Dario Franchitti (left, talking to driver and Virginia native Elliott Sadler in Daytona Saturday) is parking his Indy car to compete in NASCAR. View More Images from this story Visit the Photo Place

'Open wheel invaders' happyNASCAR borders aren't closed AUTO RACING

NASCAR season preview package

Date published: 2/12/2008

By Jim McConnell

BY JIM McCONNELL

Last season, Juan Pablo Montoya was signing autographs at Talladega Superspeedway when a fan asked him where he was from.

After Montoya's reply, the fan turned to his friend and said, "See, I told you all the good drivers were from South Carolina."

Montoya, of course, hails from Colombia (the country in South America), not Columbia (the city in South Carolina), but that's beside the point.

What impressed the former Indy 500 champion and Formula One star was the fervor with which millions of Americans follow NASCAR.

"I love the fans here. They're just so passionate about the sport. For a driver, if they're cheering for you or against you, it's cool to see," Montoya said last month.

That passion helped the France family build stock-car racing from a mostly Southern hobby into an empire that ranks second only to the NFL in attendance and television viewership. And it's one of the reasons why several successful open-wheel drivers decided to follow Montoya and give NASCAR a spin.

Including Montoya, at least two former Indianapolis 500 champions will be on the starting grid Sunday for the 50th running of the Daytona 500.

2006 Indy winner Sam Hornish Jr., a NASCAR rookie now competing for Penske Racing, is guaranteed a spot in this season's first five races because his No. 77 team inherited the owner points earned last season by teammate Kurt Busch.

Two others--Jacques Villeneuve and defending Indy 500 champ Dario Franchitti--can earn starting berths in Sunday's season-opener based on their finishes in Thursday's twin 150-mile qualifying races.

Throw in Canadian Patrick Carpentier, who finished 11th in Sunday's time trials, and nearly 10 percent of the 43-car field could be comprised of new open-wheel transplants.

And that number doesn't include Scott Speed, the F-1 alumnus who is running stock cars in the ARCA series as preparation for a NASCAR bid in the near future.

"To have guys come from Formula One, one of the biggest racing organizations in the world, is a tribute to NASCAR. I think it just shows what type of racing we have, that these guys want to come here to race. That's good for our whole sport," said Montoya's crew chief, Donnie Wingo.

SPEED WEEKS SCHEDULE: Thursday: Gatorade Duel 150 qualifying races (2 p.m. SPEED) Sunday: Daytona 500 (2 p.m., Fox)

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Date published: 2/12/2008