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The champion of six IndyCar crowns has finished second or third in the title race on nine occasions.
In just about all of them, there’s been one or two results that put paid to his quest for the Astor Cup.
This season could prove to be another one of those.
With five races remaining, Dixon (358 points) sits third in the standings behind Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Alex Palou (411) and Team Penske’s Will Power (362).
Of the 12 races to date, Dixon has been inside the top 10 in nine of them. However, it’s the bad days that have hurt his campaign the most.
At Road America, Dixon was on course for another top five finish when he suffered a puncture and was forced to make an unscheduled pit stop and finished 21st.
Two rounds later, and he was one of the unlucky few to have issues with IndyCar’s all-new hybrid system. He failed to start the race but was eventually classified 27th.
Dixon’s scorecard has a few blemishes, and the same can be said for Palou, but the two-time champion’s results sheet is far nicer to look at.
The Spaniard has just two finishes outside the top five this season –16th on the streets of Detroit and 23rd in Iowa after crashing out.
“I wouldn’t say it’s good fortune, they do a hell of a job,” Dixon said of Palou’s success to date.
“That’s why he’s won two championships in the last three years. I don’t want to take anything away from that. You create a lot of your own good luck. They do a good job of that.”
Dixon is still firmly in the fight for the title with five races remaining but admits those results in Road America and Mid-Ohio have hurt his chances.
“We’ll keep fighting here,” he said after finishing third in Toronto.
“I think without our tyre issue at Road America and the [hybrid failure] at Mid-Ohio, I think would maybe be leading the championship.
“It’s frustrating, but you can’t do anything about those situations. It’s out of your control.
“We’ll keep our head down here. I think this time last year we were 120 points back, we closed it to 60 or 70. Until we’re out of it, we’re never going to give up.
“They’re a tough team. I see all they do, and they do it well.”
Issues for last week’s race winner!@scottdixon9 is forced into the pits with a flat tire!
📺: #XPELGP on NBC and Peacock pic.twitter.com/G6u6x7skei
— NTT INDYCAR SERIES (@IndyCar) June 9, 2024
An unusual end to the calendar will see four of the last five races take place on ovals.
Team Penske has been the form team on ovals this year with Josef Newgarden’s win at Indianapolis as well as Scott McLaughlin and Will Power sharing wins at Iowa.
Outside the visit to Portland, the final swing will feature oval races at Gateway, a double-header at Milwaukee, and the finale at Nashville.
“I think it’s definitely interesting with how it ends,” said Dixon.
“We’ve got one road course left. Should be good for the Penskes, I guess. Whether it was tailored that way, I have no idea.
“But I think we had really good cars at Iowa, as well. It was a little bit different there. It was a struggle for passing. Milwaukee will be interesting.
“We’ll see. It’s been a long time since we’ve been in Nashville. It was a great place for our team. Milwaukee has been in the past, as well. St. Louis. Anything’s possible, man. We’ll keep trying.”
IndyCar takes an Olympics-induced break before returning to Gateway on August 18.
