Franchitti reveals Porsche LM24 plan posted in LEMANS14 | 01 | 2017
SCOTS INDYCAR LEGEND Dario Franchitti has revealed he was poised to contest the Le Mans 24-Hours with Porsche in 2015 before he suffered his career-ending accident. (Related: Dario Franchitti — Reflecting a legacy)
Franchitti, the four-time IndyCar champ and winner of the Indy500 three times, was forced to retire on medical grounds aged 40 at the end of 2013, following a crash in that year's Houston race.
The Bathgate racer had previously incorporated a number of sportscar races into his itinerary in America, including the Daytona 24 Hours, which he won in 2008.
And the Scot, who had long-intended to race at the world’s greatest endurance race at Le Mans, has now admitted he was set to race in the class-leading LMP1 category with Porsche in 2015.
“Le Mans was always the big dream for me,” the 43-year-old, speaking today at the Autosport International Show in Birmingham, said, “and I had a great drive lined up for 2015 there, actually in LMP1.
"I'm a big Porsche fan; literally my phone is full of pictures of Porsches, and my garage has a couple tucked away in it too. I love the brand.
"I became friends with Wolfgang Hatz who is the head of R&D at Porsche and I talked to him a bit about Le Mans and he said to come along.
"So I went to Porsche's base in Weissach and had a big top secret meeting with LMP1 team principal Andreas Seidl and the guys there.
"I said I wanted one more chance at Indy. I wanted to do 2013 and '14 and then I said I'd be done with IndyCar. Then I wanted to come and do sportscars with Porsche, and he said that was fine. It fitted in with their plan.
“But as we now know, it just didn't happen because of the injuries I suffered in Houston.”
Since recovering from his head, spine and ankle injuries, Franchitti has been able to get back behind the wheel of race cars, but because of the delicacy of his condition he hasn’t been able to race or risk another major accident.
"It was a big old shunt and I'm lucky," he smiled. "I can't really chance it, because I'll do permanent damage. So that was it. I was lucky to do what I did.
"What used to seem normal to do everyday is not normal, especially in IndyCar with the dangers. What those guys do is not normal.
"I now look at it and think, 'what the hell was I thinking?', so I don't miss that bit.
"I can't get my head to work that way anymore. I would've liked to have done some other stuff, some fun stuff, maybe even a little bit of Formula Ford, to get out and do the Walter Hayes Trophy or something.
"I just can't do it, as much as I'd love to put a white helmet on and sneak out there."
Related: Dario Franchitti — "I've no regrets"
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Jim McGill