RACING driver Dario Franchitti is to donate his brain to medical research after escaping death in a 200mph crash, he has revealed.
The four-time IndyCar champion was forced to retire after he suffered two broken vertebrae, a fractured right ankle and concussion.
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The 43-year-old, who moved back to Scotland due to homesickness, walked away from the sport after doctors told him he could face permanent brain damage should he drive again.
He has been left with a limp and memory loss after the accident almost three years ago.
Franchitti, from Bathgate in West Lothian, said he had been inspired by friend and fellow US driver Dale Earnhardt Jr, who also suffered trauma in a recent high-speed crash.
“Dale came out recently about donating his brain to medical research. When he announced that, I thought, ‘Yeah, I’m going to do that too,’” said Mr Franchitti, who had split from his wife, the Hollywood star Ashley Judd, shortly before the crash.
The driver said in a US interview he is donating his brain to propel research into CTE – chronic traumatic encephalopathy – the degenerative disease that can be caused by repeated blows to the head.
Mr Franchitti said that he had been first injured during a pre-season testing crash at Homestead in 2000, which fractured his pelvis too, and affected him mentally for the next two years.
He only recognised the effects on his brain later. “I can remember even three or four years ago there were times when people would just try to push through,” he said. “I know I did that in 2000 for two seasons.
“Clearly it got better as that period went on but, at its worst, I was just a basket case. I struggled with balance, concentration, decision-making, memory.
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“The problem with concussions is that the damage is cumulative, so the more you have, the less it takes to have one the next time.
“When the doctors told me that [in 2013] and told me my concussion history, the effects, and then what I could expect if I got another hit to the head, I was shocked.
“But I was lucky in that I had a doctor who had a strong opinion and I respected that opinion enough, so when he said, ‘No more racing,’ I just said ‘OK’.
“That was also the point in my career where … I wanted to go do other stuff, but at least I wasn’t a 21-year-old kid.
“I’d done a lot of things and fulfilled a lot of dreams. So to that extent it was easier for me. Ultimately, each person has got to do what’s right for them – it’s a very personal thing.”
Franchitti was nursed back to health by specialists in both the US and UK.
He said he was told to retire immediately after the 2013 accident – despite wanting to continue.
“It’s a really tough situation because outwardly there’s no signs of a concussion,” he said.
“It’s not like a broken leg or broken back or something. You can’t tell, so it’s easy to kind of ignore it.
“I had some minor concussions and ignored them and probably paid the price.
“I think in my situation I wasn’t really given an option. It was kind of so bad by this point that there was no other option.”
Since his retirement Franchitti has sold the multimillion-pound Stirlingshire house he and his wife had restored, and has been working alongside his former teammates in the US as a mentor.
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Franchitti started racing karts at West of Scotland Kart Club
in Larkhall and tested at Knockhill, near Dunfermline. He won his
first karting title aged 11 and went on to race at the British Championship.
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