Graham Rahal defends RLL teammate's "fiery" side in scuffle with Scott McLaughlin

Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing’s Graham Rahal came out during the 2025 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach and spoke about last race weekend's tussle between teammate Devlin DeFrancesco and Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin. The two drivers were involved in a heated argument after the race in the RLL pit box.

Motorsports reporter Bob Pockrass uploaded a video on April 12, of Rahal giving his two cents on the argument between DeFrancesco and McLaughlin. The reporter asked the RLL driver about DeFrancesco's fiery reaction during the tussle, to which he replied:

“I mean, I see it every day. That dude's a fiery little guy. Don't mistake the size for the size of the heart. He's an energetic dude. I certainly see both sides of it. And that's what I told him because he reached out to me."

Graham Rahal then detailed the reason behind DeFrancesco and Scott McLaughlin colliding on Lap 1, which eventually led to the argument. His comments suggested that it was more of a racing incident as he said:

“I just felt that, look, there wasn't a lot of room given to him, that's for sure. I think he obviously came in a little hot, but also, we, the guys at the front were getting ready to go, so everybody in the back is feeling the rush that you've got to go, like, you got to catch up to the pack, and you know, you're going to miss the green flag.”

Scott McLaughlin and Devlin DeFrancesco came together on Lap 1 at Thermal Club which sent the Team Penske driver spinning off the track. The RLL driver dive-bombed the inside of the #3 Team Penske, and McLaughlin, who didn't realize DeFrancesco was on his inside, turned into him.

The RLL driver was given a penalty by the race stewards for the same incident. The #3 driver took to Devlin’s pit box after the race to call out the RLL driver, which then led to a fiesty exchange of words between the duo.

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Graham Rahal hailed RLL’s new Team President Jay Frye

Former IndyCar President Jay Frye left the organization earlier this year after serving in the role for close to ten years, and IMS President Doug Boles was appointed as his replacement. Frye was recently signed by Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing as their new Team President and Graham Rahal came out and hailed the signing. He said (via RACER):

“He’s an anomaly to your traditional team president in the sense that he has experience at every level – team ownership, the budget-setter, series president, operationally, working with Hendrick Motorsports, running the Red Bull NASCAR deal, and MB2 (in NASCAR).

“So to me, Jay’s a pro in every single regard. He’s a guy that I believe strongly can run the team and take us to the next level.”

Graham Rahal himself considered stepping down from the driving role to take over a management position in his father's team but has suggested otherwise since Frye's appointment.