Franchitti wins at second home
Home-track advantage finally paid off for Dario Franchitti.
Racing at the Nashville Superspeedway in Gladeville, Tenn., that he has adopted as his own, Franchitti dipped inside Patrick Carpentier with seven laps to go and then drove away with the Firestone Indy 200 on Saturday night.
He celebrated his first Indy Racing League victory this year and third overall by spinning doughnuts in front of the grandstand, then headed to Victory Lane to grab his new trophy guitar.
“Finally,” said Franchitti, who can use a helicopter to make the short commute to the track.
“Scotland will always be my home. Nothing will change that I guess. I have two houses now. Scotland is my home. I also live here. I’ve really enjoyed being in this area, living here and becoming part of the community. It’s a great place. What can I tell you?”
Danica Patrick looked like she might make history with her first victory as she started second and even led nine laps.
She got a much-needed caution to refuel and pick up fresh tires, but finished seventh for her fifth top-10 finish in her rookie season. Still, she was frustrated with the result.
“For some reason … when the first green flag hits, … it’s just tough. I don’t know what it is,” Patrick said.
Sam Hornish Jr. finished second, followed by Carpentier. Scott Sharp was fourth and Helio Castroneves finished fifth.
•Prepare to start seeing, and hearing, even more about IRL rookie Danica Patrick.
Officials announced a new marketing deal with Rahal-Letterman Racing and Old World Industries to put Patrick into TV and radio commercials, print and Internet advertising. That will include plastering her picture onto displays for products like Peak antifreeze and Mr. Clean.
Someone asked if there would be a Ms. Clean, and Patrick had only one request.
“Can you give me muscles? Mr. Clean is pretty tough,” she said.
NASCAR Busch Series
Points leader Martin Truex Jr. held off Carl Edwards on the final lap for his fifth victory of the season in a caution-filled NASCAR Busch series New England 200 at New Hampshire International Speedway in Loudon, N.H.
Truex, who started seventh, led only the last 13 laps. The victory extended the reigning series champion’s points lead to 142 over 16th-place finisher Clint Bowyer.
“Maximum points, that’s what we’re here for,” Truex said.
It was the 11th career victory on NASCAR’s second-tier circuit for Truex, who will move up to the Nextel Cup series next year for Dale Earnhardt Inc.
His Chevrolet beat the Ford of fast-closing Edwards by two car-lengths, with Truex winning a two-lap dash in a race extended a lap for a green-flag finish following the final caution.
Rookie Denny Hamlin was third in a Chevy, followed by the Ford of Elliott Sadler and Jamie McMurray’s Dodge.
Nextel Cup
Brian Vickers won the third pole of his NASCAR Nextel Cup career during qualifying at New Hampshire International Speedway.
Vickers, in his second full season on the circuit, drove his Chevrolet around The Magic Mile at 130.327 mph. That earned him the top spot for today’s New England 300, his first pole since last September at California Speedway.
Kasey Kahne qualified second in a Dodge at 130.215, while Elliott Sadler wound up third in a Ford at 129.798.
Champ Car
Heavy rain for much of the day virtually ensured that A.J. Allmendinger’s fast lap that led Friday’s provisional qualifying would hold up for his first Champ Car World Series pole at today’s inaugural Grand Prix of Edmonton. And a quick lap on a still-wet racetrack by Allmendinger denied fan favorite Paul Tracy of Toronto a spot alongside him on the front row.
Instead, it will be Allmendinger’s RuSport teammate Justin Wilson, coming off his first career victory a week ago in Toronto, who will start from the outside of the front row.