The next prominent open-wheel driver to break into NASCAR could be Indianapolis 500 champion Dario Franchitti. Franchitti is friends with Nextel Cup team owner Richard Childress, who’s had preliminary discussions with the 34-year-old Scotsman about possibly piloting a fourth car for Richard Childress Racing next season. Childress said Franchitti, who has 17 career Indy-car wins and is the current points leader in the Indy Racing League, is one of about three drivers he’s looking at for next season, and the only one from outside of NASCAR. “Dario is a friend,” Childress said. “We just talk a whole lot. He calls me sometimes after my races, and I call him sometimes after his races. He’s thought of this, but right now he’s concentrating on the championship and concentrating on what he’s doing there. But maybe at the end of the year, we’ll sit down and talk.”(in part from NASCAR.com)(8-18-2007) UPDATE: Dario Franchitti, this year’s 500 winner, said running NASCAR was one of his options for 2008, but he indicated it’s too much of an unknown to make a judgment on now. In addition to spending 11 years in Indy-car racing, Franchitti has enjoyed his limited time in the Acura that competes in the American LeMans Series. Both are options for him next season.(Indianapolis Star)(8-27-2007)
