Scott Dixon finished a dramatic IndyCar Detroit Grand Prix in fourth place this morning, while Scott McLaughlin and Marcus Armstrong were rewarded with a good haul of points in seventh and eighth, respectively.
Both Dixon and McLaughlin were caught up in various incidents during the race, the latter relying on a late charge to move from eleventh to seventh over the final laps.
Armstrong was once again the top rookie in the field, keeping it clean and quiet to extend his lead in the rookie championship.
“It was a good race,” said Armstrong. “We stayed out of trouble. We didn’t do anything too crazy. We had a lot of pace. I thought we were quicker than the cars ahead. I think we did make a couple of good on-track moves which was great.
“Ultimately, the car was amazing and I think we’re capable of a lot more which is a good sign for the future. Great job to the team all around.”
A flurry of late cautions caused some shuffling in the top 10, but Alex Palou and Will Power never relinquished upfront for the series leader to come home for the win over the Australian.
“The car had such great pace and the fuel mileage was easy to get,” said Dixon. “Congrats to Alex, he drove superb the whole race. It was pretty wild out there, I had a lot of fun, just frustrated since the car deserved a lot more than that.”
Felix Rosenqvist rounded out the podium, nearly two seconds up the road from Dixon, who had managed a pass on Alexander Rossi on the penultimate lap as the American battled with the Swede for the final podium spot.
Right from the outset, it was clear this Grand Prix wouldn’t run without incident, and an extra formation lap was required as the grid failed to take shape in time for the green.
The first incident of note followed immediately after, Callum Illot running clean into the back of Kyle Kirkwood and damaging both cars, the Brit forced out, and a Safety Car was required until Lap 7.
Romain Grosjean had started well initially and moved past second-placed McLaughlin, looking likely for a strong result. He came unstuck with a spin on Lap 28 to drop down the order.
The next caution came on Lap 44 as Pato O’Ward, who had also suffered earlier mechanical issues in the pitlane, ran into the barriers. At this point, Dixon sat third, McLaughlin seventh and Armstrong ninth.
Just two laps of green flag running followed that caution, with Graham Rahal the next victim of the tight circuit. The American ran into the barriers right front first before being collected by rookie Benjamin Pedersen who struggled to find a way through.
Power briefly took the lead off Palou shortly after the Lap 56 restart, only for the championship leader to retake the position just two laps later.
Further back, McLaughlin and Grosjean touched, the Kiwi cut off by the French driver and losing ground as a result. Grosjean continued to charge forward following his early spin but eventually ran into the Turn 4 wall with 19 laps remaining, triggering another caution.
Ten laps remained when racing resumed, with Dixon sitting third, Armstrong eighth and McLaughlin eleventh.
Palou and Power duelled again off the restart, Dixon having a sniff as the two tried to out-brake each other but ran into the rear of the Australian. Rosenqvist and Rossi were the benefactors of this, dropping the Chip Ganassi Racing legend to fifth.
Another crash back in the pack triggered the final period of caution, the lights going green for a five-lap sprint for the line.
Palou cleared off on the restart, as did Power, while Rosenqvist and Rossi locked in a fierce scrap for the final podium spot. Dixon loomed and gained a place as the two made light contact, Rosenqvist earning the podium while Rossi was forced to settle for fifth.
Kirkwood recovered from his massive Lap 1 shunt to finish sixth, ahead of McLaughlin and Armstrong, while Marcus Ericsson and Indy 500 winner Josef Newgarden rounded out the top 10.
Palou now leads the Drivers Championship by 51 points over Ericsson, with Newgarden third and Dixon fourth. McLaughlin sits seventh while Armstrong extends his rookie title lead and sits 17th overall.
IndyCar returns on June 18 as the series takes to Road America.
Header Image: Chip Ganassi Racing (Scott Dixon)
