Motor racing: Marino escapes car fire

AFTER dominating the opening eight-and-half hours of the Sebring 12-Hours race in Florida, Bathgate's Marino Franchitti saw a maiden win in the highly competitive LMP2 class go up in smoke.

The 30-year-old Scot, partnered by Australian David Brabham and Frenchman Simon Pagenaud, had established a comfortable five-lap lead in the race.

But as Franchitti was about to enter the car to take over from Pagenaud he noticed smoke coming from the cockpit of the Highcroft Acura. An electrical problem had ignited a small fire which, though it was quickly extinguished by the team, eventually caused the car to sit motionless in the pits while the crew completed the necessary repair work.

"I went to get in the car for my final double stint and noticed smoke and discovered there was a barbecue going in the passenger side. That wasn't so good," Franchitti said yesterday.

Franchitti's Highcroft car finished four laps behind the Porsche RS Spyder of LMP2 winners, Greg Pickett, Klaus Graff and Sascha Maassen and fifth overall.