Scott Dixon needs to only look at the second half of the 2007 IndyCar Series season to make him alternately smile and shudder as it relates to this year's championship race. He was 65 points arrears of leader Dario Franchitti exiting the Richmond race, but rattled off four victories in the final eight to outscore Franchitti 370-331 and set up a season-ending duel for the series title.
The momentum hasn't slowed. The driver of the No. 9 Target Chip Ganassi Racing entry has eight top-five finishes in nine races, including three victories, and holds a 43-point advantage over Team Penske's Helio Castroneves at the halfway point of the season. Dixon's teammate, Dan Wheldon, is 52 points behind.
Dixon isn't comfortable with the cushion, especially with six of the final nine races on road/street courses. First up is the Camping World Grand Prix at The Glen (July 6) on the 3.4-mile Watkins Glen International circuit.
Dixon's steady results netted the 2003 title when he was a freshman in the series, and similar results have bred confidence throughout the No. 9 car crew. Castroneves hasn't forfeited many points though he's looking for his first victory since April 2007 and his first IndyCar Series title. The No. 3 entry has finished in the top five in eight of the nine events, including runner-up four times.
Tony Kanaan is fourth in the title search (82 points back) and teammate Danica Patrick is fifth (131 behind). AGR driver Hideki Mutoh leads the Bombardier Learjet Rookie of the Year standings and is sixth overall. Marco Andretti, Ryan Briscoe, Oriol Servia and Ed Carpenter also are in the top 10.
On the tail end of a frustrating first half of the IndyCar Series season, Tony Kanaan found relief on a steamy night at Richmond International Raceway.
"I'm going to enjoy my win for sure," said Kanaan of his 13th victory in the IndyCar Series, which included five in 2007. "I knew that I had to keep fighting. There's nothing else I can do. If you're going to have the season you expect every year, then it's going to be pretty boring I would say."
Team Penske's Helio Castroneves finished in the runner-up spot at a caution-filled Saturday night race at Richmond International Raceway with an impressive on-track performance. Castroneves went from an 18th place starting spot to second in the 300-lap SunTrust Indy Challenge, eventually finishing one position ahead of Scott Dixon, the only driver ahead of Castroneves in the 2008 IndyCar Series championship standings.
"I was driving the wheels off it," Castroneves said about his run in the No. 3 Team Penske Dallara/Honda. "I was trying everything I could to make up spots and we were able to have a good showing today."
Target Chip Ganassi Racing's Scott Dixon and Dan Wheldon started fourth and sixth and survived 102 caution laps. Wheldon finished fourth in the 300-lap SunTrust Indy Challenge at Richmond.
"It was a tough night." Dixon said. "We had a very good car. Once again it was very tough to pass here. Even when the tires got old it was very hard to get close to people. If we were out front, I think we had a car to win. Kanaan definitely looked pretty strong tonight but I think the Target car still had a chance."
"I was trying to be aggressive while trying to finish the race and it was difficult behind the other cars." Wheldon added. " We knew there would be more than a few wrecks tonight, and that proved to be the case. The car shut off on the last lap for some reason and that's not what we need when we're trying to close the point gap."
Target Chip Ganassi Racing’s (TCGR) Dan Wheldon celebrated his birthday in victory lane Sunday by winning his second race of the season at Iowa Speedway in the Iowa Corn Indy 250. Teammate and polesitter Scott Dixon finished fourth in the No.9 Commit Honda Dallara to extend his lead in the IndyCar Series championship race from 35 to 48 over Helio Castroneves.
Wheldon started third on championship points after qualifying was rained out and took the lead out of a caution flag with 60 laps to go after his team made the decision not to pit. The move paid off, as Wheldon held off Andretti Green Racing drivers Hideki Mutoh and Marco Andretti down the stretch.
“What a great day for Target Chip Ganassi Racing," Wheldon said, "and a great birthday present. My wife and I drove from Chicago to Iowa earlier this week and we saw the flooding and it was just heartbreaking. Scott and I are glad we could help out as best we could this weekend. I hope the race today put a smile on the faces of the people of Iowa and took their minds off the challenges and most difficult times they are facing.”
Target Chip Ganassi Racing’s (TCGR) Scott Dixon started from pole, led 58 of 228 laps and claimed his third win of the season at Texas Motor Speedway Saturday night. The race ended under caution after Marco Andretti and Ryan Hunter-Reay made contact while battling behind Dixon for second place with five laps remaining. Dixon was a contender from the drop of the green flag in the No.9 Target car, running in the top-three for the majority of the event. Flawless pit work again was the theme for the Target team as Dixon was able to stay out front and survive eight caution periods for 52 laps. The turning point of the race came when he passed Andretti on lap 222 – just before Andretti and Hunter-Reay tangled and brought the race to its conclusion under the yellow flag.
Results from Texas
1. Scott Dixon, No.9 Target Honda Dallara 2. Helio Castroneves, No.3 Honda Dallara 3. Ryan Briscoe, No.6 Honda Dallara 4. Dan Wheldon, No.10 Target Honda Dallara
Terry Blount of ESPN thinks...the IndyCar Series needs to take a hint from NASCAR on this one and think about a green-white-checkered overtime finish.
"I was thinking about that," said Helio Castroneves, who finished second. "I definitely had the car to make something happen. But we can't compare ourselves to what NASCAR does. It would be a mess."
If ever a driver was due for luck, it was Ryan Briscoe. Over the last two weeks, he hasn't hesitated cashing in. After an early season of bad breaks, culminating at the Indianapolis 500 with his now infamous contact with Danica Patrick while exiting the pits (which knocked them both out of the race), Briscoe was in desperate need of something positive to happen. His racing fate changed June 1 at The Milwaukee Mile when he won his first-ever IndyCar Series race. Briscoe finishes third in Fort Worth.
Dixon's teammate Dan Wheldon rebounded from a practice accident in the No.10 Polaroid car, made up seven positions on a sore ankle and finished fourth. Wheldon’s weekend started with a practice crash on Friday which sent him into the turn four wall and eliminated the No.10 team’s primary car. The team rallied to prepare the backup car for qualifying and Wheldon came from the infield care center to qualify the car 11th. Wheldon had moved up to fourth by just lap 11 but had to restart near the rear of the field after Briscoe stopped in his pit stall under yellow. Briscoe would serve a penalty for the incident and Wheldon managed to rebound up through the field to finish fourth.
Dixon Not Slowing Down - Helio Not Dancing - Wheldon Crashes
Following his win at the Indianapolis 500, Scott Dixon backed up with a second place last weekend at the Milwaukee Mile and heads to the Texas Motor Speedway looking to get back to his winning ways. In finishing second at Milwaukee Dixon has now had five top-three finishes so far this season and has led 100 or more laps in four consecutive races. With stats like these, he looks good for another podium finish in Texas as he strives for his second IRL title. Dixon leads the IndyCar Series by 28 points from Helio Castroneves (206), and his Target Chip Ganassi team mate Dan Wheldon (185).
Helio Castroneves was asked about his interest in dancing with NASCAR earlier this week and responded, " I'm doing everything I can to clinch the championship and run here in open wheel. Right now we've merged and the series is in a good spot and I would say the opportunity, I don't think, is there to go to NASCAR. I would consider it in that you should always leave doors open.
Dan Wheldon had a sore right ankle after crashing during practice on Friday, but was cleared by doctors to take part in qualifying later in the day for the Bombardier Learjet 500 IndyCar race on Saturday. Wheldon, the 2005 IndyCar Series and Indianapolis 500 champion, hit the outside wall coming out of the fourth turn on the high-banked Texas track. The car slid down the track, losing a rear wheel, then tumbled after bogging down in the infield grass and came to rest upside down.
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