IndyCar: Kiwi Scott Dixon claims podium finish after dramatic race

  • 15/04/2019

Kiwi IndyCar star Scott Dixon was promoted to third after a dramatic finish at the latest round at Grand Prix of Long Beach on Monday (NZ time).

The 38-year-old was challenging hard in the closing stages following a shambolic second pit stop, where he dropped from second to fifth.

He pulled back Ryan Hunter-Reay on his return, but was cut off at the pass as he tried to overtake rival Graham Rahal in the 85-lap race which prevented the New Zealander from crossing in third place.

Dixon's Chip Ganassi team filed an immediate protest and race officials agreed, promoting him to the last spot on the podium.

"I think had he not reacted there, we would have got him anyway. But that's racing, hard racing, definitely the last stint was strong for our car," Dixon said.

"It was unfortunate that we had the fuel probe issue - I think we could have had a great race for second."

Pole-sitter Alexander Rossi took the Long Beach title for the second straight year, the first driver to do so since Sebastien Bourdais between 2005-07.

Championship leader Josef Newgarden finished second to extend his lead at the top of the standings, with Rossi second overall and Dixon third, 36 points from the lead.

The result was Dixon's third podium finish of the season.

The championship moves to the IndyCar Grand Prix on May 12.

Newshub.