Rick Madonik |Getty Images
From associated press:
It was shaping up to be defending champion Josef Newgarden’s day until he hit a wall and opened the way for Scott Dixon.
Newgarden, the two-time winner who started from the pole position, had a third Toronto IndyCar title in his sights. Then on Turn 11 of Lap 33, the American hit the wall, allowing Dixon to overtake him for the lead and get his third win in the event.
“When I saw it — the seas were parting — away we went. Which for us, especially for the championship, he’s our closest competitor right now,” Dixon said. “That’s where our race was won today, through the bad luck or bad situation that Josef had.”
The New Zealand native finished the 85-lap course on the streets surrounding Exhibition Place first, with Simon Pagenaud of France second. Robert Wickenswas third, marking the third year in a row a Canadian landed on the podium.
The victory put the 37-year-old Dixon in some elite company with drivers with at least three wins in Toronto, joining Australia’s Will Power, Scotland’s Dario Franchitti and American Michael Andretti, who holds the record with seven. It also stretched Dixon’s lead in the points standings over Newgarden to 62 points from 33. They both have three wins this season. Pagenaud and Wickens admitted it might be tough to stop Dixon from clinching the championship, heading into the Honda Indy 200 on July 29 at Mid-Ohio, where he has won five times.
