Mid-Ohio will be Dixon’s 300th start in IndyCar

LEXINGTON, OHIO — Scott Dixon is in a good spot both mentally and in the IndyCar Series standings.

He took a family vacation to the Bahamas after winning the most recent race at Toronto on July 15 to extend the four-time series winner’s lead to 62 points over defending champion Josef Newgarden.

“It’s nice because it’s a change of speed, right?” said Dixon, who turned 38 last Sunday. “It’s great to sort of break away and have that change of pace, change your mindset and recharge your batteries and get back at it and start racing for the final five races.”

Dixon will be getting back into racing mode in Sunday’s Honda Indy 200 on a track where he’s had plenty of success. He won at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in 2007, ’09, ’11, 12 and ’14. He’s had 11 top-10 finishes among his 13 races on the 13-turn, 90-lap, 2.258mile course.

Sunday will mark Dixon’s 300th IndyCar start.

“I was told a couple of weeks ago Mid-Ohio would be my 300,” he said. “It’s fitting. It’s one of my favourite tracks.

“It’s got elevation change, it’s got fast corners, it’s got technical corners, it’s got big braking spots but especially when you get to qualifying the grip level is really high so really have to manhandle and hustle the tires around. It suits my style. I’ve always enjoyed it.”

Most of the time, anyway. Last year, he had all sorts of problems and finished ninth, a result he called “dreadful.” He entered the weekend with a three-point lead in the series, but Newgarden won at Mid-Ohio to overtake him atop the standings, and Dixon dropped to third behind Helio Castroneves.

Dixon never recovered and finished the season third behind Newgarden and Simon Pagenaud.

There have been other blips but more success for Dixon in his 17-year relationship with Chip Ganassi Racing. Dixon earned series titles in 2003, ’08, ’13 and ’15. He also won the 2008 Indianapolis 500.

“I feel really fortunate and blessed and loved to do what I do and probably didn’t think I’d ever get to 300 races,” Dixon said. “I’d like to keep building on that number.”

Driving the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing car with a Honda engine, he has three wins this year and 44 in his Indy career, eight shy of tying Mario Andretti for second but well short of leader A.J. Foyt (67).

“For us it’s keeping our heads down and focusing on the next one for the last five races and keeping that mindset.”