Chip Ganassi Racing Teams announced it has partnered with Nintendo and its long-time sponsor Target, to have Nintendo’s newest video game, Wii Fit, as the sponsor of 1,100 miles of auto racing on Sunday, May 25. Nintendo and Wii Fit become the primary sponsors on Alex Lloyd’s #16 Dallara Honda in the Indianapolis 500 and later in the day along with Target on the team’s #40 Dodge in the Coca-Cola 600 in Charlotte, N.C.

By sponsoring the Wii Fit 1,100, Nintendo follows Target as one of the only sponsors that will have cars competing in both races as Target has Scott Dixon and Dan Wheldon starting one-two in the Indy 500 and Reed Sorenson competing in his third Coca-Cola 600. The 500 mile Indianapolis 500 is the longest race on the IndyCar Series schedule while the 600 mile Coca-Cola 600 is the same in the Sprint Cup Series.

Dario Franchitti, who would normally pilot the #40 Target/Wii Fit Dodge, is still recovering from a fractured ankle he suffered three weeks ago in a Talladega Superspeedway racing Nationwide Series incident. A final decision on Franchitti’s status has not been made nor has a replacement been named in the event Franchitti cannot compete in the Coca-Cola 600.

Last year over Memorial Day weekend, Franchitti captured the Borg Warner trophy in the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He went on to capture the 2007 IndyCar Series championship before beginning his transition to stock cars at Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates (CGRFS). Franchitti is one of three former Indy 500 winners running in the 2008 Sprint Cup Series.

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