A year ago, Dario Franchitti was wearing a body brace after undergoing surgery to insert pins that would stabilize a cracked vertebra in his lower back. Watching IRL IndyCar® Series races was almost as painful as the initial injury.
“It wasn’t a nice existence, put it that way,” he said.
That’s all behind him now. After five top-10 finishes in 11 IndyCar Series career starts, Franchitti won his first race July 25. He held on to the lead on a Lap 219 restart and beat Buddy Rice to the finish line by 0.6590 of a second in the Menards AJ Foyt Indy 225 at The Milwaukee Mile.
Sam Hornish Jr. finished third, followed by IndyCar Series points leader Tony Kanaan and pole sitter Vitor Meira.
Franchitti, who suffered the injury in a motorcycle accident in his native Scotland in April 2003, missed three races and returned to the cockpit for Andretti Green Racing at Pikes Peak. But it still wasn’t right. He conceded the remainder of the season to have surgery.
His return to the No. 27 ArcaEx Dallara/Honda/Firestone this season also didn’t start swimmingly. He finished 17th in the first two races before posting a seventh-place finish at Twin Ring Motegi in April. A runner-up finish after winning his first MBNA Pole Award at Texas in June was the high-water mark before coming to the flat Milwaukee oval.
“Last year was difficult,” said Franchitti, who followed Jim Clark (1963) as Scotsmen to win at The Milwaukee Mile. “I’m having a great time here, having a great time with these (Andretti Green Racing) guys. And I wanted to come back for that reason. I’ve still got a lot left to do. These guys stood by me. Hopefully, we’ll be able to do some more of these and pay these guys back.”
Team co-owner Michael Andretti, who won five Indy-style car races at The Milwaukee Mile, said Franchitti’s team spirit has proven his commitment.
“Never once did we ever think that Dario’s heart wasn’t in it,” Andretti said. “This guy has been giving everything since he got back in the car. He’s contributed so much for the team. There were so many races that nobody knew that he had a winning car, but he just didn’t get the luck to get it done. I’m so happy that it was actually able to finally get it done. To do it here in Milwaukee was special, as well.”
Franchitti, who started seventh and led 111 laps, took the lead for good on a Lap 155 restart. A 12-lap caution period was created when the No. 10 Target Chip Ganassi Dallara/Toyota/Firestone driven by Darren Manning made contact with the outside wall of the backstretch. The leaders pitted for fuel and tires on Lap 147, and Hornish beat Franchitti to the acceleration lane. But the advantage didn’t last long.
“When we put new tires on, the car really came to life at that point and I started moving through the field, passing Hornish and those guys,” Franchitti said. “At that point, the car was working really, really well. I was able to get through traffic nicely.
“I was quite happy with the condition of the track today. I was able to use two, maybe three lines. There was obviously one optimum line, but I was quite happy moving up and down the track. I think that’s the sign of a good car. It’s something Michael and I have talked about -- the car’s ability to be able to do that. We got it right.”
Franchitti, who posted the fastest race lap of 160.229 mph, stretched his lead to 1.5939 seconds over Hornish on Lap 176. Rice moved into second on Lap 204 and was closing the gap before a yellow flag on Lap 212 flew when the No. 20 Patrick Racing Dallara/Chevrolet/Firestone made contact with the Turn 2 wall. On the restart, Franchitti got a good jump and held his line.
“In the late laps, both Dario and I were slipping in Turn 1 and 2 and we were good in Turns 3 and 4,” said Rice, who moved to second in the standings. “If it had been different, I might have been able to make a run at him. Dario had a good car today.
“I was hoping that the laps would stay green until the end because I was closing on him. But with just a few laps to go, I never really had a chance for a run. Before the yellow came out late, I was able to cut the lead from 4.7 (seconds) to 1.6 (second), but the tires cooled a bit. I didn’t want to see that yellow. I think we had something for him with all green laps.”
Hornish, who has finished second and third in his past two races, led 34 laps. He ran down Kanaan in Turn 1 for the lead on Lap 16, and had Marlboro Team Penske teammate 0.0429 of a second behind on Lap 33. While the leaders pitted during a caution period on Lap 42, Bryan Herta remained on the track and assumed the lead.
“We had a good car early on, and then we kind of got on a seesaw,” said Hornish, who started fourth in the No. 6 Marlboro Team Penske Dallara/Toyota/Firestone. “A little bit push, a little bit loose. We just didn’t have quite enough form there. Toward the end, you’re trying to conserve fuel because it’s a long run to the checkered. It would have been interesting to see what happened if the yellow hadn’t come out. But I think there would have been a lot of guys coasting around.”
Franchitti is the fifth winner in the IndyCar Series this year, joining his Andretti Green Racing teammates Kanaan and Dan Wheldon, Rice and Hornish.
Kanaan posted his eighth consecutive top-five finish, an IRL record. He had shared the record with Wheldon, Hornish and Castroneves.
"It was a long, tough race, but seeing Dario win today was a win for me," Kanaan said. "That guy has been through so much, and he deserves this, so I'm very happy for him. For me, we just didn't have the car to win today, but we scored some good points. When we can't win, that is what we have to focus on, and today we got everything we could for Team 7-Eleven."
