Alpine gives its own talent a chance: Lundgaard makes his IndyCar debut

Christian Lundgaard has his first race weekend in IndyCar under his belt. The Alpine talent will make his debut in the American racing class at the Big Machine Spiked Coolers Grand Prix for the Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing team.

Lundgaard was seen as one of the crown jewels of the Renault/Alpine youth squad in recent years but has faded away a bit in 2021. Where Oscar Piastri and Guanyu Zhou are fighting for the title in Formula 2, Lundgaard isn't getting it done. However, the Dane has now managed a one-off appearance in IndyCar.

''We were very pleased with Christian's performance during our recent test at Barber Motorsports Park and we look forward to seeing him perform at Indianapolis Motor Speedway,'' said Bobby Rahal, co-owner of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing with David Letterman and Mike Lanigan in the press release.

Opportunity for Lundgaard

''It’s going to be a new experience and a big challenge due to the lack of practice time compared to other races. The road course is very much like European circuits given that it was designed for Formula 1 and Grand Prix races, so I think it will be less of an issue than going to one of our more traditional INDYCAR race tracks. Given the lack of test time and practice time, we don’t have any grand expectations of him other than to go out and do a steady job and go from there,'' Rahal concluded.

Lundgaard himself is obviously over the moon with this opportunity: ''I'm super excited to try IndyCar next week. I’ve been very fortunate so far in my career to drive some incredible race cars and I’m looking forward to officially adding INDYCAR to that list. In preparation for this race, I tested the car and it felt pretty awesome and I’m sure it will feel even better at a race weekend in race conditions alongside all the hugely talented drivers in the field. There’s been a lot of work to make this happen and prepare as best as possible and I’m feeling ready for the challenge. I’ve actually watched all INDYCAR races this year, so to be given the chance to line up on the grid is amazing.''

Breakthrough for Alpine

It's also an important moment for Alpine, as it's the first time a talent from their programme has been given a chance at the very highest level. Davide Brivio, Alpine's Team Racing Director, is delighted with this opportunity for his pupil.

''INDYCAR is a brilliant, competitive series with very strong contenders and we are excited to see how Christian converts this opportunity. Christian remains an important part of the Alpine Academy as he has shown huge promise throughout his junior career. Now, two seasons into FIA Formula 2, we are evaluating different options for the next stage, but for this particular moment we are just focusing on the present; enjoy a different type of car and environment, work hard and deliver on track. I’m sure Christian will enjoy it, and I can’t wait to see the race'', concludes Brivio.