95 replies to this topic

[jonpollak]

Jenna Fryer @JennaFryer 2m
#IndyCar NEWS: Dario Franchitti says doctors have told him he can no longer race because of injuries suffered in Oct. crash at Houston


Jp

[Muppetmad]

Oh my God What an awful way for his career to end, I was hoping he'd make a full recovery. A real shame.

[Ross Stonefeld]

Wuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut

[silense]

http://chipganassira...articleid=14019

 

This is such a shame!

[pacificquay]

Very sad news. Hopefully he can remain involved in motorsport in some capacity

[Dolph]

Jenna Fryer @JennaFryer 2m
#IndyCar NEWS: Dario Franchitti says doctors have told him he can no longer race because of injuries suffered in Oct. crash at Houston


Jp

 

WHAT????

[P123]

Jenna Fryer @JennaFryer 2m
#IndyCar NEWS: Dario Franchitti says doctors have told him he can no longer race because of injuries suffered in Oct. crash at Houston


Jp

 

Wow, wasn't expecting that.

[Physicist]

Sad way for his career to end.  Always liked Dario.

 

That now leaves one of the best seats in the series open, however.  Who might be in the running?

[Longtimefan]

Damn thats sucks

 

Such a lousy way to end a superb career.

[pacificquay]

Sad way for his career to end.  Always liked Dario.

 

That now leaves one of the best seats in the series open, however.  Who might be in the running?

 

I have a feeling Dario will be recommending Paul di Resta to the team, if he ends up without an F1 drive...

[stewie]

Whhhhhhaaatt! A real shame, since taking up Indycar viewing in the last couple of years I have always had a little root for Dario! He'll be missed.

[xflow7]

Bum deal about Dario.  I had given it 50/50 that he'd hang it up of his own volition anyway, but sad to hear the decision's been made for him.

 

In any case, I've been a fan for many years and will miss watching him next year.

 

Thanks for the memories, Dario!

[PayasYouRace]

Terrible news. Considering it's so rare to have a career ending accident nowadays it really shows how big that Houston accident was.

[PayasYouRace]

Terrible shame. We're already discussing this on the Indycar Silly Season 2014 thread though.

[Victor_RO]

EDIT: Disregard this post, details further below.

[RosannaG]

Sad to hear that Dario is forced to leave racing. I did not expect it. What a shame! 

[Atreiu]

He's a 4 time champion and has won a lot. I think he merits his own thread for proper farewells.

[Option1]

Damn that's a shame about Dario.  May he have a happy, healthy future ahead of him.

 

Neil

[Longtimefan]

He's a 4 time champion and has won a lot. I think he merits his own thread for proper farewells.

I would agree with that, but I guess its up to the mods.

[Prost1997T]

I don't think injuring a couple of vertebrae by itself was a problem, but taking any further knocks when you're ~41 and already got injured in Nascar and on a bike in the past. If you read the statement posted on the Ganassi site, it makes reference to the long-term.

Edited by Prost1997T, 14 November 2013 - 21:09.

[Victor_RO]

After a brief discussion, I've moved the posts discussing only Dario's retirement here. The discussions about his replacement at Ganassi can continue there, we can use this thread as a celebration of Dario's career.

[SR388]

Wow. I don't like the guy, but you hate to see that. Shame.

[redreni]

It‘s a sad day indeed.

It was a shocking crash; so much so that, in a way, we shoud all be thankful Dario didn‘t lose his life rater than "just" his career. But it‘s still a terrible outcome. Respect to Dario for having the good sense to listen to the doctors, and here‘s hoping he remains active in the motorsports community, be it as a driver mentor/manager, a team boss, a commentator or whatever.

[Disgrace]

I don't think he had much more to offer IndyCar but it's a shame for any driver that a career is curtailed in this way. No doubt he would have explored other series beyond Indy.

[Fastcake]

Such a shame to have a career end in this way

 

I've only watched a little Indycar in recent years, but Dario Franchitti was a talented driver and should of retired on his own terms. At the least though, he was coming to the end of his career, rather than being young and forced out before he had achieved what he did.

[Currahee]

He is 40 now and has nothing to prove.

 

Probably for the best.

 

Hope he stays with the team as an ambassador or the likes.

[Coral]

Oh no, I am a big fan of Dario...this is such a shame.

 

Best of luck for the future, Dario...

[senna da silva]

Too bad, but a great career. It'll be interesting to see who replaces him at Ganassi.

[DanardiF1]

Really bad news, but at least he's still around to be able to make that decision.

 

Most of my time watching CART/Indycar has had Dario in the field to cheer for, so it'll be sad to not have him on the grid anymore.

[jonpollak]

Wow. I don't like the guy....

...because you know him so well right?

pfft.

[SophieB]

@dariofranchitti 1h

A sad day but I'm eternally grateful.

 

 

(https://twitter.com/...085148927496192 )

[Andrew Hope]

Just for the record, I worked at a Target for three weeks and I'm available for 2014..

[senna da silva]

@dariofranchitti 1h

A sad day but I'm eternally grateful.

 

 

(https://twitter.com/...085148927496192 )

 

[JHSingo]

A sad way for a career to end, but thinking back to that Houston accident, it could have been so much worse. Still look forward to hearing his insight, and I ordered his Romance of Racing book earlier today.

[jonpollak]

 

Jp

[Lotus53B]

Ah, bollox. But he won 4 Indy titles, three Indy 500 races, 31 races, and is the most successful British racer in US open wheel history, which when you consider that list has Graham Hill and Nigel Mansell, among many, many other names is one smf* of an achievement. All the best Dario, and my glass is raised. *filtered

[Lotus72b]

Great career. I saw Dario in DTM/ITC with Mercedes-Benz. Wow I'm kind of shocked, but not really because he had many hard hits in his career. Hopefully some where down the line he be working still in Indycar.

[Prost1997T]

Seems concussion was the reason, according to Dr Steve Olvey: http://www.racer.com...article/321055/

[John Player]

What a shame

 

Dario is a legend

[SR388]

...because you know him so well right?
pfft.

Please get off your high horse and stop acting astounded that people form opinions on public figures that they don't know personally.

[P123]

It's a shame his career had to end in this manner, but of course it could have been worse given the severity of the accident (and a few lucky escapes in the past too!).  Nevertheless a great career and I'm glad to hear he will be sticking around the sport.

[nosaj100]

It's terrible thing when a driver is forced to retire under circumstances like this. I like Dario so its sad to see him go but at the same time, I didn't really expect him to keep racing much longer anyway. Still, it's a shame he couldn't go out on his own terms. Would it be too much of a risk to have one last send off race? Like maybe even run the Indy 500 one last time and hang it up.

[Doughnut King]

A bad way to close a career, but it could have been far worse, and he's accomplished more than many other drivers have in longer careers.

[TheUltimateWorrier]

Sad way for a great career to end, but like others have said, it could've ended worse.

 

Seems concussion was the reason, according to Dr Steve Olvey: http://www.racer.com...article/321055/

 

I watched The Crash Reel last week on Sky Atlantic, which is about head injuries in extreme sports. The scary thing was the snowboarders/skiers who suffered multiple concussions/head trauma injuries still continued snowboarding/skiing and how their behaviour changed completely from those injuries. 

[HeadFirst]

A fav of mine and a great ambassador for AOWR. Best of luck in the future Dario.

[whitewaterMkII]

Nice run Dario, you've taken some serious licks and seen a lot of friends not make it at all.
Hope things get better with some quiet time and full rest, and we can see you strap on an LMP someday.
Good call by Olvey, and smart of you to listen.
I think one of my fave seasons were when it was Reynard-Hondas with Tracy and Team Green.

[Frankbullitt]

I'm a fan of Dario, always liked his spirt on the track and was seriously fast on his day.

 

Seeing him cry after Wheldons crash was tough to watch, but seeing how he handled his news today shows even more character.

 

A loss to Indycar, but he will still be around the tracks.

 

Enjoy the retirement!

[Vitesse2]

Please get off your high horse and stop acting astounded that people form opinions on public figures that they don't know personally.

Since jonpollak does know Dario personally I think it was a perfectly reasonable response to your rather mealy-mouthed comment.

 

[Lee Nicolle]

Not the way he should have finished his career. But cumulative injuries do take their toll and it does not surprise me at all.

[Haribo]

That was a shocker! I guess that he has nothing left to prove in IndyCar and has had a fantastic career, but it is still a sad send-off. Maybe he can drive the Pace Car at the Indy 500 or do some of the pre-race laps in the two-seater