Dario Franchitti:
“I’m excited to be back here. I came to the test last week to watch and see if I could learn anything. I think Mike (Conway) did a great job here and it looked really slippery. Last time we were here in 2007, we had a good qualifying effort, but the race didn’t go quite according to plan, and I’m excited to be back in Northern California. The weather is perfect and the fans are always excited about the IndyCar Series.”
About what he normally eats on race day:
“Race day breakfast is probably some cereal. It’s normally porridge or something, but because I don’t have my bus here this weekend I’ll eat what I can. Some boring pasta before the race. After the race probably In ‘n Out burger on the way to the airport.”
About being a better IndyCar Series or NASCAR driver:
“For sure I’m a better IndyCar driver than an NASCAR driver. I was barely in my early stages of development as a NASCAR river, whereas I’m relatively close to being a good IndyCar Series driver. I don’t see going back to NASCAR. I’d like to go back to NASCAR under different circumstances maybe at some point, but I don’t see myself leaving IndyCar anytime soon. As long as I’m enjoying it as much as I am right now and I’m competitive, I’ll keep doing it. Time is against us all – I’m 36 right now and there are a lot of young drivers coming up. As long as I can compete for wins I’ll keep doing IndyCar. I don’t see past doing this. Going away made me realize how much I miss doing this. With the unified series and the schedule being more balanced, it’s the perfect place for me to race.”
About what he learned in NASCAR:
“I learned a slightly more aggressive style of racing and I learned that in an IndyCar that I try to set up the car to do most of the work and to get it exactly the way I want it to handle. I could drive the wheels off of it when it was like that. I wasn’t quite as good when it wasn’t. It probably taught me to drive better when there was more of an imbalance.”
About how a friendship with teammate Scott Dixon has helped his return:
“It certainly hasn’t made driving around the track any easier, but as far as working with the team and sharing information it’s been first class. I couldn’t ask for anything more. We sit at a table and the information goes back and forth. Not only set up, but corners and techniques. At Mid-Ohio I said, ‘Have you tried this yet? ‘, and a few days later he asked if I’d tried something. We’re constantly going back and forth. The fact that we’re friends and go back and forth definitely ramps up the enjoyment factor. I had a great time at Andretti Green Racing, and I’ve been lucky to have great teammates. Obviously Tony Kanaan is one of my best friends and still is, but having those friendships with Dan (Wheldon), Brian (Herta), Marco (Andretti), Danica (Patrick), Tony (Kanaan) or Scott (Dixon) really helps make things enjoyable off the track when it’s going well, but especially when it’s not going well because you can support each other. “
About challenges at Infineon Raceway:
“One of the things that’s really difficult through Turns 2 and 3a, it’s completely blind. Experience here helps from that point of view. I’ve noticed that guys have started running more see-through screens on the cars and that’s helped increase the vision. It’s a challenge this place, it’s really one of the toughest places we race. It can get a lot of traffic, especially at the start. We were lucky that Scott (Dixon) tested here last week. I could do with some more time. We’re still trying to figure out what I need from a road-course car, but it’s not available, so we’ll make the best of what we’ve got. “
About how dealt with the peaks and valleys of the last year:
“I think a year ago was actually one of our better days (in NASCAR). We qualified on the front row in Bristol and last year that was a peak. It’s something you learn in this sport. To be successful you can’t get too excited by everything and you’ve got to keep a very balanced outlook on things. I think for as difficult as it got at some points you learn things from it and how you deal with adversity. I was lucky that this is the first time that’s happened to me. I have friends who this has happed to regularly over the last 15 years, so I’m very lucky. It’s how you deal with it, how you process those things. Just because you’re having a bad time, you don’t take it out on other people. I really didn’t want that to happen. I was happy I didn’t allow that to happen.”
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