With most of the motorsports world on hiatus because of the coronavirus pandemic, we’ve decided to highlight some of the sport’s legends on a daily basis. We begin each story within the pages of National Speed Sport News.
When Scottish driver Dario Franchitti made his Champ Car World Series debut in 1997 after racing in the German Touring Car Championship, few would have imagined he’d become a legendary open-wheel racer.
But that’s what happened.
Franchitti won 10 Champ Car races in six seasons and 114 starts in the series, but his career really took off after he moved to the NTT IndyCar Series full time in 2004. Driving for the team co-owned by Barry Green and Michael Andretti, which later became Andretti Autosport, Franchitti became a top performer in the series.
His breakout season came in 2007 when he won four races, including the Indianapolis 500, en route to claiming the series championship.
He rode that wave of success to a NASCAR Cup Series ride with Chip Ganassi Racing. But after only 18 starts, his NASCAR career ended and Franchitti returned to Indy cars, but remained with Chip Ganassi Racing.
In his first season with the Mike Hull-led CGR Indy car team, Ganassi won five races and a second championship.
He won a second Indianapolis 500 in 2010 en route to his third series championship. A fourth IndyCar championship came in 2011 and he won his third Indy 500 in 2012. It turned out to be his final IndyCar Series victory.
Franchitti suffered serious injuries, including a concussion in a crash during the 2013 Houston Grand Prix. A month later he announced his retirement from driving.
Franchitti, who remains a consultant and driver coach for Chip Ganassi Racing, while also working on television, earned 31 Champ Car and IndyCar victories in 265 starts.
He also won the Rolex 24 at Daytona endurance race with Chip Ganassi Racing in 2008.
