Former Indycar champ Dario Franchitti will get behind the wheel again tonight for his latest venture – a TV show about cars.
The Scot, who had four IndyCar series wins in a glittering career in the US, teams up with former Take That singer Howard Donald for Mission Ignition on Channel 4.
The pair will join rival teams of amateur mechanics, who have been set the challenge of building their own car from scratch and then taking it on the track to compete for race glory.
As a vintage car collector and self-confessed tinkerer, Dario, from Bathgate in West Lothian, revealed he loved getting his fingers greasy in the new series.
He said: “Throughout the process Howard and I would be saying, ‘Can we go in?’ And they’d be like ‘No!’
(Image: Channel 4)
“And then in certain episodes they’d be like, ‘Go on, they need a bit of help.’ And we’d get involved. I’m not sure how much we actually helped, though.
“I like to think I’d be better than Howard, although he does tell me he used to work in a body shop. As in a car repair shop, not the place that sells soap. Working with the people I’ve worked with in racing, I’ve watched how real mechanics do it. I think I’ve taken on board a bit of that.
“As long as I know more than Howard, I’m happy.”
Dario, 45, won the prestigious Indy 500 race three times but was forced to retire after a horrific smash at the Houston Grand Prix in 2013.
His fame had reached Hollywood celebrity level when he dated actress Ashley Judd, who he married at Dornoch, in Sutherland, in 2001. They divorced in 2013 and he married hedge fund executive Eleanor Robb a year later.
Dario worked as a TV commentator before going in front of the cameras with Mission Ignition.
He admitted that he finds it hard not being able to race any more but reckons the new show is the next best thing.
He said: “Nothing will replace the buzz of competing, and the feeling of winning.
“I’ve done various little bits and pieces since I retired.
“And then Mission Ignition came along, which was really brilliant.
“Working with Howard was really a lot of fun.
“He’s a proper petrol head as well, so we spent most of our time off camera talking about cars.
“And then when we were on camera, there was a lot of pushing our teams because we wanted to beat each other.”
● Mission Ignition starts on Channel 4, tonight, 8.30pm.
