Mr. Mid-Ohio Dixon keeps hopes alive

LEXINGTON, Ohio – Mr. Mid-Ohio did it again.

Scott Dixon won for the sixth time, but it was far from easy. He had to fight off hard-charging teammate Felix Rosenqvist in the final few laps of the Honda Indy 200, as the Chip Ganassi Racing 1-2 finish was the closest finish ever (0.0934 seconds) in Mid-Ohio history and the third closest in IndyCar road/ street course history.

The two banged wheels down the stretch and gave the fans at Mid-Ohio a thrilling finish. The win was the 46th of Dixon’s career and could prove massive in his hunt for a sixth championship.

In the winner’s circle: While Rosenqvist will surely be miffed he couldn’t score his first NTT IndyCar Series victory, his first career podium and runner-up to a legend will feel darn good. Rosenqvist had come close to a podium before, finishing fourth at St. Petersburg and fourth at Dual 1 in Detroit, but he made it happen at MidOhio.

As hard as it is to believe, Ryan Hunter-Reay also scored his first podium of the year. It’s been a rough season for the Andretti Autosport veteran, but this is a good way to start building momentum into next year.

Unforgettable: Before the fight to the finish, certainly the moment of the race, there was an intriguing battle between two legends. It’s not every day you get to see a pair of future IndyCar hall of famers bang wheels and fight for every inch of track. But we were treated as Dixon and Will Power fought for every inch of track halfway through the race – Dixon, on fresh red tires was desperately trying to maneuver around Power on the primaries. Power likely knew it was only a matter of time before the Ice Man took the spot, but he wasn’t going to give it up easy.

The two banged wheels, as Dixon tried to unleash the over-under move that has become so familiar at MidOhio.

Power was able to fend him off twice, but on his third attempt Dixon made the over-under work and took the position.

Drive another day: Tough break for rookie Marcus Ericsson, who had his race ruined at the start. In the opening turns, the Swede was hit on the right side by Takuma Sato, sending him careening into his Schmidt Peterson Motorsport teammate, James Hinchcliffe, on the left.

He made it to the pits, but after his team members analyzed the damage, they determined it was irreparable.

For Ericsson, it’s another finish outside of the top 10, making it three in a row since the best stretch of his season – a podium in Dual 2 in Detroit and a seventh in Texas.

Quote of the weekend: “Mid-Ohio is a place that we as a team have always felt that all of our cars have a shot at winning, and there aren’t many tracks out there where your confidence level is that high as a team. It’s a track that really feels like home to me.” – Scott Dixon

Championship update: With the victory and Josef Newgarden’s huge mistake at the end of the race – making contract with Hunter-Reay – Dixon sits 62 points back of Newgarden. But with four races to go, he’s going to need to keep winning and see his fellow championship competitors make some big mistakes in the next couple of months.

With his 14th-place finish, Newgarden’s lead over Rossi is down to 34 points and his lead over Simon Pagenaud is down to 47.

Scott Dixon, center, celebrates winning the Honda Indy 200 with runner-up Felix Rosenqvist, left, and 3rd-place Ryan Hunter-Reay. TOM E. PUSKAR/AP