Factbox: Franchitti announces retirement

(Reuters) - Factbox on Scotland's Dario Franchitti who announced his retirement from IndyCar racing on Thursday. * Born in Scotland in 1973, he began racing karts as a child and steadily worked his way through different race classes. * He moved to the United States in 1997 to compete in CART series, winning his first race in Miami that season. * In 2001, he married Hollywood actress Ashley Judd in a Scottish castle. * In 2003, he switched to IndyCar, and enjoyed great success, winning the driver's championship in 2007, 2009, 2010 and 2011. * In 2007, he won the Indianapolis 500 for the first time when the race was shortened because of rain. * He won again in 2010, just ahead of his close friend Dan Wheldon, who won the 2011 Indy 500 then was tragically killed in a race at Las Vegas. * In 2012, Franchitti became just the 10th driver to win the Indy 500 at least three times. Only three men, A.J. Foyt, Al Unser Sr. and Rick Mears, with four wins each, have won more. * In 265 career starts, Franchitti won 31 races. His four championships are second only to Foyt. * In January 2013, Franchitti and Judd announced they were divorcing. * In October, Franchitti was badly injured in a terrifying crash in Houston. He suffered a fractured spine, a broken ankle and concussion. * On the medical advice of doctors, Franchitti announced his retirement in November. (Compiled by Julian Linden; Editing by Frank Pingue)