Professional race car driver and 2007 Indianapolis 500 champion Dario Franchitti bought a one-bedroom, one bath condo in the Palms Place at the Palms at 4381 Flamingo Rd. in Paradise for $558,360 from TAS Properties on April 9.

Unit #3412 is one of 599 in the 47-story Palms Place development, which was built in 2007.

Franchitti, 35, has competed in both the Indy Racing League circuit and in NASCAR since 2003. He's spent the bulk of his career on the IRL circuit, eventually rising to the top of the sport by winning a rain-shortened Indianapolis 500 on May 27. He went on to finish first in the IRL season that year, 13 points ahead of New Zealand driver Scott Dixon.

Franchitti switched from the IRL to NASCAR in Oct. 2007, but his No. 40 Sprint Cup team was disbanded just nine months later. He now races for Chip Ganassi Racing.

Franchitti also competed on the CART series from 1997 until his switch to IRL in 2003. The Scottish-born driver has competed in 115 career races.

He is also well known as the husband of actress Ashley Judd. The two were married during a reception in a Scottish castle in Dec. 2001.

Condo sales in Paradise dropped 32 percent in 2007 versus sales in 2006. The median sales price increased from $375,000 to $512,000.

Address: 4381 Flamingo Road, Unit: 3412
Buyer(s): Dario Franchitti
Seller(s): Palms Place Llc
Sale date: Apr. 9, 2008