Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing among those hit hard by Wilson death
Justin Wilson never drove for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, but the death of the 37-year-old IndyCar driver from England has hit this team hard.
Graham Rahal, who is 34 points behind Team Penske driver Juan Pablo Montoya entering Sunday’s season finale at Sonoma Raceway, was Wilson’s teammate at Newman Haas Lanigan Racing in 2008.
Michael Lanigan, who co-owns the team with three-time CART champion, 1986 Indianapolis 500 winner and Graham’s father Bobby and television funnyman David Letterman, was part of the ownership group at Newman Haas Lanigan Racing.
Bobby Rahal never had a chance to have Wilson drive one of his IndyCars, but told FOXSports.com that there were many times he tried to put a deal together to make that happen.
“This has hit me pretty hard - harder than when this has happened in previous times,” Bobby Rahal told FOXSports.com. “I think that is because Justin was such a fabulous guy. He was a hell of a race car driver but more importantly a great person. All the professional accolades apply but he was a great guy.
“Numerous times we tried to find a way for Justin to try to race for us but it just never worked out. He was just a class act and his wife Julia is a super lady and his kids. You never heard anybody say anything bad about Justin Wilson. Those two just didn’t go together. Not many people can make that claim. It’s just so sad and that is what bothers everybody so much.”
Rahal believes a millisecond would have made all the difference in the world in Sunday’s crash, as Wilson would have never been hit by the flying nosecone that had broke off during Sage Karam’s crash with 20 laps to go in Sunday’s race at Pocono Raceway.
“Somehow, all of the events came together at one moment in time and he paid the price for it,” Rahal said. “It seems so fluky, so crazy that it bugs you.”
Bobby Rahal appreciates the fact that Wilson helped his son develop early in his career.
“Graham was 19 when he had Justin as his teammate in 2008 and he was so interested in helping Graham,” Rahal said. “There was no ego.
“How could you not like Justin? He was such a likable guy. He wasn’t always with the best teams but he hung in there. It’s just so poignant. To have him with Graham on the victory stand at Mid-Ohio it just seemed so perfect. And now he is gone two weeks later.
“It just a waste - a waste of a great human being.”
And now Rahal’s team must shift its focus back to this weekend’s championship battle - something that 26-year-old Graham Rahal has worked for his entire career.
“It will put a damper on everything but Justin would say you better go out and have a good time and celebrate it because you worked for it,” said Bobby Rahal. “Everybody is going to think about Justin in some way, shape or form but it’s racing and this unfortunately happens in racing - fortunately not as often as it once did. In the 1950s and 1960s it happened fairly regularly.
“Now, when it happens, it’s such a shock.
“If Graham wins the championship I’m sure he is going to dedicate to Justin Wilson because of the respect and friendship that he had with him.”
Other than his days at Ru-Sport in the Champ Car Series and Newman Haas Lanigan Racing in 2008, Wilson was never with a top-level team despite his exceptional talent. He was driving a part-time schedule for Andretti Autosport this season hoping to turn it into a full-season program with one of the best teams in the Verizon IndyCar Series.
“We wanted Justin over the years and that is why Michael Andretti did because the guy could stand on the gas,” Rahal said. “He was a racer. He could do a lot with a little and full credit to him.”
When Bobby Rahal drove in USAC and CART from 1981 to 1998, it was a time where the sport was much more dangerous than today. Rahal won 25 races and not only survived but also never had a serious injury.
“I was fortunate to be on good teams that approached things correctly and I had a pretty strong survivor’s instinct,” Rahal said. “I drove within myself and figured out early on you can’t win races in the Armco barrier with two wheels off. You look at the 1982 March chassis and that thing was a death trap if you hit anything. Poor Gordon Smiley found that out the hard way.
“Thankfully, things are so much safer today. In the 1970s all the way until the late 1990s you look at it now and it was shaky. You thought you were driving safe cars but by today’s standards they weren’t.
“What makes this so shocking is a tenth of a second would have made all the difference. All did this confluence of events all happen? It’s just so fluky. The timing of it had to be perfect for it to happen and it happened and that is why we are so upset. That is what bugs me the most.
“I just can’t explain it.”
Today’s style of IndyCar racing is much closer than when Rahal was winning races and championships in CART. Would Bobby Rahal have enjoyed today’s style of racing as a driver?
“No,” he said. “There is so much parity now. When I came into IndyCar racing there were two really good teams – Patrick Racing and Penske Racing. Some guys got brand new cars but most didn’t. You didn’t have anywhere near the parity you have now with multiple good teams. You have power that is not as difficult to drive. What you have today the level of parity has never been like this. Everybody is on top of each other.
“Would I have enjoyed it? No way.”
Rahal’s ownership partner, Chicago industrialist Michael Lanigan, remembered Wilson after the two worked together at Newman Haas Lanigan in 2008. Wilson took that team to victory lane in the 2008 Belle Isle Grand Prix of Detroit.
“At these very sad times, one has to question, why?” Lanigan asked. “A father, son, husband, friend, and so young. As we all know, Justin was not only a great talent, but as all great drivers have is the heart and love of his sport to overcome all the challenges presented to get to the pinnacle of his lifelong dream.
“I first met Justin in 2004 when Mi-Jack hired him for his first season in Champ Car. I found out quickly that he was not only a dedicated driver with a lot of talent, but also more importantly a class act with a wonderful family. Coming from a humble background, you could see that Justin's career was a family affair.”
Lanigan believes changes will ultimately be made to try to prevent something as freakish as Wilson’s incident to happen in the future.
“Under the circumstance of his death, there is no doubt that our makers wanted him now, and I believe he is sitting in the perfect race car smiling down on us,” Lanigan said. “He lived out his childhood dreams and passed away doing what he loved best. Let's not mourn his passing, let us celebrate his time with us and learn from his example and life lessons he taught us. I am obviously crushed by his loss, but we must support his wife, children, and parents during these most difficult times. I am quite sure Justin would tell us to go forward and live your own dream as he has and now is being rewarded in the biggest race we can imagine next to his maker.
“Hard to imagine, more difficult to accept, but that's what faith is, isn't it?”
Graham Rahal also summed up his feelings about his former teammate, fellow competitor and friend.
“Some things in life just don't make sense. I know there's always a plan, but this one doesn't make any sense to me.
“Justin was the epitome of a great guy, an incredible teammate, great father and a wonderful friend. My time spent with him will forever be time I cherish, and I learned more from him than any other teammate I ever had. He led by example, he cared about others and the greater good, and he had a genuine way about him that you always knew you were safe when he was around you on the racetrack. There are people you can trust, then there's Justin. Never did I ever worry about racing him wheel to wheel, not once.
“Justin, rest in peace my friend. My fondest memory I've ever had in racing was shared with you by my side and I'm going to do everything I can to win this championship for you. Thanks for the memories, you're a badass.”
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Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
