In Dario Franchitti’s dictionary, there’s always a first time for everything. As the Craftsman Truck Series will run a street race for the first time, it has attracted Dario Franchitti’s attention, and he will be participating in the race this year. Franchitti has a cult following in IndyCar, but he doesn’t shy away from challenges. At least that’s what he reveals in his latest interview during the NASCAR Live podcast.

Dario Franchitti looks forward to a challenging weekend

For a driver who retired from the sport more than a decade ago. Franchitti’s return to racing is not exactly a straightforward story. However, this is NASCAR. As long as you have a sponsor to secure yourself the ride and the credibility to make your supporters believe your racecraft, nothing can stop you from racing. That’s exactly what Franchitti is experiencing currently.

But he is known for his success in IndyCar and has hardly gained a lot of attention in stock car racing. So why is he really coming back to the series? Is this some sort of redemption or the revival of his long-lost NASCAR career?

The answer is none. He is doing it just for the fun of it.

“The NASCAR Truck is the vehicle. It’s more about the chance to race different things and experience different things. Again, push myself. And I’m 52; I am at a point in my life where for a lot of my life, when people asked me if I would do some sort of left-field stuff, the answer was always no.

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“Very sort of conservative. I’m at that point in my life where I just say, ‘Yeah.’ Just yes. And I want to push myself; I want to experience all those things again. I want to experience the pressure.”

Now that’s not a strange feeling to feel at this age. Different motorsports athletes find their calling at different stages in their careers. Sometimes, they are focused on a singular series and do not like distractions. Other times, they like to hone out their skills and race different series because they just love racing.

Franchitti is from the former camp. It was his dedication to open-wheel and IndyCar that brought him four championships and three Indy-500 wins. Now, he just wants to lie back and enjoy redlining his car while he experiences different disciplines. It’s just like Fernando Alonso refusing to retire until he feels like his love for the sport is gone.

So what exactly drives Franchitti now, except the obvious liking towards the sport?

“In my later years in INDYCAR, I learned to love the pressure. The big difference now is the pressure; I’m putting it all on myself. I won’t be putting as much pressure as I used to because, if it doesn’t go well, I will be upset, but it won’t change my life. But I want to do the absolute best that I can. So to me it’s all upside. There’s not this sort of X, Y, Z; I don’t have to do anything. I just want to perform the best that I possibly can.”

As an IndyCar veteran, St. Petersburg is literally a part of his muscle memory. Franchitti knows that his time in the open-wheel series gives him an edge on this track, no matter how unfamiliar he is with the car.

While Franchitti’s arrival in NASCAR is great news for the sport, it also raises one serious concern.

NASCAR rides or sponsor-controlled cars

While there is no debate about his skill, it’s rather interesting to understand how Dario Franchitti was able to secure a ride. In his own words:

“Jimmie gets involved, and things move very, very quickly. All of a sudden, I’m driving the Tricon truck, and Dollar Tree is on as a sponsor. It was just about the opportunity to race at St. Pete, and the truck is the vehicle to allow me to do that.”

The fact that, despite his stature in the sport, Franchitti was only able to fulfill his wish because of Jimmie Johnson’s involvement speaks volumes about NASCAR’s current situation. Franchitti is still an outsider in the sport.

Meanwhile, drivers like Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch, who are literal legends in NASCAR, are unable to race in the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts discipline. The reason behind it is simple: they can’t secure themselves a good sponsor who is willing to lend them a ride.

Earlier, both Hamlin and Busch used to entertain fans and young drivers alike with the amazing races. Now, they are left hanging without the opportunity to race a NOAPS car again.

Even if we ignore this one situation, we can’t forget the fact that in NASCAR many good drivers are unable to land themselves a seat in a good team. This is because they do not have a rich sponsor who is ready to back them up and take them to the top echelons of the sport.

Doesn’t it make you wonder? Are NASCAR vehicles being run solely at the discretion of their sponsors?