Race car owner Chip Ganassi apologizes for running over driver's puppy

Jan. 31 (UPI) -- Veteran race car owner Chip Ganassi issued an apology and condolences the family of Devlin DeFrancesco, days after he ran over and killed the driver's puppy in the motor home lot at Daytona International Speedway.

Ganassi issued the apology Tuesday night on X. The incident occurred Saturday before the start of the 2024 Rolex 24 in Daytona Beach, Fla. The 24-hour race ended Sunday.

"The accident the other night with Devlin DeFrancesco's dog was so unfortunate," Ganassi wrote on X. "I not only feel terrible about it. I also feel terrible for Devlin, Katie and the DeFrancesco kids.

"On behalf of their dog, Lucky, and the DeFrancesco family, I am making a generous donation to the Indianapolis Humane Society."

DeFrancesco accepted the apology, within an hour, on the same social media platform.

"I want to personally thank Chip Ganassi for his apology to myself, my parents, my siblings and Katie," DeFrancesco wrote on X.

"Nothing will be able to bring Lucky back or make the pain go away, but I would also like to say thank you to Chip for his donation to the Humane Society of Indianapolis, in support of other dogs/puppies in a city that is so important to me and where I spend a lot of my time doing what I love with great people."

Felipe Nasr won the Rolex 24 on Sunday at Daytona. The victory was team owner Roger Penske's first in the 55 years of the endurance race.

A yellow Cadillac, driven by Ganassi drivers Scott Dixon, Renger van der Zande, Sebastien Bourdais and Alex Palou Montalbo, was forced to retire from the race after 13 hours because of mechanical issues.