Franchitti Drives To 4th-Place Finish In Klein Tools/Jim Beam Car

HOMESTEAD, Fla. (March 26, 2006) - Dario Franchitti, driving his first race in the
#27 Klein Tools/Jim Beam car, finished fourth at the season-opening Homestead-Miami Indy 300 Presented by
XM Satellite Radio.
Franchitti, who started in fifth place, drove a strong race and never found himself out of the top five.
Franchitti's position was improved on a couple of occasions by the Klein Tools/Jim Beam crew, which aided the
effort with quick pit stops, keeping Franchitti among the leaders.
As the final laps disappeared, Franchitti made a push at the leaders but was unable to find the speed
necessary to overtake them at the end.
Dan Wheldon won the first event of the year.  He was followed across the line by Helio Castroneves,
Sam Hornish Jr., Franchitti and Scott Dixon.
The IndyCar Series returns to action next Sunday, April 2, with the second-annual Honda Grand Prix of
St. Petersburg.  ESPN will provide live coverage of the event beginning at 3:30 p.m. (EDT).  It can also be heard
live by XM Satellite Radio subscribers on XM channel 145.

Dario Franchitti, #27 Klein Tools/Jim Beam Dallara/Honda/Firestone:
"At the end, I just had nowhere to go.  I had some runs on Dan (Wheldon) but I couldn't go anywhere.
It's frustrating when it gets like that.  We were lucky with the cautions today and the Klein Tools/Jim Beam boys
in the pits were really on it.  That kept us in the hunt all day.  The car was balanced all day, just not fast enough
to win.  But, I just really feel for Paul Dana's family.  I've been through this before and it's a tragedy.  It just
shouldn't happen."

Allen McDonald, Race Engineer, #27 Klein Tools/Jim Beam Dallara/Honda/Firestone:
"It was a fantastic run by Dario. I think it was one of the best speedway races I've ever seen him drive.
He drove with fantastic commitment and it was really exciting. Unfortunately, we didn't quite have the speed of
the Penske's or Wheldon. The last two years we've come away from here with 'dnf's' and to come away with
such a committed drive from Dario really bodes well for the year."

2006 Homestead-Miami Indy 300 Presented by XM Satellite Radio Results
Pos.     Name                            Laps         Pos.      Name                        Laps
1      Dan Wheldon                      200           11      Tony Kanaan                  159
2      Helio Castroneves                200           12      P.J. Chesson                 152
3      Sam Hornish Jr.                  200           13      Bryan Herta                  140
4      Dario Franchitti                 200           14      Buddy Lazier                 12
5      Scott Dixon                      200           15      Marco Andretti               12
6      Kosuke Matsuura                  198           16      Vitor Meira                  10
7      Scott Sharp                      198           17      Danica Patrick              DNS
8      Felipe Giaffone                  198           18      Buddy Rice                  DNS
9      Tomas Scheckter                  197           19      Paul Dana                   DNS
10      Eddie Cheever Jr.                196           20      Ed Carpenter                DNS