this time Hunter-Reay was ranked 14th in points. At the thirteenth race of the season, the Champ Car Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course Hunter-Reay qualified in 2nd place and finished in 3rd place. Five races later at the season-ending Lexmark Indy 300 at the Surfers Paradise Street Circuit Hunter-Reay started from twelfth place and would make his first of three mandatory pit stops to get slick tires as the track was changing from wet to dry in various parts of the track. Hunter-Reay would soon lead for 15 laps and would keep his car on the track while several other cars were crashing and/or spinning off of the track. Hunter-Reay would go on to win his first Champ Car race. Hunter-Reay began to drive for Herdez Competition in 2004 in the #4 Herdez Lola B02/00-Ford Cosworth XFE. In the third race of the season, the Time Warner Cable Road Runner 250 at the Milwaukee Mile, Hunter-Reay would qualify on the pole position and lead for all 250 laps to get his second and final Champ Car win. Following the race Hunter-Reay was ranked third in points. Hunter-Reay's best finish in the remaining races was a 4th at the Grand Prix of Road America at Road America. In the race Hunter-Reay started second and made contact with former teammate Jimmy Vasser on the first lap and dropped the two to the rear of the field. Hunter-Reay charged up through the field to get fourth place while Vasser finished eighth. Hunter-Reay would finish ninth in points (the only time Hunter-Reay finished in the top 10 in points in Champ Car) with 199 points. In 2005 Hunter-Reay began to drive for Rocketsports Racing in the #31 Lola B02/00-Ford Cosworth XFE. The car did not have consistent sponsorship and had to have sponsorship for various races from autobytel.com, Briggs & Stratton, Cytomax and Red Paw Systems. At the Grand Prix of Denver at the Pepsi Center the car ran without sponsorship. Hunter-Reay's best finish during the season was a pair of 6th-place finishes at the Molson Indy Toronto at Exhibition Place and at Denver. Following the Hurricane Relief 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where Hunter-Reay started 16th and finished 10th, Hunter-Reay was replaced by Michael McDowell for the final two races of the season. Hunter-Reay was 14th in points following the Las Vegas event and would drop to 15th