Sep 13, 2007 | The IRL IndyCar Series capped off a great season with just the sort of exciting finish it’s become known for. Carrying the championship battle into the last race of the season is a good thing. Carrying it to the last lap with the two title contenders fighting for the race win and ultimately the championship is a great thing.

That’s what happened in Chicagoland as Dario Franchitti and Scott Dixon were able to stretch the fuel mileage and skip the last stop, bringing the race down to just the two of them. Both drivers knew it was going to be close. Dixon had the faster car but Franchitti had the precious fuel, and fuel beats speed any day of the week. Dixon ran the tank dry in the third turn of the final lap while leading, while Franchitti drove by for the win. Along with the race victory, Franchitti also claimed the 2007 IRL IndyCar Series championship by 13 points over Dixon.

The Snap-on IRL drivers ended the 2007 IndyCar Series season in fine style, scoring a pair of top-five finishes and dominating much of the day. Sam Hornish Jr. started second but wasted no time taking the lead on the first lap. He would hold the top spot much of the day, swapping it mostly with Team Penske teammate Helio Castroneves.

A caution on lap 137 in the middle of a sequence of green flag pit stops was the only setback of the day, dropping Hornish behind several cars that were either on pit road or had yet to pit when the yellow flag flew. He wasted no time getting back to the lead and stayed there until ducking in for a quick fuel stop with 16 laps remaining.

After the final stop, Hornish cycled back out in third behind only Dario Franchitti and Scott Dixon, the two championship contenders who elected not to stop in a fuel mileage gamble and ended up on a lap by themselves. Although he clearly had the fastest car, Hornish couldn’t make up the distance on the cars that didn’t stop. He would end the day in the third spot. For Hornish, it was the one that got away.

"We definitely had the fastest car, and it’s just unfortunate things ended up the way they did," said Hornish. "I’m not sure how the leaders were able to save so much fuel, but it is what it is. Helio (Castroneves) and I had the cars to beat out there."

Hornish ended the season fifth in series points. He now plans to head to NASCAR for the rest of 2007 to run in both the Busch and Nextel Cup Series but isn’t revealing whether he plans to be in an IndyCar or a stock car in 2008 yet.

The other Snap-on driver, Helio Castroneves, started third and followed his teammate Hornish to the front on the first lap. Castroneves took over the top spot after the first series of pit stops and would hold it until Hornish moved back by. The duo would hold the top two spots much of the day.

After the caution on lap 137 during pit stops, Castroneves would also have to work his way back to the front. He would move back up and settle in fourth, a spot he held until pitting for fuel with 15 laps remaining. The fuel stop returned him to the track in fourth behind his teammate where he would finish the day, giving both Snap-on drivers solid top-five runs to cap off the 2007 season.

"The Team Penske cars were incredible out there," Castroneves said. "Regardless of the outcome, I can’t say enough about the crew. We definitely ended the season on a high note. The car was awesome and the pit stops were flawless."

Castroneves finished sixth in the series championship this year and like his teammate he has a busy off season to look forward to. He will be competing in ABC television’s Dancing With The Stars celebrity competition.

The IRL IndyCar Series 2007 season has come to an exciting end but look for a return to racing next March.