By Curt Cavin Scott – Indycar.com
Dixon has done the math, and the subtraction adds up.
He believes he knows where he would be in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES standings without his summer issues in the races at Road America (a tire) and the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course (electrical).
“I think we would maybe be leading the championship,” he said.
Of course, things often don’t go as planned in motorsports, particularly in a battle as competitive as the NTT INDYCAR SERIES. But Dixon is correct in noting that the standings could look different without that bad luck. Dixon lost 63 points to series leader and Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Alex Palou in those two races – he trails him now by 53 points.
“It’s frustrating, but you can’t do anything about those situations,” Dixon said. “It’s out of your control.”
Still, five races remain before the Astor Challenge Cup is awarded to the driver with the most points at year’s end, and Dixon is still in the fight. He has been one of the sport’s greats on oval tracks over the past 20 years, and four such races are left to be staged. The first of those races is the Bommarito Automotive Group 500 on Saturday, Aug. 17 at World Wide Technology Raceway.
Dixon said he and the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda crew will keep their “heads down” in the stretch run and do whatever they can to close the gap on Palou – or any other title challenger — as he drives toward a record-tying seventh series championship.
The season concludes at Nashville Speedway, an oval track where Dixon has won the series’ past three races (2006-08). He and Power are the only active drivers with wins at Milwaukee Mile, which will host a doubleheader Aug. 31 and Sept. 1. Dixon also is a two-time winner of series races at World Wide Technology Raceway, including last year.
Given all that past success and the fact Palou has never won an oval race in this series, Dixon knows anything is possible.
“I think this time last year we were 120 points back,” he said. “We closed (the deficit) to 60 or 70 (points). Until we’re out of it, we’re never going to give up.”
Actually, Dixon finished 78 points in arrears of Palou, but his point is well taken. If he can finish with a flurry as he did last year when he won three of the final four races and mixed in a third-place finish at Portland International Raceway, he should have a chance at the title as Palou isn’t having the dominant season he produced a year ago.
Last year, Palou never had a finish lower than eighth, and he wrapped up his second series title in three years ahead of the season’s final race. This year, Palou crashed in the first race at Iowa Speedway and only has a season average finish of 5.8. He finished last year at 3.7.
Dixon is third in the standings behind Palou and Team Penske’s Will Power, and he trails Power by just four points. Believe it or not, Dixon is bidding for his 16th top-three series finish in the past 22 years. Last year’s second-place finish was his third. But, of course, he seeks more than that. He wants at least as many season titles as A.J. Foyt (seven).
The fact Palou also drives for Chip Ganassi adds a layer of difficulty for Dixon. He not only must use the information his team offers, he must use it better than his talented teammate.
“They’re a tough team,” Dixon said of Palou’s No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. “I see all they do, and they do it well.”