For a man who has won four IndyCar titles and multiple Indy 500s, you would expect a P27 finish to feel insignificant. But in Dario Franchitti’s eyes, it was more than a result. After spending more than a decade away from racing, Dario Franchitti’s comeback in NASCAR didn’t go as well as he would have wished for. But he has no regrets about it, as he feels he gave his best.

Dario Franchitti stays clean despite mistakes

It is safe to say that Dario Franchitti was not looking forward to some aggressive racing action on track today.

He knew that it would be difficult for the other drivers who were actually fighting for the championship if he raced hard and wrecked them out. During his interview, Franchitti revealed that he was being cautious about the same. “I didn’t want to wreck anybody, especially guys for the championship.”

In spite of his abysmal finish, he had a lot of fun during the race. Although he had to battle through intense heat, his helmet blower stopped working. For Franchitti, it was yet another weekend gone wrong, but he was not too far from his prime. According to him, even a 13-year break doesn’t take away the experience and the skills.

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“I spoke to Jimmie. He said, ‘Was it fun?’ I said it was really fun at the start, and then it kind of got a little too hot. Because the helmet blower stopped working. But I had a blast. So it was really good. I made some rookie errors, but I am fortunate that I made it. I have to say, it all comes back when you do this 13 years later.”

Franchitti had made it clear that he was only back because he wanted to experience it all.

In his eyes, this race was more about connecting to the different series and experiences he missed out on as a strictly open-wheel racer. But Franchitti wasn’t the only driver with a comeback story at St. Petersburg.

Another driver, who was joining the Truck grid after spending his career in IndyCar for the past decade, made headlines today.

James Hinchcliffe makes it to the top 10

St. Pete is definitely a lucky track for James Hinchcliffe.

In 2013, it gave him his first IndyCar victory. Fast forward to today: St. Pete has given him a top-10 finish in his NASCAR debut. But it was not as uneventful as he might have thought. He and his fellow IndyCar competitor had a minor scuffle on track.

Dario Franchitti and James Hinchcliffe made contact in the second stage of the race. At that point, Franchitti was running in the top 10 while Hinchcliffe was struggling to climb from the back of the pack. However, fate turned things around for them. Franchitti experienced steering issues and overshot his pit box, dropping him to P27.

Meanwhile, Hinchcliffe locked in and drove with considerable damage to his truck, bringing it into the top 10. While discussing their scuffle, Hinchcliffe was amused by the irony that the IndyCar drivers on today’s grid almost took each other out. But Hinchcliffe is not done with a one-off race; he wants more. In his post-race interview, he was already brimming with excitement.

“If I could start the race knowing what I knew by Stage 3, the result would be different. I learned so much out there about managing tires, traffic, and racing these guys. But hey, it was a great effort to come from the back twice. I just can’t thank Spire enough, and hopefully I end up doing it again one day.”

For Dario Franchitti, this might be the end of his NASCAR pursuits. However, in Hinchcliffe’s eyes, the real racing has only just begun. Do you think he might try to get a full-time ride next year?