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Written by:
Marshall Pruett
03/26/2008 - 12:20 AM
Oakland, CA
A die hard Porsche fan, Franchitti hopes to one day sample the famed predecessor to his Dyson Racing RS Spyder--an IMSA GTP-era Porsche 962. (Photo: Dan R. Boyd) » More Photos
The American Le Mans Series is filled with incredible drivers and intriguing cars. Put the two together, and a number of stunning drives are produced at every race.
After the frenetic battles witnessed at the 56th running of the 12 Hours of Sebring, SPEEDtv.com has chosen to honor the greatest drive of each race with the new “American Le Mans ‘Drive of the Race’ Award.”
This award, one that’s chosen after a lot of arguing and bickering with our partners at Radio Le Mans and Racecar Engineering, is meant to acknowledge the driver that performs miracles behind the wheel of his machine or just plain hustles his car to a result well beyond what was expected. In the waning hours and diminishing light at Sebring, that driver was Dyson Racing’s Marino Franchitti. His performance was an easy selection for the ‘Drive of the Race’ award.
Marino—making his debut within the storied prototype team, came into the #20 Porsche RS Spyder program with a lot to prove after a less than fulfilling 2007 season. Radio Le Mans host John Hindhaugh recounts how Marino found his way into his new home with the fan favorite Dyson operation.
“Rob Dyson spoke to (Radio Le Mans reporter) Graham Tyler early in the week at Sebring and perfectly summed up what many had thought. ‘I'm delighted that we have Marino on board; I thought he had a bit of a raw deal last season. It's great that we are the ones to give him another chance to show what we all know he can do!’”
Teamed with American ace Butch Leitzinger, the measured-but-attacking nature of the two drivers worked perfectly in their first outing. For those that watched the final hours of Sebring 2008, a battle royal of LMP2 front runners held sway as they all vied for the overall win.
Rocking and rumbling with the remaining Penske Porsche and a Fernandez Racing Acura, Franchitti grabbed his mount with complete authority and delivered a two hour driving stint of near qualifying laps. Rather than venture out to watch him on a particular turn, we stayed in the broadcast booth, glued to the TV as we saw him take ownership of all 17 corners of the track. With plenty of P2 heat ahead and also behind him, Marino quickly engaged and dealt with the other cars in class without incident, handing his car over to Leitzinger in first place. Franchitti’s end to this driving mastery--a tank-slapping entry to pit lane, was just as dramatic as his 120 minute virtuoso performance around the 3.7 mile Sebring circuit.
The Bernhard/Dumas/Collard Penske Porsche would ultimately claim overall honors; a huge surprise, but next to that trio on the podium stood second place finishers Franchitti and Leitzinger. Not many would have predicted the #20 car to be so competitive with a new driver in an unfamiliar car at the longest ALMS race of the year, but with more commanding drives as he delivered at Sebring, a leap to the top step of the podium for the #20 car is inevitable.
A die hard Porsche fan, Franchitti hopes to one day sample the famed predecessor to his Dyson Racing RS Spyder--an IMSA GTP-era Porsche 962. (Photo: Dan R. Boyd) » More Photos
Beyond his swift march through the field, Hindhaugh knows Franchitti’s cerebral driving style kept him safe while performing his high wire act. “Watching the #20 Dyson Porsche carve through traffic was a joy - I noted during the commentary how Marino gives the GT drivers the best possible chance of seeing him, sometimes by going just a little off line, that helps him get through, of course, but also harks back to his own
If there’s a surefire way to make Marino Franchitti feel embarrassed and uncomfortable, offer him praise for an individual performance. True to form, he’s more comfortable with our shining a light on the entire Dyson Racing team.
“It's a true honor to receive the inaugural SPEEDtv.com ALMS 'Drive of the Race' and I'd like to thank them very much for the award, but Sebring was a huge result for Dyson Racing. It's great for our efforts to be recognized. My partner Butch Leitzinger is equally as deserving of this award—he’s absolutely incredible. The Dyson team as a whole deserves a big part of this award so I'd like to dedicate it to each and every crew member, and also to our friends at Porsche Motorsport. Michelin also deserve a huge vote of thanks for the great tyres which allowed me to push 100% from the first lap to the last with consistent grip throughout.
"The final double stint (which they tell me the award has been given for) was a huge amount of fun. Through good strategy during the yellows we managed to gain back the lap we lost with our fuel rig failure early in the race and the pace we had allowed us to move up from 5th at the beginning of the stint to the lead by the end.
"It was an interesting thing--attacking to catch the cars in front while being under attack for a large part by Diaz in the Fernandez car, the fastest car in P2 during the race, but being able to not only catch the cars in front and pull away from the Acura was very satisfying.
"Looking at the times after I got out of the car it was nice to see how consistent we had been and how much ground we had made up. As a driver, it feels amazing when you can see the positions you have gained and how happy everyone is at the end of a stint. It really lifts the whole team.
"I'm not sure of the rules of the award, but it would be cool if we could continue to perform in the same manor this season and try and win it again!”
While Franchitti’s on-track performance is the reason for this award, its obvious Marino’s character has inspired many too root for his success. Just ask Hindhaugh. “Marino is a firm friend - I commentated on his brother in his UK Karting days and followed Marino's early career with interest. I mention all this because from the time he was a lad until today, Marino is the same out of the car as he is in it, and for once, that is a very positive thing. Listen to Marino for any amount of time and you cannot fail to be caught up in his enthusiasm for life, motorsport in general, and of course, sportscars in particular.
“Unlike some drivers who just want to talk about themselves, Marino understands how much history plays a part in our sport. I gave him a copy of the excellent ‘Blue and Orange’ book on sixties sportscar racing by Michael Cotton, and he consumed it voraciously. He lives to learn and enjoy the world of motor racing. That's Marino - what you see is what you get: passion and consideration in equal measure.”
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