Scott Dixon suffered another Indianapolis 500 heartache as he finished second.
The 40-year-old New Zealander led the race for 111of the 200 laps but had the frustration of finishing with his foot off the gas as Japan’s Takuma Sato took the chequered flag with the cars under caution on Monday (NZT).
It was the third time Dixon has finished the famous race in second after he won the 2008 edition, his only victory at the Brickyard.
Dixon instantly claimed the lead with an impeccable start from No 2 on the grid and hardly looked back as he and his Chip Ganassi team delivered clever race management and fuel strategy.
With a fast car and one of the coolest drivers in IndyCar history at the wheel, the 2020 race quickly became Dixon’s to lose.
And somehow he managed that over a dramatic final phase.
On lap 170 Dixon had a clean final pit stop for fresh tyres and enough fuel to get to the finish line.
But he was quickly overtaken by Sato who made an early move as they duelled it out.
Sato then managed to block an attempted overtake from Dixon who appeared to have the speed to get his second victory at this race.
On lap 185 they then hit rear traffic with seven laps to go and Sato managed to briefly squeeze one of them between him and Dixon to get some breathing space.
With five laps to go Spencer Pigot suffered a heavy crash. Race organisers decided to keep the cars rolling rather than fly the red flag and have a restart to effectively have the 200-lap race decided by a short shootout.
Dixon’s day was done there, with Sato being rewarded for his clever overtake.
“It’s a hard one to swallow,” Dixon said, disappointed the race wasn’t halted and restarted after that late crash.
“It’s hard when it slips away like that.
“We had the mindset and the fuel to get to the finish. But you hesitate and that’s what happens.
“Sato drove his pants off today,” he added, though he felt sure he had the fuel advantage to get past the Japanese driver if the race had finished at full throttle.
It was Sato’s second Indy 500 win following his 2017 win.
Dixon’s podium finish at a race with double points keeps him well clear in the 2020 drivers’ championship as he seeks a sixth season title.
