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Get To Know Ryan Hunter-Reay- RFK's All Children's Hospital Driver Representative

Ryan Hunter-Reay burst onto the racing scene in the late 1990’s, winning six WKA National Karting Championships and three Grand National Karting Titles before turning his attention to open-wheel racecars.  He shined in the Barber Dodge Two Liter and Barber Dodge Pro Series before moving up to the Formula Atlantic Series in 2002, where he immediately demonstrated his ability to win on all three of the open-wheel racing disciplines; road circuits, ovals and street courses.

 

In 2003, Ryan moved up to the IndyCar level and quickly became the first American Rookie in 20 years to win a race, when he took the checkers at Surfers Paradise, Australia.  In 2004, Hunter-Reay earned his second Champ Car victory, winning from the pole at the famed Milwaukee Mile, while setting another record for most laps lead in a single race by leading 250 laps and lapping al but the 2nd and 3rd cars.

 

Ryan left Champ Car racing following the 2005 season and began diversifying his racing resume.  He raced in everything from Daytona Prototypes in NASCAR’s Road Racing Championship, the Rolex Grand American Series, where he won in only his fourth start, to Off-Road racing in the grueling Baja 1000, and representing the USA in the International A1 Grand Prix Championship.

 

In 2007, Bobby Rahal chose Hunter-Reay to drive the # 17 Ethanol entry for Rahal Letterman Racing in the IndyCar Series.  Despite being hired on Wednesday for the following weekend’s technical Mid-Ohio road race, Ryan wasted no time proving yet again why he is one of the very top young American drivers in the world today.  There has never been a better debut in the history of the Rahal Letterman Team, Ryan finished seventh, and went on to score three-top seven finishes in the remaining six races of the season, against some of the world’s best drivers.  These amazing performances led to Ryan winning the Bombardier Rookie of the Year Title after competing in just six events – setting yet another record.

 

In 2008 Hunter-Reay’s sixth place finish at the Indy 500 earned him the Indy 500 Rookie of the Year Title, an honor especially significant given that the race had the biggest rookie field in over a decade

 

Last season, Ryan finished 15th in IndyCar Series, driving for Vision Racing and then A.J. Foyt Racing (in 11 of 17 races).  He recorded Vision Racing’s best finish of second at the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg.  He posted two top-five and three top-ten finishes during the 2009 series.