de la BASTIDE: Andretti-Green feeling the pain of a clipped wing

By KEN de la BASTIDE
Tribune columnist

August 28, 2007 10:36 pm

— There is nothing worse for a team owner then to watch two of his charges take out each while battling for a win.
NASCAR owner Joe Gibbs got to experience those emotions when Tony Stewart and Denny Hamlin crashed at Daytona in July.
This past weekend it took place at the Indy Racing League race at Sonoma when teammates Dario Franchitti and Marco Andretti made contact while fighting for the lead.
Andretti, who won at the California road course a year ago, was the last of the lead lap cars to make a final stop for tires and fuel. He emerged from the pits ahead of Franchitti, but entering the corner the two touched. The end result was Andretti finished for the day and Franchitti with a damaged front wing.
Without the additional downforce from the busted wing, Franchitti was a sitting duck for eventual race winner Scott Dixon. The only reason that Franchitti finished third was because Andretti-Green cohort Tony Kanaan decided to fall on his sword and protect the Scotsman’s rear end.
Kanaan effectively took himself out of the championship hunt by protecting Franchitti from losing several more positions. Kanaan was blocking for his teammate on the road course by not using the full power of his car.
Team owner Michael Andretti was so disappointed about the contact between his son Marco and Franchitti that he slammed down a cover on the team’s pit wagon.
With Dixon winning the race he took over the point lead from Franchitti with only two races remaining at Belle Isle in Detroit and Chicagoland Speedway.
It also marked the third consecutive race that Franchitti has crashed. At Michigan his Dallara-Honda went airborne after contact with Dan Wheldon. He went airborne a second time at Nashville when he ran into the back of another competitor after the checkered flag waved.
The IRL will be visiting Belle Isle for the first time and the race should be nothing short of boring. There are no good places to pass and most events on the track become a parade. Qualifying will be crucial, start from the pole and a win is all but guaranteed.
There is now talk that Franchitti is considering making the switch to the Nextel Cup in 2008 with Richard Childress Racing. That would be a huge mistake for RCR, just look at how Sam Hornish Jr. has struggled all season in the Busch Series.
After qualifying second, Danica Patrick was in a position to score a podium finish at Sonoma before stalling her mount on the final pit stop. I still contend that Patrick can’t handle the pressure of being in contention for a win and doesn’t know how to claim a victory.
In other racing news
It looks more likely that when the Nextel Cup chase for the championship begins in three weeks, NASCAR’s biggest star will be sitting on the outside looking in.
Dale Earnhardt Jr. needs nothing short of a miracle to catch Kurt Busch for the 12th and final chase position. Busch right now is the hottest driver in NASCAR and should have another good run at California this weekend.
• There is plenty of great racing on tap over the Labor Day weekend. Winchester Speedway will host seven feature events, highlighted by the Champion Racing Association 100 lap event and a 75-lap race for Super Late Models. Racing starts at 1 p.m.
• Anderson Speedway will present the Grant Fritz/Greg Dietzen Memorial 100 lap event for Legends cars on Saturday. This is the biggest race of the year for the Legends drivers and the race normally attracts a lot of hot shoes from around the country. Racing starts at 8 p.m. and includes the track’s SuperTrucks and Figure-8 divisions.
Ken de la Bastide can be reached at (765) 454-8580 or via e-mail at ken.delabastide@kokomotribune.com

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