-Dario Franchitti accomplished an incredible thing on Sunday, 16 October 2011-he won his third consecutive IZOD IndyCar Series Championship (his fourth overall), and made his boss, Chip Ganassi, the first team owner in IndyCar competition to have won four consecutive championships on two separate occasions. And to both-Franchitti in particular, that means nothing right now. How Franchitti clinched the title will tell you why:
-On the 11th lap of the IndyCar World Championships, at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, two drivers made light contact. Some faster drivers-running three-wide and moving very quickly on a 1.5 mile oval with steep banking-attempted to avoid these two. At the end of it all, this resulted in a fifteen-car pileup, which took out Will Power, Franchitti's main rival for the title, and sent him-along with rookie drivers Pippa Mann and J. R. Hildebrand-to the hospital. But as they were released from medical examination, more somber news fell across the speedway to anxious fans and competitors: Dan Wheldon was dead.
-Dan Wheldon, who had participated-and won-in only one race that season-the Indianapolis 500, perhaps the most precious prize for any driver-was running at race speed as he approached the accident when he clipped the rear of E. J. Viso's car. This sent his own car airborne into a horrific barrel roll that ended with the car slamming into the catch fence with enough force to shear the roll hoop off of the chassis. Wheldon had to be extracted by medical personnel from the car and airlifted to a nearby hospital, where he subsequently succumbed to what IndyCar termed "unsurvivable injuries"-blunt force trauma to the head, according to the Clark County Coroner.
-The reaction on pit row was to be expected-one of sheer shock and despondence. Franchitti, who had been Wheldon's teammate at Andretti Green Racing just six years earlier and replaced Wheldon at Target Chip Ganassi Racing-was seen sobbing and being consoled by crew members and wife Ashley Judd. Similar reactions were seen from Tony Kanaan, who like Franchitti was both a friend and former teammate to Wheldon, and from Danica Patrick. After the announcement, IndyCar CEO Randy Bernard made the call to abandon the race, with five parade laps in honor of the fallen Englishman-a mover fully supported by the drivers.
-Wheldon's fatal accident has made reverberations throughout the IndyCar community, reopening many debates regarding driver safety, car design, circuit selection, and race management. Wheldon was the first IndyCar driver to die behind the wheel since Paul Dana was killed in a collision during the warm-up for the 2006 season opener, and was the first driver to die in competition since Greg Moore was killed at the 1999 Marlboro 500. The accident had eerie parallels with Moore's accident: both took place at the final race of the season, both drivers had just signed deals with teams for the next season (Moore had signed to drive for Roger Penske's team and was replaced by Helio Castroneves after he died; Wheldon had signed a deal earlier that weekend to return to Michael Andretti's team to replace NASCAR-bound Danica Patrick), and Dario Franchitti had been contesting the championship in both races.
-These barren facts do no justice to Wheldon's record as a driver and to his character. Arriving to america from England in 1999, Wheldon quickly made his way up through the open-wheel ranks and, in 2003, was named the Rookie of the Year in his first year of IndyCar competition, driving for Michael Andretti's team. Two years later, as the central component of the Andretti Green juggernaut that saw him and all three of his teammates-Franchitti, Kanaan, and Bryan Herta-win races, Wheldon won the Indianapolis 500 and the IndyCar championship. Wheldon left for Target Chip Ganassi Racing the following season, competing but ultimately playing second fiddle to New Zealander Scott Dixon as he drove to a title in 2008 (the Kiwi's second), before he was subsequently bumped in favor of Dario Franchitti, who had spent half a season playing a fish out of water in NASCAR. Dan then spent two years driving for Panther racing, coming close but frequently coming up short-though usually not through any fault of his own-before he lost his ride again. Wheldon, with 16 wins-including an Indianapolis 500-and a championship, was without a ride for 2011.
-As May approached, an old friend came calling: Bryan Herta, a competent driver who had frequently been overshadowed by his old teammate during their days at Andretti Green Racing, had taken his IndyCar team efforts and combined them with those of team owner Sam Schmidt to put together a one-race effort for the 500. They were interested in having Dan as the driver. Wheldon agreed. The rest, as anyone who watched Indy this year can tell you-is history. Dan Wheldon got to play David to the full time Goliaths and reminded the IndyCar community of his immense talent by beating them at their own game in the biggest race of the year.
-Wheldon's win brought him renewed attention. He wouldn't secure another ride, but he was hardly idle. Wheldon (and Bryan Herta's team) had their hands full testing out the newer, (supposedly) safer Dallara prototype that will become the new IndyCar standard in the upcoming season. When he wasn't shaking down the prototype race car, Wheldon was in the booth as a color commentator for the Versus Network for IndyCar races. Wheldon's knowledge as a driver-combined with a natural good humor-showed many fans and observers in the media that he may have a good career as a race broadcaster once his career in the cockpit was over. As the final race of the season approached, Wheldon accepted an offer made by Randy Bernard: $5,000,000 for him and a fan if he could win the race driving from the back. The offer was designed to appeal to non-regular drivers from other series: Scott Speed, Kasey Kahne, and Kimi Raikonnen had all expressed interest, and Travis Pastrana had planned to go for the prize, but a broken ankle from an X Games Rally competition derailed that plan. Wheldon technically qualified because he had only one run one race all year. Wheldon accepted that deal, and, perhaps as a recognition for his talent and his moxie that season, was approached by former team owner Michael Andretti to return to his team full-time to replace Danica Patrick and take over her lucrative GoDaddy.com sponsorship. Reports from fellow drivers and fans on Sunday morning show that Dan was the typical Dan as the race start approached-all smiles, eager as ever.
-In addition to his excellent resume as a driver, much has been made of Wheldon's character and behavior outside the cockpit. Wheldon was a friendly individual who connected with the fans, never hesitating to stop and sign an autograph and accosting competitors who didn't on more than one occasion. Tony Kanaan and Dario Franchitti both noted Dan's love of practical jokes, and everybody has noted that Dan's marriage to Susie Behm-now tragically cut short-was a very happy one, and that Dan loved his two sons, Oliver and Sebastian, dearly.
-Dan's season-not to mention his life, all of 33 years-shouldn't have ended in turn two of the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. But his sudden absence makes all of us in the IndyCar community-drivers, team owners, executives, certainly the fans-recognize the impact he made. There's no doubt he will be missed by all. There's no doubt in my mind that, if we could ask Dan, one last time, what we should do now that hew's gone, he would say: go back out there, and race to win. No matter the track, no matter the odds. Racing is a dangerous, occasionally violent sport, as we have been reminded. A driver of Wheldon's caliber knows these risks. But they take them head on-full throttle, if you will-anyway. That's why we pack the stands on any given Sunday and scream and cheer for men like Dan.
-We'll miss you, Danny Boy. Your friend TK put it best: "This isn't goodbye. Goodbye is final. So I'll say 'See you later.'"
Originally published on 26 October 2011.
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