INDYCAR: Dario Franchitti Guiding Ganassi to Success at Indianapolis

It has been ten years since Franchitti last raced in the Indianapolis 500, but his presence is still felt at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The three-time Indy 500 winner and four-time series champion continues his driver advisor role with Chip Ganassi Racing, as they try to win their second consecutive 500 this month. Today is Fast Friday at the speedway, where Franchitti is celebrating his 50th birthday.

Marcus Ericsson surprised the motorsports world with his iconic victory last year, but the Swede gives a lot of the credit to his mentor. "I was actually sitting here at the Speedway last night talking with Dario," Ericsson said the day after winning the race.

"We talked about that type of scenario. If I’m leading when it’s towards the end of the race, what to do, how to break the tow of the car behind, how to place the car. We had that very conversation one night. That was in my mind when I was sitting there during that red flag. Dario has been a great asset all during my year at Ganassi."

Franchitti's passion and respect for the Speedway and all of the drivers who came before him is immense. He has found a new way to make a difference, and he has proven to be damn good at it. The legendary driver who turns 50 on Friday has a truly incredible resume.

Dario has a unique relationship with this great event. He became just the 10th driver to win the Greatest Spectacle in Racing three times, and his victories all came within a span of six years. That includes the 2008 season where he didn't race because of his move to NASCAR. Oddly enough, Dario had four front-row starts in this race but never sat on pole. When it was “go time” though, he was always in the camera shot.

Another odd fact about Franchitti's three wins here is that all of them came under the caution flag. He won the rain-soaked race in 2007 in his final race with Andretti, and followed that with the win in 2010 when Mike Conway went over the top of Ryan Hunter-Reay and into the fence.

No one will ever forget his triumph in 2012 when Takuma Sato tried to pass him in Turn 1 on the final lap of the race. Ironically enough, that was Dario’s third 500 victory, and he is trying to help Sato win his third now as one of Ganassi’s drivers.

Although his final start in 2013 didn't finish the way he wanted, he was involved in the yellow flag that secured the victory for his longtime friend Tony Kanaan. His face is between Kanaan and their late pal Dan Wheldon on the Borg Warner Trophy.

"Dario was the key person in the process of getting me to Ganassi and I was counting the days to be his teammate again," Kanaan said. "Dario is a great person, a superb driver and a motorsports legend. But most importantly, he is my friend. As much as it hurts not seeing him compete with me in IndyCar, I'm very happy that he got out of that accident and is still with us."

Although no one knew it at the time, that would be Dario’s final drive at Indy. His crash at Houston later that year put an early end to his driving career, but he has found other ways to contribute as a competitor.

Franchitti's post-driving career somewhat resembles the path of another racing legend - Rick Mears. The four-time 500 winner has been instrumental in the success that Team Penske has seen and continues to play a key role for each of their drivers. Despite all of the changes with the cars, engines, and rules, guys like Mears and Franchitti are able to help guide the current crop of drivers.

Former Ganassi driver Felix Rosenqvist also credits Dario for getting him his first IndyCar win. “I went to visit Dario in the winter to talk about ovals, and get that into my mindset,” Rosenqvist said. “He was an epic driver, he has a good teaching ability, he knows how to put feelings into words when it comes to teaching. That’s been incredible."

Franchitti led 329 laps and completed 1,940 of his 1,946 laps in his ten Indy 500 starts. He certainly knows his way around the 2.5-mile oval. Drivers love talking with him because he speaks their language. Dario may not be doing it from the seat of a race car anymore, but Chip will always have a seat for him on the timing stand.