There was drama at the start of the race as third place qualifier Felix Rosenqvist locked up entering Turn 1 and clipped McLaren’s Pato O’Ward – spinning them both.
Dixon was mired in the Lap 1, Turn 1 melee that began when Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden got into the back of the #9 Chip Ganassi Racing Honda.
That left Dixon tangled with the #4 AJ Foyt Racing Honda of Caio Collet, who drove over the right front corner of the New Zealander’s car.
Remarkably, despite the carnage, everyone was able to continue.
Dixon went on to finish sixth thanks to some deft strategy and a well-timed undercut in the final stint to finish behind his teammate Alex Palou.
Speaking post-race, Dixon was left frustrated that Newgarden’s actions went unpunished.
“I don’t know how the #2 car didn’t get a penalty,” he told media post-race.
“He just drilled the back of us, spun us out. It’s not like I hit the car in front or an accordion effect or anything like that. A bit bizarre.
“We got hit really hard by Collet and then kind of got stuck and wedged in there. I think we bent the front suspension and the rear suspension.
“Bit of a recovery there. The pit stops were fantastic. Did a big undercut on the last one and jumped those four cars or maybe five cars.
“The pace was there even though the car was bent. Just chaotic.”
Meyer Shank Racing’s Marcus Armstrong brought the #66 Honda home in 11th.
He benefitted from the first lap stack-up to be inside the top 10, only to flunk his free kick when he was penalised for pitting when the lane was closed.
He was relegated to the rear of the lead lap before mounting a comeback drive to finish 11th.
Will Power was 13th for Andretti Global. He started 25th and elected to take on a bold fuel saving strategy.
However, a misstep meant he pitted too early and was then given a drive-through penalty for an improper pit exit.
“It was a bit of a gut-wrenching day, to be honest, because we were making that strategy work,” said Power.
“We had a fuel error issue going on, so we pitted a lap earlier than we should have.
“But at the end of the day, if everything had gone the right way, we could have won that race.
“We’ll just have to regroup as a team and focus our energy forward to the 500.”
Scott McLaughlin was worst off in 16th. The Team Penske driver was among those who copped damage in the first lap furore.
McLaren’s Christian Lundgaard triumphed after 85 laps, defeating Team Penske’s David Malukas.
Lundgaard made the move for the race lead with an epic pass around the outside of Malukas with 18 laps to go at the sweeper preceding the first chicane.
IndyCar will turn its attention to the Indianapolis 500 in the coming days, with the first practice slated for Tuesday (AEST).
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