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Le Mans / ALMS
ALMS: Marino Franchitti Joins PR1/Mathiasen For Mosport
Rapid Scot replaces Butch Leitzinger at wheel of team's PC-class contender this weekend...
Fresh off his involvement with the Nissan DeltaWing program at Le Mans, Marino Franchitti has laded a drive with PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports for this weekend's ALMS round at Mosport. (Photo: John Dagys)
One of the most well-liked drivers in the sports car racing paddock will be making his return to the American Le Mans Series this weekend.
PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports announced Tuesday that Marino Franchitti will co-drive the team's Prototype Challenge-class Oreca FLM09 in Sunday's Grand Prix of Mosport at the newly renamed Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.
The rapid Scot replaces seasoned veteran Butch Leitzinger, who drove on a full-time basis for the Fresno, Calif.-based squad since the beginning of the season. Franchitti will share the wheel of the No. 52 Quest Software-sponsored machine with Ken Dobson.
"I've not had the chance to drive an PC car before, but all my friends that have driven them have enjoyed the experience," Franchitti said. "They speak about the torque of the engine and the consistency of the Michelin tires, the latter being no surprise to me, so I'm excited to join the team, work with Ken and feel the car for myself this weekend.
"The small amount of experience I have of spec racing has taught me that when everyone has the same equipment, finding an advantage is very difficult and in order to give yourself and the team the chance to compete for the victory, you have to get every little detail spot on, and hopefully we can achieve that".
Franchitti, who has four ALMS class victories to his credit, will be making his first series start since Petit Le Mans of last year when he drove for Level 5 Motorsports in P2. More recently, he spearheaded development of the Nissan DeltaWing program, which debuted at Le Mans last month.
PR1/Mathiasen, which scored class wins at Road America and Petit Le Mans last year, is still searching for its first victory of 2012 in the competitive PC ranks.
"Having Marino and [Ken] Dobson in the car this weekend gives us a lot of confidence," team principal Bobby Oergel said. "We've had a tremendous path of growth with Butch Leitzinger in the car last year and the first few rounds this season; really bringing us to a whole new level. Butch helped us get our first win last year, and was instrumental in improving our performance throughout the program.
"Looking to the immediate future, it will be critical that we help get Marino up to speed with our crew and engineering staff as fast as possible to capitalize on everything that we've been building on in the last few years. Having followed his career closely for several years, I know that we'll have more than a fighting chance this weekend."
John Dagys is SPEED.com’s Sportscar Racing Reporter, focusing on all major domestic and international championships. You can follow him on Twitter @johndagys or email him at
PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports announced Tuesday that Marino Franchitti will co-drive the team's Prototype Challenge-class Oreca FLM09 in Sunday's Grand Prix of Mosport at the newly renamed Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.
The rapid Scot replaces seasoned veteran Butch Leitzinger, who drove on a full-time basis for the Fresno, Calif.-based squad since the beginning of the season. Franchitti will share the wheel of the No. 52 Quest Software-sponsored machine with Ken Dobson.
"I've not had the chance to drive an PC car before, but all my friends that have driven them have enjoyed the experience," Franchitti said. "They speak about the torque of the engine and the consistency of the Michelin tires, the latter being no surprise to me, so I'm excited to join the team, work with Ken and feel the car for myself this weekend.
"The small amount of experience I have of spec racing has taught me that when everyone has the same equipment, finding an advantage is very difficult and in order to give yourself and the team the chance to compete for the victory, you have to get every little detail spot on, and hopefully we can achieve that".
Franchitti, who has four ALMS class victories to his credit, will be making his first series start since Petit Le Mans of last year when he drove for Level 5 Motorsports in P2. More recently, he spearheaded development of the Nissan DeltaWing program, which debuted at Le Mans last month.
PR1/Mathiasen, which scored class wins at Road America and Petit Le Mans last year, is still searching for its first victory of 2012 in the competitive PC ranks.
"Having Marino and [Ken] Dobson in the car this weekend gives us a lot of confidence," team principal Bobby Oergel said. "We've had a tremendous path of growth with Butch Leitzinger in the car last year and the first few rounds this season; really bringing us to a whole new level. Butch helped us get our first win last year, and was instrumental in improving our performance throughout the program.
"Looking to the immediate future, it will be critical that we help get Marino up to speed with our crew and engineering staff as fast as possible to capitalize on everything that we've been building on in the last few years. Having followed his career closely for several years, I know that we'll have more than a fighting chance this weekend."
John Dagys is SPEED.com’s Sportscar Racing Reporter, focusing on all major domestic and international championships. You can follow him on Twitter @johndagys or email him at
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