Skip navigation

Franchitti drives off with Long Beach victory


< Prev | 1 | 2
Slideshow
Ford 400
NASCAR champions
Take a look at the drivers who have raced their ways to series titles since the circuit's inception.
Slideshow
Coca-Cola 600
  Celebs at the track
Take a look at the stars who have attended NASCAR races.

NBCSports.com

INTERACTIVE
"Taxi" Film Premiere
NASCAR wives and girlfriends
They're fixtures in pit row, but they don't drive on the track or work on the cars. Take a look at some notable NASCAR wives and girlfriends.
Slideshow
Checker O'Reilly Auto Parts 500
  2009 winners
Take a look at every NASCAR driver who has claimed a checkered flag this season.

NBCSports.com

Power said that without the communication problem, he might have been able to challenge Franchitti at the end.

It was because of fuel,” he said. “Believe me, Mate, I was saving like you would not believe and driving as hard as I could through the corners to make up for it. ... The car was there. If I were able to go (all out) we would have been on it.”

The winner, who led 51 of 85 laps on the 1.97-mile, 11-turn course, including the last 30, disagreed.

Story continues below ↓
advertisement | your ad here

“At one point,” Franchitti said, “(the team) came on the radio and said, ‘What is the car doing? What changes do you want?’ I said, ‘I’m not pushing the car hard enough to know what the car is going to do on the limit.’ That tells the story.”

Tony Kanaan, another former IndyCar champion, was third, followed by Danica Patrick, getting her best ever finish on a road or street course, former series champion Dan Wheldon and Marco Andretti.

Dixon, who finished 16th at St. Petersburg, continued to struggle, finishing 15th here. He was involved in three separate accidents, bumped E.J. Viso into one of the concrete barriers that line the wall, getting caught up in a chain-reaction collision that damaged several cars and put Justin Wilson out of the race and getting hit from behind by St. Petersburg winner Ryan Briscoe during a caution period.

“It was just a bad day,” Dixon said. “I love the road courses but we’ve just had a rough time. It’s just fantastic that Dario had a great finish for the team. We’re looking forward to Kansas (next Sunday).”

© 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


< Prev | 1 | 2

Sponsored links