An agreement scrawled on a cocktail napkin in late August 2008, unofficially welcomed back Dario Franchitti into the IZOD IndyCar Series with Target Chip Ganassi Racing.
Details after that dinner meeting in Detroit would be worked out later because Chip Ganassi and Dario Franchitti have understood each other for years. Both want to win, period.
It was the backstop of Franchitti venturing to stock car racing after winning the 2007 IZOD IndyCar Series and Indianapolis 500 championships with then-Andretti Green Racing. He wished to explore new avenues to Victory Circle, and signed with Ganassi’s organization.
The venture, however, was short-lived. Franchitti suffered a broken ankle in a Nationwide Series race and the operation was shuttered in June because of a lack of sponsorship.
In some respects, it was fortuitous. Franchitti arrived at Belle Isle in Detroit ostensibly to watch his brother, Marino, compete in an American Le Mans Series race and catch up with friends. He wound up agreeing to switch to Ganassi’s IZOD IndyCar Series team to fill the vacancy of Dan Wheldon, who was departing for Panther Racing. Now the racer who outdueled Scott Dixon for the ‘07 series championship - on the final lap of the final race - would be his teammate.
“It all worked out perfectly,” said Franchitti, who on May 30 presented Ganassi’s team a fourth Indianapolis 500 victory. “I think it says a lot about Chip, the people he employs. The mind-set, whether it’s here or down in Concord (N.C.), we’re here to win. If you aren’t interested in that, if you take your eye off the ball, he lets you know. That’s all he cares about.”
Franchitti, starting on the outside of the front row in the No. 10 entry (the first time in Indy 500 history that number has won), led 155 of the 200 laps. A crash on the white flag lap prevented him from taking the twin checkered flags at speed. His 2007 victory also was under caution - the race shortened because of rain.
“It’s like comparing my two dogs,” Franchitti said. “They are both different but they are both pretty cool. We need a third dog now.”
Franchitti is the 18th driver to win the 500 Mile Race twice, joining - among others - Al Unser Jr. and Arie Luyendyk.
“If I thought Dario didn’t know how to drive he wouldn’t be driving the car no matter what happened in NASCAR,” Ganassi said minutes after taking a swig of the milk in Victory Circle at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. “I knew he knew how to drive. I knew he was the best driver available when that seat became available, and I told him that.
“His NASCAR experience, that was like a semester at sea or something that we did. We did it, and we’re glad we did it, but we’re glad we’re back home, too. The guy’s a champion. He’s been there, done that. He knows what it takes. From the first day of practice up until five minutes ago, he’s the consummate professional…He’s the guy you want in the car in that situation.”
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