Graham Rahal: Other series can't match IndyCar's recent rise
Graham Rahal believes other racing championships cannot match IndyCar's recent rise, and that it is one additional manufacturer away from "absolutely taking off"
Rahal, who has been in top line American open-wheel racing since he joined Newman Haas Lanigan Racing for Champ Car's final season in 2007, says he has noticed significant improvements in IndyCar's status over the last few years.
"It's [IndyCar] in a much better spot than it was even a handful of years ago or 10 years ago," Rahal told Autosport.
"If we can get one more OEM [manufacturer] to come in, this place is going to go to absolutely take off.
"In IndyCar racing we're fortunate to be able to say that.
"When you look at other forms of motorsport right now, they can't say that, no matter if they try and put a positive spin on that or not.
"With IndyCar racing the proof is in the pudding and it is headed in the right direction. Things are looking really good.
"It's headed down the right path. [And] it's all of our drivers' jobs to help and try and bring light to that and to continue the push.
"I think we can find ourselves in a really great spot. I'm excited where it's at."
Rahal finished eighth in the drivers' standings with the Honda-powered Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing team last year, failing to win a race after landing two wins in 2017.
He said work done over the winter period to improve qualifying form should help the team to move up the grid and allow him and RLLR to become a "thorn in everybody's side" as the season goes on.
"I really feel that when it comes to race day, we perform better than 99% of the people out there," added Rahal, who was seventh fastest in IndyCar's pre-season testing at Austin last month.
"[But] as a team, and myself, we just need to qualify better.
"If we can qualify better, we'll be a thorn in everybody's side. That's a fact.
"On the chassis side of things, every time it comes to qualifying time and we have to push a little harder, both of our cars go very loose.
"We know the rear of our cars are just not good enough. When we need to find that extra tenth or two, it's just not there for Takuma and I. We've got to correct that.
"Everybody thinks the off-season is long. It's not.
"We frankly weren't developing enough. To jam that all into one off-season is hard.
"We might not see the fruits of that labour for a little while."
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