Dario Franchitti became the second driver to lead an IndyCar Series race from flag to flag and closed ground in the tight fight for the IndyCar Series championship.
Franchitti won the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma at Infineon Raceway, while Ryan Briscoe's runner-up finish gave him the championship points lead by four over Franchitti. It's the 13th time the championship points lead has changed in the 14 races this season.
"It was a good weekend for Target Chip Ganassi Racing," Franchitti said. "The Target cars were pretty good. On the red Firestone tires they were very good. Qualifying up front allowed us to control the pace of the race and go just as fast as we used to go and that really helped us."
Dreyer & Reinbold Racing rookie Mike Conway posted a career-high third place and Mario Moraes also had a career best with a fourth place. Both drivers overtook Hideki Mutoh's No. 27 Formula Dream car on Lap 73, who nonetheless ran to the checkers for his second consecutive fifth place.
"Yeah, it was good," Conway said. "In the beginning, we got hit from behind and I got a puncture in my rear tire. I thought my race was finished. I just kept pushing all the way and just kept moving forward, and I kept setting quick times. Towards the end, I knew I might be able to get past the guys in front. The Tran Systems car was really good today. If we had a few more laps, it would have been interesting to see if I could get past those guys."
Franchitti and Briscoe were clear of the first-lap jumble that entangled seven mid-pack cars in Turn 2. Scott Dixon, the points leader who started 10th in the Indy Grand Prix of Sonoma, wasn't as fortunate. Though Dixon's No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing car continued after the hit and run and he weaved from 15th on the 2.303-mile, 12-turn Infineon Raceway to 10th place (until literally being bumped to 13th on the white flag lap). Dixon's finish moves him to third in the championship standings, 20 points behind Briscoe.
"It was a tough race," Dixon said. "Every thing we tried to do. We tried catch a yellow. We pitted early to see if it could vault us up, and we kept coming out in the same position, racing with TK and Marco and we got into a bit of a mixup at the end. (About the pass at the end): "We made quite a few passes on quite a few people, and at the end, he got into the back of me and spun me around. He came up and apologized. Definitely didn't do it on purpose. It was just one of those days."
The 2009 IndyCar Series season continues Aug. 29 with the PEAK Antifreeze and Motor Oil Indy 300 at Chicagoland Speedway.
