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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) -Dario Franchitti isn't sure what his future holds, but the former open-wheel star said Wednesday he'd like to remain in NASCAR.
Franchitti, the 2007 Indianapolis 500 winner and IndyCar Series champion, lost his full-time ride Tuesday when team owner Chip Ganassi closed down the unsponsored No. 40 Dodge 17 races into Franchitti's first season. The move also resulted in 71 layoffs.
"This is not a decision he made lightly, and it shows how bad the economy is," Franchitti told The Associated Press. "And you certainly never want to see all those people lose their jobs. I know for certain Chip struggled with that - I didn't even recognize his voice when he called me to tell me what he had to do.
"But the decision has been made and now I'll sit with Chip next week and decide what we're going to do going forward."
A highly decorated open-wheel racer, Franchitti made the decision to join the growing list of drivers moving to NASCAR at the end of his most successful IRL season. But the adjustment wasn't easy as Franchitti failed to qualify for two races, missed five others with a broken ankle and ranked 41st in the standings headed into this weekend's race at Daytona International Speedway.
Without a sponsor since longtime partner Coors Light decided to leave the team late last year, the on-track performance made it difficult for Ganassi to secure funding for the 35-year-old Scotsman. After paying for Franchitti's car himself for the first six months of the year, Ganassi had to stop or risk it affecting his other two cars driven by Juan Pablo Montoya and Reed Sorenson.
He's got sponsorship on his Nationwide Series car, and has offered Franchitti that seat going forward. Ganassi also has successful teams in the IRL and Grand Am Series.
Franchitti wasn't sure Wednesday what he'll do next.
"Let's see what the future holds. I really just need to sit with Chip and see where his head is," he said. "But NASCAR is where I want to be. I want to be successful here and I certainly don't want it to end like this.
"I made a big commitment coming over here and I'd like to get in an opportunity to be successful."
Franchitti said he'll skip Saturday night's race in Daytona and, after briefly considering returning to England to watch the British Grand Prix, decided to stay at his Nashville, Tenn., home this weekend clearing his head.
He doesn't regret leaving the IRL for NASCAR, a move three-time series champion Sam Hornish Jr. also made this season. That series is on stronger footing following the merger this year with the defunct Champ Car Series, but a return is not appealing to Franchitti even though Ganassi drivers Scott Dixon and Dan Wheldon are dominating the circuit.
"When I made the decision to come here, I wasn't going to do the IndyCar thing anymore so this isn't a case of missing out on what could have been in Indy cars," Franchitti said. "That just wasn't a direction I wanted to go in. Never say never, but it's unlikely I'll go back."
