Ex-late-night host David Letterman has a storied history with Indy 500

‘The Greatest Spectacle in Racing’ never gets old for David Letterman.

From the start, he’s partnered with former Indianapolis 500 champion Bobby Rahal in what’s now known as Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLL).

A native of Indianapolis, Letterman, 78, has said his earliest memory of the Indy 500 goes back to 1955 when he’d listen to the race on the radio with his family at their home, just miles away from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. And once again, he’ll be back home in Indiana for this year’s 500, which takes place Sunday, May 25.

Has David Letterman ever won the Indy 500?

If you mean the racing team Letterman co-owns, then yes.

Buddy Rice won the Indy 500 in 2004 for Rahal Letterman Racing, and Takuma Sato won it in 2020 for Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing.

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing drivers in 2025 Indy 500

David Letterman’s team will have four drivers in the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500.

• Takuma Sato, a two-time Indy 500 (2017 and 2020), posted the second-fastest time in qualifying. He will start in the middle of the front row in the No. 75 RLLR Honda.
• Devlin DeFrancesco, a 25-year-old Canadian driver, is in his first season with RLL. He qualified 16th in the No. 30 Honda
• Louis Foster: The British driver is a rookie in the IndyCar Series and will make his Indy 500 debut on Sunday. He starts 20th in the No. 45 RLLR Honda.
• Graham Rahal, the son of team owner Bobby Rahal and a six-time IndyCar series winner, is in his 18th season on the IndyCar circuit. He will start 28th in the No. 15 RLLR Honda. (Fun fact: Graham Rahal once presented a Top 10 list on Letterman’s ‘Late Show’ in 2013.)

How did David Letterman get into owning an IndyCar team?

In a recent interview with the Indianapolis Star, Letterman discusses how special the Indy 500 was in the life of his family and friends.

‘I saw every weekend this kid named Bobby Rahal running up front. I started following him and was attracted to ‘the guy,’ not so typical of the drivers I was familiar with as a younger person. When he won in ’86, he came on (‘Late Night with David Letterman’), and that was the beginning of our acquaintance, and it developed into a friendship, and I would attend races around the country when I had time off. From that, he was nice enough to let me come in and be a bit of a partnership on the team.’

Also in that interview, Letterman talks about what it was like to be part of the winning team at The Brickyard in 2004 and 2017.

David Letterman’s first Indy 500

A few years ago, Letterman told the story of the first time he ever attended the Indianapolis 500 in person. In an interview with NBC Sports, Letterman revealed it was in 1966, when he was a student at Ball State University.

‘(A) buddy of mine from Ball State, we drove down, and we found a old piece of Samsonite luggage. A big, like six-suiter or something, and we put as much beer in it as we could. And as the day heated up, all the ice melted, and we had a waterfall going down. And people beneath us [were like], ‘What? Where is this?’ And of course it was the idiots, the drunks, sitting up there.’

2025 Indy 500 starting lineup

See where Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing drivers are on the starting grid.

(Car number in parentheses, followed by driver, team, manufacturer; R=rookie; W=former winner)

1. (83) Robert Shwartzman (R), Prema Racing, Chevrolet
2. (75) Takuma Sato (W), Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Honda
3. (5) Pato O’Ward, Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet
4. (9) Scott Dixon (W), Chip Ganassi Racing, Honda
5. (60) Felix Rosenqvist, Meyer Shank Racing, Honda
6. (10) Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing, Honda
7. (4) David Malukas, A.J. Foyt Enterprises, Chevrolet
8. (7) Christian Lundgaard, Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet
9. (28) Marcus Ericsson (W), Andretti Global, Honda
10. (3) Scott McLaughlin, Team Penske, Chevrolet
11. (76) Conor Daly, Juncos Hollinger Racing, Chevrolet
12. (20) Alexander Rossi (W), Ed Carpenter Racing, Chevrolet
13. (8) Kyffin Simpson, Chip Ganassi Racing, Honda
14. (33) Ed Carpenter, Ed Carpenter Racing, Chevrolet
15. (14) Santino Ferrucci, A.J. Foyt Enterprises, Chevrolet
16. (30) Devlin DeFrancesco, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Honda
17. (77) Sting Ray Robb, Juncos Hollinger Racing, Chevrolet
18. (21) Christian Rasmussen, Ed Carpenter Racing, Chevrolet
19. (17) Kyle Larson, Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet
20. (45) Louis Foster (R), Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Honda
21. (90) Callum Ilott, Prema Racing, Chevrolet
22. (06) Helio Castroneves (W), Meyer Shank Racing, Honda
23. (27) Kyle Kirkwood, Andretti Global, Honda
24. (6) Nolan Siegel (R), Arrow McLaren, Chevrolet
25. (23) Ryan Hunter-Reay (W), Dreyer & Reinbold Racing/Cusick Motorsports, Chevrolet
26. (24) Jack Harvey, Dreyer & Reinbold Racing/Cusick Motorsports, Chevrolet
27. (26) Colton Herta, Andretti Global, Honda
28. (15) Graham Rahal, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, Honda
29. (98) Marco Andretti, Andretti Global, Honda
30. (66) Marcus Armstrong, Meyer Shank Racing, Honda
31. (18) Rinus Veekay, Dale Coyne Racing, Honda
32. *(2) Josef Newgarden (W), Team Penske, Chevrolet
33. *(12) Will Power (W), Team Penske, Chevrolet

Watch the Indy 500 with Fubo

How to watch the Indy 500: Date, time, TV and streaming

• Date: Sunday, May 25
• TV time: 10 a.m. ET
• Race time: 12:45 p.m. ET
• TV channel: FOX
• Live stream: Fubo (free trial to new subscribers)
• Location: Indianapolis Motor Speedway