NASCAR Cup Series

Franchitti not fixated on race No. 200

Published Mar. 25, 2010 9:47 p.m. ET

foxsports

As soon as Dario Franchitti arrived for the 200th open-wheel race of his career, he immediately headed back out the hotel door.

Not for a celebration. For preparation.

It's not uncommon for Franchitti to take long walks around the track, looking for any tiny shred of information that could give him an edge on race day. So there the reigning Indy Racing League series champion was Wednesday around 11 p.m., studying the asphalt streets and concrete patches on the temporary course that'll host Sunday's Honda Grand Prix.

``You can see much more walking,'' Franchitti said.

By now, he would know. After all, he's done this more than just about anyone else in the IndyCar series.

It's a momentous weekend for Franchitti, getting to 200 races in open-wheel, a figure that among current IRL drivers is topped by only Helio Castroneves and Tony Kanaan. Although he'll grudgingly acknowledge that the number has some significance, Franchitti said he's mostly thinking about how he can get his car to the finish line first this weekend.

So therefore, the only number that matters to Franchitti: One.

``It's a milestone, isn't it? It's a milestone and it's nice for me to look back and see some of the wins and the championships and look at Indy and think 'Oh, that was a good one,''' Franchitti said. ``But I'm more interested in looking forward at this point and saying 'OK, can I win at St. Pete this weekend?'''

Looking forward is pretty much the approach Franchitti takes to everything about racing.

He perfectly ran a perfect race - no caution flags, somehow - at Homestead-Miami Speedway last fall to not only win that day but hold off Scott Dixon and Ryan Briscoe in a super-close battle for the IndyCar yearlong championship.

And to celebrate that achievement, Franchitti gave himself two weeks off.

After that, it was back to work, getting ready for 2010.

``Last year is last year,'' Franchitti said. ``It's nice to have that, with the Target team finishing 1-2, and we look at last year with satisfaction. But it's all in the past. It's all about now, this weekend, this championship. So you've got to look forward. You can't be looking back. And even when we finished the season last year, it was 'We did a good job - but where can we improve?'''

That was No. race 198 of Franchitti's open-wheel career, not that he was counting.

``I do know 198 was a good one,'' Franchitti said. ``And 199 wasn't quite so good.''

No, his title defense didn't exactly get off to a flying start in the aforementioned race No. 199.

Franchitti was seventh at the season-opener in Sao Paulo two weeks ago, winning the pole and leading when the race was interrupted by rain - one of many headaches drivers endured over the course of that weekend. He only finished seventh, and has had two weeks to stew over that result.

Will Power, meanwhile, has had two weeks to enjoy.

He prevailed at Sao Paulo and will take the series lead, such as it is after just one race, into St. Pete.

``You know, it's important for any victory during the season,'' Power said. ``But I guess it just gets the season kicked off in a good way.''

Practice starts Friday and resumes Saturday, followed by qualifying Saturday on the 1.8-mile course, which drivers will get around 100 times during Sunday's race.

If one driver has an home-road edge, it's Dan Wheldon, who makes his home in St. Petersburg.

``I can literally roll out of bed and be at the track in 20 minutes,'' Wheldon said.

Franchitti has never won at St. Pete, though he hasn't exactly been a back-of-the-pack guy in this race, either.

He was fourth last year and surely will be one of the favorites on Sunday, alongside a two-time winner of this event in Castroneves and Briscoe, who held off Ryan Hunter-Reay and Justin Wilson for the win in 2009.

``Hopefully we have improved,'' Franchitti said. ``And we can show that.''