Dario Franchitti over the moon with second Indy 500 win

BATHGATE'S Dario Franchitti became the first Scot to claim two Indianapolis 500 wins after totally dominating the America's Blue riband event at the 2.5-mile superspeedway. The Scot led 155 of the 200 laps.

The 36-year-old, whose win in 2007 made him the first Scot to claim victory in the all-America race since his hero Jim Clark in 1965, found himself struggling for words immediately afterwards.

"I honestly don't know what to say," he admitted. "This is just unbelievable. Unbelievable. Winning one Indy500 was a dream, but to win a second is beyond belief. This is just fantastic.

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"I knew coming into the race that we had a fantastic race car, and the guys in pit lane did a fantastic job with every pitstop we had. I've won the race, but by God this win is for everyone who is part of the Target Ganassi team.

"Words just can not explain how good this team is. It's the most wonderful outfit to be a part of and I just count myself lucky that I'm a driver with Ganassi Racing. What Chip (Ganassi) has created here is just awesome."

Franchitti, who started the race from third on the grid, moved up to first before the opening lap was complete, and led 93 of the opening 100 laps, such was his dominance.

Apart from a brief battle with Penske's Will Power early on, he only lost the lead briefly because others were trying alternative strategies.

Ultimately the race, like Franchitti's 2007 victory which finished in a torrential downpour, ended under a yellow caution flag following a horrific crash involving England's Mike Conway two laps before the scheduled 200 laps. Conway's

Dreyer & Reinbold car rolled over the back of the Andretti car of Ryan Hunter-Reay and was catapulted into the fencing. The impact ripped the rear end off his car before it crashed back down on to the track. Conway, despite walking away from the crash, was immediately flown to hospital with an injury to his right leg.

The cautionary yellow flag was ultimately a blessing for TW Steel ambassador Franchitti, who started the final 2.5-miles with very little fuel and who for much of the race had led the field by up to ten seconds.

"Yeh, it was getting pretty damned tight there towards the end," the Scot, whose second Indy500 win now sits alongside his double IndyCar championship tally, continued. "But the guys in the crew called it right. I always knew I'd get to the finish."

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Franchitti finished 0.1536secs ahead of former winner Dan Wheldon, who finished second for the second successive year. The Englishman, who was a team-mate of Franchitti's at Andretti Green, eased his Panther into second after Brazilian Tony Kanaan was forced to pit his Andretti car for fuel from second with just four laps remaining.

Franchitti's Ganassi team-mate, Kiwi Scott Dixon who started sixth, recovered to finish fourth after losing a lot of ground early in the race when he lost a front wheel in the pitlane.

Early in the race, Penske duo Will Power and Helio Castroneves posed the biggest threat to Franchitti, but their challenges disappeared when first Power — who eventually finished eighth — pulled away from a pitstop with his fuel hose still attached and then, later in the race, when Castroneves stalled in the pits.

The Brazilian briefly reappeared in the lead after pitting out of sequence but he needed a lot more laps under yellow to make it to the finish.

Ryan Briscoe crashed the third Penske entry just before three quarter distance. Aussie Ryan Briscoe, the third of the Penske trio, who filled three of the top four places on the grid, crashed out at the three-quarter distance.

Entering the closing 20 laps — the period of the race Franchitti had stated beforehand was when the real action would really start — the Scot lay fifth. He was though aware that those in front wouldn't get to the finish on the fuel they had onboard unless there was a miraculously long yellow period.

And when pole sitter, and last year's winner Castroneves — who finished ninth — darted towards his Penske crew for a quick refuelling stop, Franchitti inherited the lead he was never to lose.

"This is just a dream," Franchitti beamed as he gulped the winner's traditional quart of milk. "Never in my wildest dreams did I really think I'd ever win one Indy500. Now I have two. It's brilliant, absolutely brilliant."

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