 16th, 2023. He started on the pole and led 54 laps in the 85 lap street race.

Lundgaard is ready for more in 2024, as he tells me in this exclusive interview for Pit Pass Indy presented by Hy-Vee.

An old friend for both IndyCar and Hy-Vee is back, it's Christian Lundgaard of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. There's a lot of stuff going on in IndyCar. And from your standpoint over at Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, what are some of the things you've already done at this point of the off season?

Christian Lundgaard:

Honestly, mainly just spending some time with family and friends back in Europe here in the off season and staying in touch with the team. Touch bases on what we've accomplished so far in our preparations for the season.

Obviously, the new hybrid coming in, we don't have that much information as some of the other teams that have run it already have. I know that we're a few teams on the grid that are sharing that lack of information so far. But I think once we get on track here, well, we'll know more.

But I think at the moment I'm just excited to get back on track. It's been a long off season. My 2021 to the 2022 season was only three weeks off because of how late the season ended back then. And now, I've had almost three months already and I'm just getting bored.

Bruce Martin:

Because a lot of teams had not had the chance to test the Hybrid Assist Unit, when IndyCar made the decision in December of 2023 to delay the implementation of the hybrid until potentially midway through the 2024 season, were you relieved by that?

Christian Lundgaard:

Not at all. And honestly, I'll find it strange if some are, because I think either you're going to do it right or you're not going to do it at all. In my opinion, to do it halfway through a season, you might as well just split the season up in two different seasons.

Because if you are a team that is extremely strong in the beginning of the season or vice versa. I mean, if you're leading the championship and the system gets implemented in the middle of the season and you have a lot of issues with it, to me, I don't understand it.

I mean, you can put it into a different perspective and say that halfway through the season we're suddenly going to run different tires. I know it's going to be the same for everybody, but to me, it doesn't make sense and it's unfair to all of us.

And at this point there's teams that have done almost a full season of testing and then there's the other half of the grid that haven't even seen the unit yet.

Bruce Martin:

When I asked you if you were relieved that it wasn't going to be implemented at the beginning of 2024 when the customer parts were not properly tested yet.

Christian Lundgaard:

No, I mean, sure, I think that's a positive for sure. But at the same time, they've delayed it because they haven't produced well, first of all, big enough quantity of the pieces that needs to be put on the car.

But then yet at the same time, I don't personally see a reason why you should implement it halfway through a season.

Bruce Martin:

Well, your teammate, Graham Rahal said in another interview that he believes it should wait till 2025.

Christian Lundgaard:

Absolutely. I totally agree. And I don't know, but at the moment, I also think that's what's going to happen because I think there's a lot of us in the paddock, not just drivers, teams as well, that are going to be disappointed if it does get implemented in the middle of the season, because I think it's unfair for everybody.

And like I said before, I think if you're going to do it, you might as well do it right and then wait the extra year.

I know there's a lot of focus on it right now, but there's been for the past few years because it was already supposed to be for the 2023 season. So, I don't see the big loss in delaying it another year.

Bruce Martin:

Now, from a brighter standpoint, you scored your first IndyCar victory on the streets of Toronto in 2023, which was the week before the big Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend at Iowa Speedway.

You told us earlier that you wanted to improve your performance on the ovals. That's a big Doubleheader Weekend on the short oval at Iowa.

How important is that race weekend, not only just for any IndyCar Series driver, but especially for you being the face of the Hy-Vee operation in IndyCar?

Christian Lundgaard:

I mean, obviously, if I could pick and choose that's one of the races that I certainly do want to win. Not just for myself, but for Hy-Vee specifically in everything that they're putting into the sport, into Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing as well. They deserve that. And we need to live up to that and deliver.

But I think ultimately, if we win any other race they will be satisfied in that sense. But obviously, I think we will all be happier with a win at Iowa Speedway with Hy-Vee.

Bruce Martin:

In your first season with Hy-Vee, with their active promotion and marketing and just their ability to get the word out and with innovative ideas and things of that nature, how much has that really helped Christian Lundgaard in terms of being able to not only become recognizable in the United States, but how big a boost has that been for you in your career?

Christian Lundgaard:

No, it's been massive. I think everything that Hy-Vee is doing for this sport in terms of promoting the series and certain tracks as well I think is a must. I think it's a benchmark for every other promoter.

And like I said, they've set the benchmark, and I think we already set that last year, well, 2022 at Iowa for the race back then. That's what they'd done to that place. Kind of showed that their dedication to the series and to the team and basically set the benchmark for every other promoter.

But from a Christian Lundgaard perspective, I'm not going to say that I wouldn't win a race in the same situation with a different brand. But it just means a lot more to me having Hy-Vee by my side and them supporting me and vice versa.

Walking into any Hy-Vee store, I see my face which is always pretty funny, really. I've been tagged in a bunch of social media posts of selfies with me in Hy-Vee stores, and I also know people that I've actually stolen some of the cutout boards and brought them home.

And I got one from Ed Sheeran at the IndyCar event last year that he signed, which was also on my 22nd birthday. So, it was a pretty cool present as well. But it means a whole lot for me to have them by my side and see how dedicated they are to the sport.

Bruce Martin:

Well, I guess now, you got to get one signed by Post Malone. So, he's going to be one of the concert acts this year.

Christian Lundgaard:

No, absolutely. I think we all know and remember good old Victor. He's going to be here for most of the season this year, and he's also coming to Iowa and he's been a huge Post Malone fan for a long time.

So, he's extremely excited to go to that one. And obviously it helps me being the man behind the scenes of that event.

Bruce Martin:

What was your reaction the first time you saw yourself on a Hy-Vee billboard or walked into a Hy-Vee store and saw yourself in either a billboard or cardboard form?

Christian Lundgaard:

I mean, obviously, I've seen my face printed on the side of a truck before. It's been like that for a few years now. But I go walking into a grocery store and seeing a Hy-Vee car and a cutout board of me is pretty interesting.

It's a bit of a weird feeling, but it's still a cool feeling. I mean, I think everybody would like to have that.

Bruce Martin:

What about the enthusiasm level that you get from their employees and from their leadership? They are so all in with IndyCar. That is really amazing.

Christian Lundgaard:

No, it's exciting to see, and I think it's put things into a different perspective for me, and I think everybody within the industry that there is big companies out there that's interested in the sport.

And seeing all the employees, how interested they are in the sport, even though that they might not have known what it even was beforehand. And I think that's raised a lot of awareness from other people.

Obviously, them now, being associated with the sport will go home and tell their entire family about what they're now engaged with. And I think that that just increases the interest within the sport. And we need that, we need more so-called fans. We need to increase that and this is one way of doing it.

But to have the support from Hy-Vee from a personal's perspective, but also from the series perspective, I think is a completely new benchmark.

Bruce Martin:

And they want to expand their footprint in other key IndyCar markets, do more activation in Indianapolis since they're going to open a store in Zionsville, which is the home of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, by the way.

And also, be more involved with the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix in Nashville. And the fact that it's just not going to be Iowa Speedway that Hy-Vee's going to be helping them promote IndyCar, it's the entire season.

Christian Lundgaard:

Yep. No, I think personally, obviously having the car out there for all races in Hy-Vee colors already promotes the car and the brand, but for them to engage in more single events, I would call them, specific events, I think it is just an increase in them showing how interested they are and how dedicated they are into the entity IndyCar Series and me and the team.

So, obviously, I'm not going to sit here and say that we need to perform at all the races that they're specifically branded at, but of course, we were fast in Nashville in 2022. We know that we'll have a chance there. And it's the final race of the season this year. I know I'll have a lot of friends and family come out for that one race.

And then Nashville's just Nashville. It's a awesome city. It's always great fun to be there. And I think this year is going to be one of the best ones we've had.

Bruce Martin:

We will be right back to Pit Pass Indy after this short break.

Welcome back to Pit Pass Indy. Here's the second part of my exclusive interview with Christian Lundgaard for Pit Pass Indy presented by Hy-Vee.

And how about integrating a new driver into the team? Jack Harvey's gone. Now, you have Pietro Fittipaldi who's on board, one of the great legendary names of international motorsport. What's that going to be like to integrate a new driver into the team?

Christian Lundgaard:

Obviously, sad to see Jack go. Jack is a wonderful human being and had a lot of fun times with Jack. Obviously, staying in touch with him.

Having Pietro come in, I haven't been trackside with him in a car yet, so it's going to be interesting to see what he can do.

I think obviously me and Graham we're going to try to help him get up to speed as fast as possible for the interest of the team. Obviously, we know what the tasks are individually, and we need to improve that.

But like you said, it's a legendary name within the sport, and whenever you think of a Fittipaldi, you know which one you're thinking of.

And we've got one of them, actually been associated with the absolute youngest one who participated in Danish F4 for a few years ago because it's the one Formula 4 series that allows the youngest age for drivers. Emmo, Ammo?

Speaker 3:

Emerson Fittipaldi.

Christian Lundgaard:

No, yeah, but his son, Emmo. Isn't that his name? Emmo raced in F4, so I actually had a chat with Emerson a few years ago. I think it was in 2022. And now, have one of them in the team. It's obviously a big name to carry around, so we'll for sure have a few more eyes on us this year.

Bruce Martin:

Last year, the month of May at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway couldn't have gotten any lower for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing as Graham Rahal was bumped out of the race. He did compete in the Indy 500 as a replacement driver for the injured Stefan Wilson for another team.

But to be able to come back less than six weeks later and win a race in Toronto, how uplifting was that for the entire organization?

Christian Lundgaard:

I mean, we always speak about highs and lows. I think that's the definition of highs and lows. We were at our absolute lowest point there and in Detroit. I believe that Detroit was kind of the turnover for us for the rest of the season. That's when we really decided to make changes.

And clearly they paid off. Not enough to my liking, I would say. I would have liked to have some even better results at the end of the season, even though that we did have a win in Toronto, and I got my first.

But I also knew that we had tracks at the end of the season where I knew that we were capable of winning, and we didn't for many different reasons. And that's what the 2024 season is for from my own perspective, is to make up for those I'll call them lost victories.

Bruce Martin:

And as far as the competition on the track, there's no guarantee that momentum carries over from one season to the next, but as we sit here, you would still have to think that Alex Palou pretty much the guy that everybody's got a knockoff this season.

Christian Lundgaard:

No, absolutely. He didn't necessarily start the season off very well last year. Certainly came after it. And the middle part of the season is where he really made his ground up.

I'd say leaving the first race weekend, I was expecting McLaughlin, and Grosjean, and Ericsson to be the three cast to beat. And Alex proved everybody wrong, and he had a one hell of a run for the rest of the season.

But in the end, I think his ability to finish in the top three, even though that he didn't really have the pace to, was the races that he made up his championship. Nashville is one of them from last year and Laguna as well. Kind of just staying out of the trouble and getting the results that he needed.

So, I think that's what we got to do this year. We got to be on the right side of strategy. We got to be the right side of luck. Obviously, that's something that you can't predict. But he seems to be able to do that. And in the end, it's the new Scott Dixon really.

Bruce Martin:

Well, you see his face every time you walk into a Hy-Vee store anywhere in the United States, especially during the NTT IndyCar Series season.

Christian Lundgaard, good luck in the 2024 IndyCar series season. Good luck with Hy-Vee at Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. And thank you for joining us today on Pit Pass Indy.

Christian Lundgaard:

Thank you so much.

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Bruce Martin:

And that puts a checkered flag on this edition of Pit Pass Indy. We want to thank our guest, Christian Lundgaard, the driver of the No. 30 Hy-Vee Honda at Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing for joining us on today's podcast.

Along with loyal listeners like you, our guests help make Pit Pass Indy presented by Hy-Vee, your path to victory lane in IndyCar.

For more IndyCar coverage, follow me at Twitter @BruceMartin (one-word, uppercase B, uppercase M) _500.

This has been a production of Evergreen Podcasts. A special thanks to our production team. Executive producers are Brigid Coyne and Gerardo Orlando. Recordings and edits were done by me, Bruce Martin and final mixing was done by Dave Douglas. Learn more at evergreenpodcasts.com.

Until next time, be sure to keep it out of the wall.