Dario Franchitti celebrates Ohio triumph which closes gap at top of title leaderboard

Aug 12 2010 West Lothian Courier

THE omens for another Dario Franchitti title triumph are looking good after a stunning race earned him a hard-fought victory in the Indy-Ohio at the weekend.

A driver who has finished on the podium at Mid-Ohio has gone on to with the championship each of the last three seasons while it was also his third consecutive top-three finish at Mid-Ohio.

So after a see-saw scrap saw Franchitti edge out Indy championship leader Will Power, the Bathgate driver hopes fortune is favouring his bid for a third successive IndyCar championship title.

In an epic track battle Franchitti held his nerve to cross the line first, by 0.5234 (the third-closest road/street course finish in series history), and slash Power’s lead at the top to 41 points.

Power had recovered from a heavy crash in practice to claim his seventh pole of the current IndyCar season.

But out on the track Franchitti quickly reeled in the Australian driver.

The turning point in the race came when both Franchitti and Power pitted in the shortened 35-foot pit boxes.

Franchitti entered second but crucially came out first.

He explained: “For whatever reason I had better traction and was able to pass him by, a foot, foot-and-a-half, and was getting damn close to the grass.

“It’s funny. These races sometimes come down to those small moments.”

The 37-year-old West Lothian star showcased impeccable driving skills and an iron will to ignore a flurry of yellow flags and a controversial exit for fellow Brit-drive Justin Wilson to steer home first, claiming his 25th career open-wheel win tying him with Gordon Johncock for 12th all time.

“Getting to that quarter century (in wins), doing it here at Mid-Ohio, a place I found almost every way to lose a race, 12 years (after) my first pole here, it’s very satisfying,” Franchitti added.

“I think the key to the race, obviously, was the Target car was very fast.

“I drove every lap like it was a qualifying lap today, whether I was behind Will or ahead of Will.

“But the key was that first pit stop by the Target boys to get me out ahead, especially a 35-foot pit box. It’s the tightest we run.

“In practice, we couldn’t get the thing out of the box, with Will parked in his, or get it in properly. But when the race win was on the line, it didn’t seem quite as difficult and I managed to pass him.

“I think that was the key today, because we were incredibly evenly matched on the track.”

Next up on the schedule is Infineon Raceway, where he won in 2009.