maybe we're all in denial

IndyStar's Curt Cavin has one of my favorite Indy Car related websites. Daily, Cavin answer readers' questions on his blog, Askthe Expert: Auto Racing. Today he begins with the following note.

Curt's note: I know I'll get asked a thousand times over the next two weeks, so let me beat everyone to it: I thought about it all night, and I still can't believe Dario Franchitti is going to sign with Ganassi Racing's Cup team. I can't believe that he wants to race 38 times a year, that he will be happy driving such an unsophisticated car and that Ashley will feel as comfortable walking around on a NASCAR weekend as she does in the IRL. Finally, I can't believe he's going to get enough money to make this worth his while. He already is the highest-paid driver in Indy cars (by far, I'm told), and Ganassi surely won't double his salary to match him working at least twice as hard. I'm glad he's going to get to work with Montoya and it will be a fun to watch, but ... I still can't believe it.

I sure hope Cavin is right. One of my first thoughts upon waking this morning was of Dario possibly forsakeing the Indy Race league for stock cars. It's no real secret that I am not a NASCAR fan. I hope this is all speculation. Perhaps it's some incongruous IRL marketing ploy for some press. When I look at how unsatisfactorily the IRL markets the league it doesn't completely seem out of the realm of possibility.

But I may be in denial.