Franchitti focused on learning

Franchitti was sixth, fifth and then fourth in his first three Busch Series practice sessions at the 0.75-mile oval where he tested last week. He is quickly getting up to speed in the early phases of his stock car career, which up to now include ARCA and Truck Series races in the past few weeks.

However, the current IRL IndyCar Series champion has reminded everyone that he is currently more focused on learning in preparation for his first full year at Cup level, rather than chasing results in these first few outings.

"The goal here? You can ask are we here learning or are we here racing?" said Franchitti. "Everybody says we're here learning, and I say the same thing. I'm here to learn, looking at the big picture.

"But I want to definitely finish on the lead lap and be competitive all day. Any more than that, we're sort of setting ourselves up for failure."

The Scotsman expects to have a tough afternoon on Saturday when he makes his first Busch Series start at Memphis. He says lapping once at the short track is not a problem, but getting his car set up for a long run is not something he has mastered yet..

"It's a tricky place," Franchitti added. "To do one lap's not that tricky, but it becomes very tricky as the run goes on, as the tyres start to wear and the car slides around a lot.

"That's maybe where my inexperience shows, and it will show tomorrow - how to set it up for the longer run and for the tyres wearing."

A year ago his Ganassi teammate Juan Pablo Montoya qualified ninth and finished 11th in the same event at Memphis. He was on the lead lap at the end of the event and was beaten only by two non-Nextel Cup regulars.