By Josh Farmer, IndyCar Reporter
Graham Rahal thinks that Oriol Servia is an ideal choice for a second car at Rahal Letterman Langian Racing.
RLL Racing ran two cars for three races last year with rookie Spencer Pigot at the wheel. The team has expressed interest in running two cars for the 2017 Verizon IndyCar Series season but would favor a veteran driver rather than a rookie.
Servia, 42, has driven for RLL on three occasions, most recently in a one-off drive at 2015 Indianapolis 500 and ran a handful of races in 2014 leading into the Indianapolis 500.
Rahal, at the time, was struggling as a whole and had gone nearly a year without scoring a podium.
The 27-year-old Ohio native noted that he and Servia had a mutual understanding on what needed to be done to the car and having a second opinion was the most beneficial.
“He and I have always had the same feedback about things and always felt the same about what needed to be improved in the cars,” Rahal told Motorsports Tribune.
“Back in 2014 when he joined us for those handful of races, he really helped me. At the time as a single car team, nobody really wanted to listen to me and what I needed out of the car. Oriol came in and voiced his opinions and said the same thing as I was saying and that’s what really helped turn my career around.”
Servia is one of a handful of drivers searching for a ride and has raised around half the budget needed to race next season, despite having not raced full time in IndyCar since 2012 when he drove for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing.
Servia came in at the start of 2016 as a sub for Will Power at St. Petersburg in the season opener, and later raced for Schmidt Peterson Motorsports at the Indianapolis 500 in a third entry.
Although Rahal feels that having Servia on board for a second car would be a worthwhile investment, he noted that he wouldn’t want to disturb the fine rhythm that the team has already built up as a single car team – having finished the season top five in the standings for the second consecutive year and claiming top Honda honors.
“I think a lot of our success is due to our people,” Rahal said.
“The ownership is part of that and me as a driver is a small part of that, but the guys on the shop floor make this thing happen. The key is to try to keep them happy, focused, keep our team as tight knit as it has been and so you have to be careful bringing in somebody else that doesn’t fit that mold.”
