Rahal expects good tire wear on Sunday

IndyCar polesitter Graham Rahal, who has taken to the street circuit in St. Petersburg like a duck takes to water, is happy with the wear he is getting on both the black Primary Firestone Tires as well as the softer red Alternate Firestone Tires.

"It's great to get pole. We certainly didn't know what to expect because we had the Firestone primary tires to run at the end, and we saw a couple other guys had the alternates. Both the Firestone tires – the primes and the reds – they performed well today. To be honest, the reds were quicker, no doubt about it. I think they were probably a good four- to five-tenths (of a second per lap) quicker without a problem, and maybe a little more if you pushed 'em. At the end of the day (in the Firestone Fast Six), we did a pretty good run on our primaries to get the pole. I think if we'd had another set of reds then, we would have been even quicker. I think the reds worked extremely well, very consistent. I really don't think tire degradation, reds vs. blacks, is going to be a problem tomorrow."

And it looks like the whole family might be on hand Sunday to see Rahal go for his second straight win in St. Petersburg.

“I’ve got my mom here, my little sister, who never comes to the races, so that’s exciting. My dad is here for part of the weekend, my uncle, his side of the family, and my mom’s boyfriend Chris. They’ve been at Disney World the last couple of days, and now they’re headed over here. My uncle and my dad were here last year, but this year it worked perfectly with my sister’s spring break. My mom just enjoys coming to the races."