By DALE BOSOWSKI
Contributor to the
Manteca (Calif.) Bulletin
LONG BEACH — Dario Franchitti (No. 10 Team Target/Ganassi) described his start to the 35th running of the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach as “crap.”
Franchitti qualified just a shade behind pole sitter Will Power (No. 12 Verizon Wireless/Penske) to earn a front-row spot, but quickly dropped to fourth before entering the first turn after taking the green flag to start Sunday’s race.
That opening-lap mistake was the only one the Scotsman made all day, as he combined a fast car with perfect pit strategy and a little luck to take a 3.3182 second victory over Power.
Afterward, in victory lane, the 2007 Indy 500 series champion was rewarded with a big hug and kiss from his wife Ashley Judd, who was celebrating her 41st birthday.
Brazilian Tony Kanaan (No. 12 7-Eleven-Dr. Pepper/Andretti-Green) completed the podium while Danica Patrick (No. 7 Motorola/Andretti-Green) finished fourth, Dan Weldon (No. 4 National Guard/Panther Racing) fifth and Marco Andretti (No. 26 Automatic Fire Sprinklers/Andretti-Green) sixth.
Brazil’s Helio Castroneves finished seventh in the race after returning to the No. 3 Team Penske car following his acquittal on federal tax evasion charges on Friday.
Franchitti’s team rolled the dice and decided to pit early under green on lap 16. The move paid immediate dividends when a full course yellow came out after E.J. Viso made contact with one of the concrete walls ling the 1.968 mile, 11-turn course. As the rest of the drivers headed for the pits Franchitti quickly cycled towards the front, taking the lead on lap 32.
The race came down to the timing of my first pit stop,” explained Franchitti. “The team called it perfectly, because my tires were just starting to go off a bit. After that, we were saving fuel and still making good lap times.”
Once in the lead, Franchitti was able to gradually pull away from the pack while still conserving fuel during the latter stages of the race. He was able to complete the final 32 laps of the race without another stop thanks in part to a couple of full course cautions near the end of the event that aided his fuel mileage.
Will Power had an equally fast car, but was also desperately saving fuel after making his final pit stop two laps earlier than Franchitti.
“I was doing some serious fuel saving out there and driving as hard as I could through the corners to make up for it,” said Power, who also had to receive team orders via the team’s pit board after his radio malfunctioned. “The car was there. If I had been able to go for it I think we would have been on him.”
Franchitti scoffed at any thought that Power could have caught him.
“At one point they came on the radio and said, `What changes do you want to make in the car?’ and I said, `None. I’m not even pushing hard enough to know what the car is going to do at its limit.’”
Although Franchitti had won several road course races while in Champ Car, it was his first victory on a road course and ninth overall in the Indy Car Series. It was also only his second start in an Indy Car since returning from an ill fated season racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series in 2008.
“I felt I needed to try something different and it feels great to win again in the IndyCar Series,” said Franchitti. “Last season made me realize how much I enjoyed open-wheel racing. It is great to be back.”
Combined with his fourth-place finish in the opener at St. Petersburg, Sunday’s victory gives Franchitti the early season lead in the point standings over Power by a 84 to 69 margin heading into next weekend’s race at the Kansas Speedway one-mile oval.
The Indy Car Series will visit Infineon Raceway, near Sonoma, on August 21-23.
To contact Dale Bosowski, e-mail dalebosowski@yahoo.com.
Contributor to the
Manteca (Calif.) Bulletin
LONG BEACH — Dario Franchitti (No. 10 Team Target/Ganassi) described his start to the 35th running of the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach as “crap.”
Franchitti qualified just a shade behind pole sitter Will Power (No. 12 Verizon Wireless/Penske) to earn a front-row spot, but quickly dropped to fourth before entering the first turn after taking the green flag to start Sunday’s race.
That opening-lap mistake was the only one the Scotsman made all day, as he combined a fast car with perfect pit strategy and a little luck to take a 3.3182 second victory over Power.
Afterward, in victory lane, the 2007 Indy 500 series champion was rewarded with a big hug and kiss from his wife Ashley Judd, who was celebrating her 41st birthday.
Brazilian Tony Kanaan (No. 12 7-Eleven-Dr. Pepper/Andretti-Green) completed the podium while Danica Patrick (No. 7 Motorola/Andretti-Green) finished fourth, Dan Weldon (No. 4 National Guard/Panther Racing) fifth and Marco Andretti (No. 26 Automatic Fire Sprinklers/Andretti-Green) sixth.
Brazil’s Helio Castroneves finished seventh in the race after returning to the No. 3 Team Penske car following his acquittal on federal tax evasion charges on Friday.
Franchitti’s team rolled the dice and decided to pit early under green on lap 16. The move paid immediate dividends when a full course yellow came out after E.J. Viso made contact with one of the concrete walls ling the 1.968 mile, 11-turn course. As the rest of the drivers headed for the pits Franchitti quickly cycled towards the front, taking the lead on lap 32.
The race came down to the timing of my first pit stop,” explained Franchitti. “The team called it perfectly, because my tires were just starting to go off a bit. After that, we were saving fuel and still making good lap times.”
Once in the lead, Franchitti was able to gradually pull away from the pack while still conserving fuel during the latter stages of the race. He was able to complete the final 32 laps of the race without another stop thanks in part to a couple of full course cautions near the end of the event that aided his fuel mileage.
Will Power had an equally fast car, but was also desperately saving fuel after making his final pit stop two laps earlier than Franchitti.
“I was doing some serious fuel saving out there and driving as hard as I could through the corners to make up for it,” said Power, who also had to receive team orders via the team’s pit board after his radio malfunctioned. “The car was there. If I had been able to go for it I think we would have been on him.”
Franchitti scoffed at any thought that Power could have caught him.
“At one point they came on the radio and said, `What changes do you want to make in the car?’ and I said, `None. I’m not even pushing hard enough to know what the car is going to do at its limit.’”
Although Franchitti had won several road course races while in Champ Car, it was his first victory on a road course and ninth overall in the Indy Car Series. It was also only his second start in an Indy Car since returning from an ill fated season racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series in 2008.
“I felt I needed to try something different and it feels great to win again in the IndyCar Series,” said Franchitti. “Last season made me realize how much I enjoyed open-wheel racing. It is great to be back.”
Combined with his fourth-place finish in the opener at St. Petersburg, Sunday’s victory gives Franchitti the early season lead in the point standings over Power by a 84 to 69 margin heading into next weekend’s race at the Kansas Speedway one-mile oval.
The Indy Car Series will visit Infineon Raceway, near Sonoma, on August 21-23.
To contact Dale Bosowski, e-mail dalebosowski@yahoo.com.
