Autoblog

NASCAR is continuing to sample the international flavor of motorsports. The sport that began as moonshine runs in the wilds of the South has, in a short time, raised its profile here in America and is now threatening to do it elsewhere.

Scottish driver Dario Franchitti took the Indy 500 and the IRL championship this year with the Andretti Green team. Now he's leaving the team and the series to join Juan Pablo Montoya at Chip Ganassi Racing's NASCAR team.

The move will pair Franchitti with Montoya and Felix Sabates in the Ganassi team, and Jacques Villeneuve with Bill Davis Racing in the new international contingent. The international drivers are also getting attention from international sponsors, with Russian and Spanish companies calling for spots on Ganassi cars.

Dario starts his NASCAR run in the feeder ARCA RE/MAX Series race this weekend at Talledega. From there he'll graduate to the Busch Series (soon-to-be Nationwide Series), and then do an official Cup race some time before 2008.

Thanks for the tip, Dave!

[Source: ESPN.com]

McLaren bad boy Juan Pablo Montoya will leave Formula 1 at the end of the 2006 season to drive in NASCAR for his old boss, Chip Ganassi. Somebody get this guy a beer.

Despite his impressive open-wheel resume - CART (Champ Car) champion, Indy 500 winner, seven-time F1 winner - Montoya never really settled into the Formula 1 team environment, either with Williams or McLaren, and it looked as though McLaren was set to let him go at the end of the year in any event. With championship-contending seats looking pretty scarce for 2007, Montoya evidently decided to follow the money and return to the U.S.

For his part, F1Racing.net reports a happy Juan Pablo said after the announcement Sunday, "I am so happy to be entering the fastest growing racing league in the world... I know the transition will not be easy but I can't wait to get behind the wheel."

The Colombian will drive the #42 Texaco/Havoline Dodge in the full Nextel Cup schedule, along with a number of Busch series races. Montoya's seat at McLaren will likely be taken by long-time McLaren protege Lewis Hamilton, currently competing in GP2, although the dominos aren't likely to start falling until Kimi Raikkonen makes his intentions clear.

[Source: F1Racing.net] Thanks to Judd for the tip!