FRANCHITTI WINS PEAK ANTIFREEZE & MOTOR OIL INDY 300
JOLIET, Ill. – (Saturday, Aug. 28, 2010) – Dario Franchitti used a clever bit of strategy to win the PEAK Antifreeze & Motor Oil Indy 300 at Chicagoland Speedway and close the gap on IZOD IndyCar Series championship points leader Will Power.
Franchitti picked up the lead out of the final pit stop on Lap 173 — relying on a double stint of the Firestone Firehawks (62 laps) – and held off Dan Wheldon by 0.0423 of a second for his third win of the season.
Power’s No. 12 Verizon Team Penske crew had a fueling equipment issue on the same pit stop and he had to duck onto pit lane with five laps left for a splash. He was running fourth at the time but finished a season-low 16th.
Franchitti closed to 23 points of Power with three oval races left.
Marco Andretti led an Andretti Autosport trio in the top five with a season-best-tying third place. Ryan Hunter-Reay and Tony Kanaan followed. Helio Castroneves finished sixth and Justin Wilson advanced 16 positions to finish seventh.
Franchitti posted his 26th Indy car racing victory, tying Rodger Ward for 11th on the all-time list (USAC, CART, Indy Racing league sanction). Johnny Rutherford (27) is next.
