IndyCar
Scott Dixon Just Misses Out On Indy 500 Win
INDIANAPOLIS, IN (Pittsburgh Racing Now) – Takuma Sato’s “thrill of victory” in the 104th running of the Indianapolis 500 is Scott Dixon’s “Agony of Defeat”.
Dixon and his No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda finished second to Sato on Sunday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway after leading a race-high 111-laps.
Dixon made his final pit stop on lap 169 and the plan was go to the end of race. Sato pitted a lap earlier than Dixon on lap 168.
The pair staged an epic battle for the lead following their final stops with Dixon settling in behind Sato’s car and using the slipstream to make sure he had a enough fuel to make it to the end, something the Ganassi team didn’t think Sato could do by burning more fuel out front in the lead.
“I really can’t see how (Takuma) Sato was going to make it,” said Dixon. “We pitted a lap later, and the numbers they had to get, it was going to be very difficult.”
In the end it didn’t matter because Sato was out front when the caution flag flew with five laps-to-go when Rahal Letterman Lanigan with Citrone/Buhl Autosport’s Spencer Pigot hit the crash attenuator in the No. 45 Hy-Vee/EMBRACE Pittsburgh Honda. Fuel mileage was no longer an issue for Sato.
“I thought they were going to throw a red flag, which would have been interesting for the last four or five laps,” said Dixon.
“Obviously, we pitted (a lap) short from Dixie (Scott Dixon),” said Sato, who also won the Indianapolis 500 in 2017. “The fuel strategy was a bit tight. I saw Scott was coming right through out of Turn 4, and he was screaming coming at me. And I just held him off.”
The second place finish and the double championship points that go along with it helped Dixon extend his 2020 NTT INDYCAR SERIES Championship points lead to 84 going into this weekend’s doubleheader at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway but that was little solace to the five-time series Champion.
“This is a hard one to swallow,” said Dixon. “It was good day for Honda. I want to give a massive thank you to them. We’re very proud to be powered by HPD and Honda, and it’s nice to get some points. But it’s hard when it slips away like that.”
WASHINGTON D.C. (August 22, 2026) – Alex Palou’s blistering lap of 56.8993 seconds in the No. 10 OpenAI Chip Ganassi Racing Honda puts the four-time NTT IndyCar Series Champion on the pole position for Sunday’s Freedom 250 on the streets of Washington D.C.
“Incredible,” said Palou. “My car was on rails. Super-fun lap, super-fun car to drive. Couldn’t be happier. Looking forward to tomorrow. Tomorrow is going to be a long day, man, 250 miles.”
Andretti Global’s Kyle Kirkwood lines up second after a lap of 57.4661 in the No. 27 Sam’s Club Honda.
“P1 both first and second group, and the last one Alex Palou is just a legend and goes faster on his one-lap dash than he did the whole rest of the run, I think,” Kirkwood said. “He made us look silly out there.”
Scott McLaughlin spoiled the Honda party up front, putting the No. 3 PPG Chevrolet third on the grid after a fast lap of 57.4200.
Palou’s CGR teammates Scott Dixon and Kyffin Simpson did not fare as well as their teammate.
Dixon was on a lap that would have allowed him to transfer into the next round of qualifying, when Simpson hit the wall, triggering a red flag which cancelled Dixon’s lap. The No. 9 PNC Bank Honda will start 14th.
Bringing out the red flag penalized Simpson of his two fastest laps so the No. 8 Sunoco Honda will start last in 25th.
Coverage of the Freedom 250 starts at 11:30 a.m. on Fox and IndyCar Radio with the green flag waving in our nation’s capital at 1 p.m.
MARKHAM, ONTARIO (August 15, 2026) – The NTT IndyCar Series is making it’s first visit to a new street circuit in Markham, Ontario but a familiar face topped the speed charts after the first practice.
Four-time Series Champion Alex Palou turned the fastest lap around the 12-turn, 2.19-mile temporary street course, a 1-minute, 14.9915-seconds (100.811 mph) lap in the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.
A.J. Foyt Racing rookie Caio Collett was second quick with a 1-minute, 15.0454-seconds (100.739) in the No. 4 Chevrolet.
Louis Foster was third quick in the No. 45 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Honda at 1:15.0278 (100.702) followed by Team Penske’s Scott McLaughlin 1:15.2981 (100.401). Will Power rounded out the Top 5 at 1:15.3152 (100.378).
Palou’s Chip Ganassi Racing teammates were not as strong. Six-time Series Champion Scott Dixon was 20th at 1:16.4583 (98.877) in the No. 9 PNC Bank Honda. Kyffin Simpson was 24th at 1.17.3893 (97.688) in the No. 8 Sunoco Honda. Simpson made contact with the wall at Turn 6, causing damage to the rear suspension. Simpson limped to pits for repair and returned to action later in the session.
Practice 2 is set for 2:30 p.m. as delayed track construction forced officials to cancel Friday’s activities and condense Saturday’s schedule. NTT P1 Pole Qualifying is set for 6:30 p.m. ET
MARKHAM, ONTARIO (August 14, 2026) – Issues with the completion of the temporary street circuit in Markham Ontario has forced the NTT INDYCAR SERIES first practice to be moved to Saturday as all of Friday’s on-track activity had to be scrubbed from the schedule.
“INDYCAR is incredibly disappointed that our promoter was not able to complete the track build on time, despite significant support from our team on site,” INDYCAR President J. Douglas Boles said. “Ontario has always been a magnificent market for our sport and the number of spectators that attended today is a shining example of that. New events can always pose logistical challenges and we join in the frustration of our loyal fans and apologize.”
Green Savoree Promotions also issued a statement.
“Ensuring the safety of the drivers and the completion of the certification process of competing on a brand-new racetrack delayed all on-track activities today. Today’s sessions have been rescheduled to Saturday, August 15, to allow for further track preparations.”
“We greatly appreciate all the fans who made it out to the Ontario Honda Dealers Indy at Markham today and chose to spend the day with us. The attendance and support were overwhelming.”
The revamped schedule calls for the first practice to take place at 10:00 a.m. followed by a second practice at 2:30 p.m. and P1 Pole Qualifying at 6:30 p.m.
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Palou quickest in first Markham practice
