As the Indycar season kicks off in St. Petersburg, Florida, Dario Franchitti finds himself in a different situation than usual. Not as a driver but as a counselor figure within the Chip Ganassi team.

His relationship with reigning champion Scott Dixon is also a little different, no rivalry anymore but rather working together to win as a team. And even if Dixon has struggled in the first free practices in the Streets of St. Petersburg, Franchitti is sure the New Zealander is one of the favorites to with the series again: “Skill, determination are the two big things that come to mind when I think of him. He’s tremendously talented, but the determination that he has is something special, and particularly, as he’s been successful, he hasn’t slowed, that determination has not gone away” said Franchitti.

“As drivers, we had a very open relationship of sharing information and helping each other to the point we would talk about different corners. But now, one of my jobs is to absolutely make sure that  do everything in my power to make sure him and Tony (Kanaan), Charlie (Kimball) and Ryan (Briscoe) have got everything they need to be successful.”

Dario Franchitti