Franchitti Two-for-Two at Iowa

[Schwartz Fan]

Franchitti Two-for-Two at Iowa


Dario Franchitti is two-for-two at Iowa Speedway. The 2007 winner at the track found his way back to victory lane Sunday, winning the Iowa Corn Indy 250 by 5.0132 seconds over Ryan Briscoe.

Franchitti gave the credit to his Target Chip Ganassi Racing crew, which turned in a quick pit stop on Lap 196 of 250 as the leaders cycled through green flag stops.

Franchitti trailed Briscoe by less than a second as the stops began and led by more than a second when they were completed. As the drivers worked through lapped traffic over the final 50 laps, Franchitti was able to build his lead to a comfortable margin.

"I like driving here." Franchitti said. "We tested at Iowa last Wednesday. The Target guys did a really, really good job coming up with a setup, and they were awesome in the pits. I just went out, did my job and hung on, made some good moves in traffic and here we are. More than anywhere, today is a team win because those pit stops moved us up in track position."

Franchitti's second victory of the season moved him within three points of Briscoe, who remains the IndyCar Series points leader. For the third consecutive race, Briscoe led the most laps but finished second.

"It was a great day for Team Penske," Briscoe said. "Dario (Franchitti) had a bit more than us when on cold tires. On the restarts, he was a bit better than us. We were quickest throughout the middle of the stint. I was hoping I would be able to catch him in traffic, but he just got a bit more luck with those guys and actually opened up the gap. It was a tough one but a great day. The car was awesome. We had to make a bit of changes on the first pit stop, but from there the car was great."

Andretti Green Racing's Hideki Mutoh finished third, one spot lower than his career-best finish at the track last year, and Panther Racing's Dan Wheldon finished fourth as the top four finishers came from different teams.

Helio Castroneves, who started on the pole based on entrant points after qualifying was cancelled due to water seepage on the track, finished seventh. He made contact with Scott Dixon early in the race, forcing both cars to pit for repairs. Dixon finished fifth.

The race got off to a rough start with four caution periods in the first 55 laps but finished with stints of 56 and 127 consecutive green-flag laps.

RacingOne.com - Franchitti Two-for-Two at Iowa

[24n48fan]

Something tells me that Franchitti will never go back to NASCAR if opportunity knocked on his door.