A multi-time champion is making a surprise return to NASCAR. Dario Franchitti is taking on a Craftsman Truck Series race this season.

Racer broke the news on Tuesday morning and revealed that the four-time NTT IndyCar Series champion will join Tricon Garage to compete at St. Petersburg. Dollar Tree will be his primary sponsor.

This event will see the Craftsman Truck Series and NTT IndyCar Series teams hosting a doubleheader weekend.

The IndyCar teams will take part in qualifying on Saturday, Feb. 28. This will lead directly into the Truck Series race at St. Petersburg. Fox will provide coverage for both on-track sessions, as well as the March 1 IndyCar race.

Franchitti accomplished an incredible amount in his racing career before a violent crash in 2013 forced him to retire. He won 31 races across IndyCar and Champ Car. He won the Indianapolis 500 three times. He also won four championships between 2007-2011.

Yet, Franchitti did not remain solely in open-wheel racing. He moved from Chip Ganassi Racing’s IndyCar program in 2007 to the team’s NASCAR program for the 2008 season. He took on stock car racing while competing in the Cup Series and O’Reilly Auto Parts Series.

The Edinburgh native made 10 starts in the Cup Series while focusing on ovals. His best finish was 22nd at Martinsville Speedway. He made 14 starts in the secondary series while posting a fifth-place finish at Watkins Glen International and a sixth-place finish at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. He also won the pole for the race at Watkins Glen.

Franchitti has not competed in NASCAR since the 2008 season — his lone Truck Series start happened in 2007 — so how did this deal come about? According to Racer, a conversation with seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson set it all up.

“When this came up with the NASCAR Truck race on the Saturday, I thought, ‘Well, I’m not going to get to drive an Indy car there; I’m too bloody old for one thing, but I love the track, I love St. Pete,” Franchitti told Racer.

“Jimmie and I have spent a lot of time together over the last couple years at the track, racing together, racing against each other occasionally, and just having fun away from the track. We were basically drinking a glass of wine, and I said to him, ‘God, that would be fun to do that at St. Pete.’ And the next morning, he calls me and goes, ‘Hey, found your truck!'”

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