Dario Franchitti was part of the 'open wheel revolution' that was supposed to take NASCAR to a whole new level. It didn't quite work out, at least for Franchitti. When the former Indy 500 and IndyCar series champion announced that he would switch to stockcars with Chip Ganassi Racing, he joined the likes of former open wheel drivers Juan Pablo Montoya, Sam Hornish Junior, Scott Speed, Jacques Villeneuve, and Patrick Carpentier. The results for Franchitti were mixed however as they have been for most of the former open wheelers. The Scotsman made 10 starts in NASCAR's top tier series, failed to qualify for two events and never finished higher then 22nd. In the second tier Nationwide series, he made a total of 18 starts over the course of two years and although he finished fifth at Watkins Glen in August, that was after he had missed six races while he recovered from a broken ankle suffered at Talladega in April. Shortly after he returned, team owner Chip Ganassi announced that the Sprint Cup team was being shut down for lack of sponsorship. It wasn't long after that Franchitti said he would be returning to open wheel racing joining Scott Dixon in a Chip Ganassi owned car. Franchitti was asked how he would sum up his overall NASCAR experience? "I think the first part of the season was very, very tough. I was just starting to get the hang of it when I broke my ankle. I think we had some good performances, if not results, with the car at Pocono, Michigan and Loudon. We were running very well there. Then we had the news of the 41 car being shut down. Then subsequently our Nationwide program, I think we've done very well there."
-- NASCAR Examiner
NASCAR Examiner: Five questions with: Dario Franchitti
09-10-2008, 02:28 PM
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