Dario Franchitti says "it was pretty tough" when it became evident that he wouldn't compete again in motorsports, but he's looking forward to being involved in the IndyCar Series in "another chapter" of his career.

The four-time IndyCar Series champion and three-time Indianapolis 500 winner held his first news conference announcing his retirement last month. Five weeks earlier, he suffered non-life-threatening injuries in a final-lap incident at Houston.

Flanked by the Borg-Warner Trophy and Astor Cup, Franchitti thanked the many well-wishers from around the world, especially members of Chip Ganassi Racing Teams for their support. He drove the No. 10 Target Chip Ganassi Racing car the past five seasons, winning three consecutive series championships and two Indy 500s. Longtime friend and competitor Tony Kanaan will move into the No. 10 Chevrolet-powered car for the 2014 season.

"Thank you, really, to everybody for all the kind wishes," he said. "It's been so nice to know that I was appreciated."

Franchitti, 40, who traveled to Indianapolis from his native Scotland for check-ups, said the past three weeks he's seen "big improvement" from the effects of the concussion. He also suffered two spinal fractures that have not required surgery and a fractured right ankle that required two surgeries.

"I'm not going to go into the whole ins and outs of the concussion," said Franchitti, who joked that he can't sneak up on anyone because of the crutches he's using to move about. "(But) the last three weeks there's been a big improvement. I couldn't have done this three weeks ago."

Franchitti said following the initial disappointment of realizing that he wouldn't compete again, he chose to focus on the positives and the future.

"I spent two days kind of thinking, ‘How can I get 'round this?’ '' said Franchitti, reflecting on the medical opinions from INDYCAR doctors that weighed in his decision to retire. "2003 I drove with a broken back in one race, till Dr. (Terry) Trammell found out and got upset with me.  I've driven with a few broken body parts over the years.  I thought, ‘There's got to be some kind of a way, some negotiation here.’  But there wasn't. 

"Pretty quickly I realized how much I was going to miss doing what I do. But for the last I guess almost 30 years from the first time I raced a go-kart, I had a really good time doing it. It's an absolute privilege to do it. I think when you get involved with people that kind of feel that way, when they don't feel they're coming to work every day, you're getting to do something that's amazing, you dreamt of doing it as a kid, whether you're a driver, engineer, mechanic, it's pretty cool." 

Franchitti is tied for eighth on the all-time Indy car victory list and also ranks in the top 10 in poles (33), runner-up finishes (29), top-three finishes (92) and top-five finishes (119).

Kanaan, reigning series champion and longtime teammate Scott Dixon and Charlie Kimball would welcome any input from Franchitti.

“If Dario was involved in any situation it would be huge for the team but also for the drivers, especially now that there are four,” Dixon said. “To have someone that has been in the team, knows a lot about it and won many races, it’s hard to find people like that.

“The pure knowledge he has, the attention to detail, and maybe an outside view of what you’re doing on a race weekend would be fantastic.”

Click it: Get a copy of Franchitti's book 'Romance of Racing'

Former Indy car drivers A.J. Foyt, Bobby Rahal, Michael Andretti, Jimmy Vasser, Bryan Herta, Sarah Fisher, Sam Schmidt, Davey Hamilton, Rick Mears, Johnny Rutherford and Arie Luyendyk are all currently involved in the IndyCar Series.

“Dario’s shadow for us is massive,” team managing director Mike Hull said. “What he provided for our team -- not only what he was able to do on the racetrack – but his ability to utilize a partnership among his teammates. Being a teammate is one of his strengths. When you have a teammate with such historical significance as Dario has, he’ll cast a major positive shadow on Chip Ganassi Racing for the rest of our lifetimes together.

“Hopefully we’ll have Dario with us. I don’t think full time is what he had in mind. We think he can make a very positive contribution toward how we race in the future.”