Franchitti closes gap with scintillating win - IndyCar.com
JOLIET, Ill. -- Dario Franchitti needed IZOD IndyCar championship points leader Will Power to uncharacteristically falter in the final oval section of the season. He got it to move back into striking distance with three races remaining.
Franchitti picked up the lead out of the final pit stop on Lap 173 -- relying on a double stint of the Firestone Firehawks (62 laps) while most others changed tires -- and held off Dan Wheldon by 0.0423 of a second for his third win of the season.
"That was our only shot," said team owner Chip Ganassi, who is Franchitti's race strategist. "We put him out front and Dario did the rest."
Power's No. 12 Verizon Team Penske crew had a fueling equipment issue on the same pit stop and he had to duck onto pit lane with five laps left for a splash. He was running fourth at the time and finished a season-low 16th.
“These things happen," said Power, who was seeking his first victory on an oval. "I never thought I could race ovals like that. This is going to make it tough for the championship, but we’re still in it. I was looking good there before that last stop. We need to try to limit these little mistakes, but that’s racing. As much as it can be frustrating, you have to take it.”
Franchitti closed to 23 points of Power with three oval races left and took the lead in the A.J. Foyt Oval Championship over Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Scott Dixon, who finished eighth.
"We were struggling tonight with the Breathe Right car really in traffic as we got a little further back there," Franchitti said. "That last stop was the key to this race. (Engineer) Chris Simmons, turns out he was the one that made the call. We had a lot of faith in the Firestone tires. He said leave the tires on and got us out front.
"Dan Wheldon, he was just pushing me all the time, just helping me. I was giving him room at the bottom. We were working together very, very well there."
Marco Andretti led an Andretti Autosport trio in the top five with a season-tying best third place. Ryan Hunter-Reay and Tony Kanaan followed. Helio Castroneves finished sixth and Justin Wilson was seventh. Vitor Meira scored his third top 10 with a ninth-place finish and Graham Rahal was 10th.
The top 10 were separated by 0.9841 of a second. There were a season-high 11 different leaders and 25 lead changes.
Franchitti's 26th Indy car racing victory was his 26th -- tying Rodger Ward for 11th on the all-time list. Johnny Rutherford (27) is next.
JOLIET, Ill. -- Dario Franchitti needed IZOD IndyCar championship points leader Will Power to uncharacteristically falter in the final oval section of the season. He got it to move back into striking distance with three races remaining.
Franchitti picked up the lead out of the final pit stop on Lap 173 -- relying on a double stint of the Firestone Firehawks (62 laps) while most others changed tires -- and held off Dan Wheldon by 0.0423 of a second for his third win of the season.
"That was our only shot," said team owner Chip Ganassi, who is Franchitti's race strategist. "We put him out front and Dario did the rest."
Power's No. 12 Verizon Team Penske crew had a fueling equipment issue on the same pit stop and he had to duck onto pit lane with five laps left for a splash. He was running fourth at the time and finished a season-low 16th.
“These things happen," said Power, who was seeking his first victory on an oval. "I never thought I could race ovals like that. This is going to make it tough for the championship, but we’re still in it. I was looking good there before that last stop. We need to try to limit these little mistakes, but that’s racing. As much as it can be frustrating, you have to take it.”
Franchitti closed to 23 points of Power with three oval races left and took the lead in the A.J. Foyt Oval Championship over Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Scott Dixon, who finished eighth.
"We were struggling tonight with the Breathe Right car really in traffic as we got a little further back there," Franchitti said. "That last stop was the key to this race. (Engineer) Chris Simmons, turns out he was the one that made the call. We had a lot of faith in the Firestone tires. He said leave the tires on and got us out front.
"Dan Wheldon, he was just pushing me all the time, just helping me. I was giving him room at the bottom. We were working together very, very well there."
Marco Andretti led an Andretti Autosport trio in the top five with a season-tying best third place. Ryan Hunter-Reay and Tony Kanaan followed. Helio Castroneves finished sixth and Justin Wilson was seventh. Vitor Meira scored his third top 10 with a ninth-place finish and Graham Rahal was 10th.
The top 10 were separated by 0.9841 of a second. There were a season-high 11 different leaders and 25 lead changes.
Franchitti's 26th Indy car racing victory was his 26th -- tying Rodger Ward for 11th on the all-time list. Johnny Rutherford (27) is next.
