Dario Franchitti appeared to be as surprised as anyone when he took the chequered flag to claim victory in the rain-interrupted 91st Indianapolis 500, becoming the second British winner in three years after Dan Wheldon's triumph in 2005. source: crash.net Franchitti, who also becomes the second Scotsman to win the 500 after Jim Clark, inherited the lead on lap 155 when Andretti Green Racing team-mate Tony Kanaan pitted under yellow, and splashed across the finish line under a yellow/chequer combination eleven laps later as rain returned to the Brickyard for the second time. The Scot had run solidly in the top five throughout the first half of the race, before proceedings were delayed for the first time. When the action resumed after several hours, and with no work being permitted during the downtime, the #27 Canadian Club Dallara-Honda was forced to make an unscheduled pit-stop on the parade lap due to a cut tyre. However, despite the early stop dropping Franchitti from fifth to twelfth, he quickly moved back to the front of the field, taking the lead on lap 137 and remaining there for seven laps until the pit-stop cycle worked through again. Having returned to the front following Kanaan's stop on lap 155, Franchitti remained in charge while, all around, chaos reigned.
Recent Articles
|
Racing Multimedia
Recommendations |