Scott Dixon’s hunt for a seventh IndyCar championship has been sucker-punched after a heavy crash in the Bommarito 500.
The Kiwi was an innocent bystander in the lap 65 wreck, which eliminated provisional series leader Alex Palou and Ed Carpenter Racing’s Rinus Veekay.
Veekay triggered the crash, tagging Dixon on the entry to turn one.
Dixon spun and collided rear-wing first into the outside wall.
Meanwhile, Veekay collected Palou, who was on his immediate right, and the two shunted into one another.
Palou and Veekay’s night was over immediately, while Dixon was able to limp to the pitlane. Albeit, he was bearing significant rear-wing damage.
Due to crashes, false restarts, and loose debris, the race had already been littered with several cautions.
Ed Carpenter had crashed moments before Dixon’s incident, and the field had bunched up for the restart.
The Chip Ganassi mechanics are currently scattering to repair the damage to Dixon’s Honda.
However, he will drop several laps, and his chances of a decent finish are over.
“I had plenty of room with Scott and Scott had plenty of room up front,” Palou said.
“I don’t know where [Veekay] wanted to go.
“So, it’s a shame.”
Palou still holds a slim championship lead, though that depends on where Pato O’Ward finishes.
O’Ward came into the race 21 points behind Palou and is sixth on track at the time of writing.
“There are still three races left and we will try and bring the championship home,” Palou said.
Main Image: NBCSN screenshot
