Hearts were racing at Miller Motorsports Park this weekend during the Sunchaser 1000 event where television heartthrob Patrick Dempsey took to the track in three separate races.

Known as dreamy Dr. Derek Shepherd on the television show "Grey's Anatomy," Dempsey exchanged his scrubs for a fire suit and scrub cap for a helmet in the KONI Challenge Series, SIRIUS Satellite Radio Mazda MC-5 Cup series, and the 7.5 hour Rolex Sports Car Series. Each race comes with a different car -- and sponsor -- that takes some time getting used to driving.

"Dempsey] can handle adapting to different cars in the same day when early in the game that may have been a little much," said Dempsey's racing partner and mentor Joe Foster.

Dempsey drove the No. 54 Supercuts Ford Mustang, No. 29 Team MER Mazda MX-5 and No. 40 SoBe Mazda RX-8. With his jam-packed schedule, Dempsey even had difficulty finding time to practice driving the cars.

"Yesterday it was a little overwhelming at first jumping in cold to a new car," Dempsey said at a press conference Friday.

Dempsey first slid behind the wheel of the Ford Mustang during the practice round for the KONI Challenge Series Friday.

"He's done very well and it's been a challenge," Foster said. "Yesterday was primarily because his schedule was so hectic."

The practice from driving in the first two events was a good warm-up for Dempsey as he finished 10th in the 7.5 hour Rolex Sports Car Series.

Prior to his first race Friday, Dempsey took some time to talk with the media about his racing career and future goals. One goal is to drive in the Daytona 24-hour endurance race and hopes to get to that track in the near future. Also a priority on Dempsey's plate is to combine his acting talents with his passion for race car driving in a film that would accurately depict racing.

Dempsey's passion for race car driving stems from a love of ski racing. He is co-owner of Vision Racing and has been racing in his spare time for several years. Over the years, Dempsey racing credits have increased including driving the pace car for the 2007 Indianapolis 500 in May. He has also participated in the Baja 1000 celebrity race, Panoz Series and Pro Miata Series. His enthusiasm for cars extends to his own garage. Dempsey owns a number of '50s and '60s model sports cars.

Dempsey's weekend didn't end at MMP. After completing the 7.5 hour drive around the track, Dempsey headed back to Hollywood for the Emmy Award ceremony where he presented an award.

While Dempsey is serious about his future in racing and current acting career, he doesn't hesitate to throw in a few jokes. When asked why he wasn't drinking a product made by sponsor SoBe, Dempsey replied that the Life Water beside him was in fact made by Sobe. Without missing a beat, Dempsey recited a near perfect commercial for his SoBe sponsors he said: "SoBe Life Water, the drink of choice for Hyper Sport."

Missy Thompson: missy@tooeletranscript.com