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Homestead, FL (Sports Network) - One year after his return to the IndyCar Series following a brief stint in NASCAR, Dario Franchitti captured the 2009 series title by winning Saturday's season-ending Firestone Indy 300 at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
Franchitti capitalized on pit strategy when he made his final stop with 50 laps remaining.
Scott Dixon and Ryan Briscoe made their stops earlier than Franchitti, but both drivers had to pit again with less than 10 laps to go, allowing Franchitti to take the lead for good. He scored his fifth victory of the season.
With the victory, Franchitti ended the season 11 points ahead of Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Dixon. Briscoe from Team Penske finished his year 12 points behind.
Franchitti became the third driver to win multiple championships in the series, joining Dixon and Sam Hornish Jr., who has the most with three. Franchitti's first title came in 2007.
The 300-mile race was the first caution-free race in series history and the second quickest event with an average speed of 201.420 m.p.h.
10/10 18:51:28 ET
