Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing announced Toby Sowery as its latest signing, as IndyCar's official Instagram account posted an update about the same on March 13, 2025. Sowery will be joining Bobby Rahal's team in the reserve driver role as fans took to Instagram to share their feelings about the same.
Sowery raced for Dale Coyne Racing during the 2024 IndyCar season as a part-time entry and will be joining RLL in a reserve driver role. Sowery began his career in open-wheel racing in Europe before moving to race in Indy Lights (now Indy NXT) in 2019 and 2021.
As IndyCar's official Instagram account shared the update with a picture of the young British driver, the caption read:
“NEWS: @tobysowery has been named as a reserve and development driver for @rllracing.”
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Fans took to the comment section of IndyCar's Instagram and shared their feelings. While some felt that the Briton deserved the seat, others questioned Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing about Juri Vips, who raced as a part-time entry for Bobby Rahal's team.
A fan wrote, "Juri Vips??”
“Vips robbed,” wrote another in the comments section.
“No more Jüri Vips?” mentioned another user.
While some fans were saddened by Toby Sowery taking Juri Vips’ place, others congratulated the youngster on the achievements as they acknowledged the Briton's talent. Fans took note of Sowery’s performance with Dale Coyne Racing during the 2024 IndyCar season.
“He impressed me last year in the outings he got! Hope he gets another chance to race down the line,” wrote a fan.
Another fan celebrated the signing and wrote, “He actually deserves to have a full-time seat, but that's a great step towards being back on the grid.”
“Hope to see him run a race or two,” commented another as they wished to see the Briton race in the series.
Tony Sowery will be joining Graham Rahal, Devlin DeFrancesco, and Louis Foster at Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing for the remainder of the 2025 IndyCar season.
“Huge privilege”: Toby Sowery on joining Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing for the 2025 IndyCar season
Toby Sowery's reserve and test driver role includes back-end work with the simulator and with the engineering team. As per the public release, the Briton will serve as the R&D development driver on Honda’s Driver-in-the-Loop (DiL) simulator. The IndyCar driver suggested that he'd been in talks with the team for a couple of years, as the deal was finalized in March 2025.
“I’ve been in talks with RLL for a couple of years now so getting to work closely with a team that’s been a cornerstone of INDYCAR racing for over three decades is a huge privilege,” said Sowery (via IndyCar).
“I’m committed to pushing myself, learning from some of the best in the sport and becoming a driver who can truly make a difference. I’d like to thank the whole team at RLL for working hard to make this happen and both Bobby (Rahal) and Mike (Lanigan) for believing in me,” he added
The 28-year-old participated in three races for DCR in 2024, and the P13 finish at the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio was his best finish of the season.
