Franchitti still in state of disbelief

After winning the 91st Indianapolis 500 in unexpected fashion on Sunday, Franchitti still seemed to be pinching himself Monday morning, posing for photographs at the track and driving around the track with a group pf journalists.

"Did it really happen?" Franchitti said while flashing a smile. "It's been a gradual process over the last 12 hours or so. It's slowly sinking in, but it's going to take awhile."

Franchitti and his No. 27 Andretti Green Racing Honda/Dallara prevailed in Sunday's rain-interrupted and rain-shortened race with a combination of strategy and circumstance. As rain closed in on the track, Franchitti put himself in the lead, then hoped for rain.

In his pit, crew members' cell phones began to ring, with spouses and friends calling to tell them it was raining hard just blocks from the speedway. At one point, race strategist John Anderson told Franchitti it was raining in Brownsburg, a suburb on the west side of Indianapolis.

"I said, 'I have no idea where Brownsburg is,'" Franchitti said. "'Is that close?'"

When the post-race celebration at the track slowed down, it resumed in downtown Indianapolis, where fellow drivers, friends and family partied into the early morning hours.

After a few hours of sleep, Franchitti was back at it early Monday, posing for magazine photo shoots, doing interviews and taking pictures with crew members, the car and the Borg-Warner Trophy.

At one point, Franchitti, a student of motorsports history, took a few minutes to look at the names and faces of the winners, which are carved in sterling on the trophy.

"It's just overwhelming," he said. "You see the names and faces on it, and it's amazing to think I'm going to be on it. It's a real honor. It's awesome."

Michael Andretti, co-owner of AGR, also went through an unbelievable race day, with his drivers leading 131 of the 166 laps.

During the three-hour rain interruption, AGR drivers were in control, with Tony Kanaan leading, Marco Andretti second, Danica Patrick third and Franchitti fifth. Michael Andretti said he knew it couldn't possibly end that well.

"When they were going to go back to green again, I was like, 'Oh, no,'" Andretti said. "You know when you're sitting 1-2-3-5, it can only get worse."

Franchitti got the team the coveted victory, but Marco crashed and finished 24th, Kanaan spun and finished 12th, Patrick finished eighth and Michael finished 13th.

As he rode around the track Monday, Franchitti noted the various skid marks that led to larger black marks on the wall, the points where seven cars crashed Sunday. He also pointed out skid marks at pit entry, where teammate Tony Kanaan spun on the 157th lap while trying to avoid Jaques Lazier's crash.

Kanaan, who led 83 laps and appeared to be poised to win the race for much of the day, was on Franchitti's mind Monday.

"He stopped by last night and hung out for about a half-hour," Franchitti said. "But I could hardly look at him. I felt so bad."

Before the race, Franchitti noted how fickle the Indianapolis 500 can be. While skill and speed and strategy all played major roles in his victory, Franchitti is quick to acknowledge that circumstances also had a hand in it.

"It's so difficult to win it," he said. "Look at a guy like Michael, one of the best drivers I ever raced against. Things never went his way here. He led hundreds of laps here but didn't win it. When it's your day, you better take it."