IndyCar at Toronto: Chip Ganassi’s Scott Dixon Ties Mario Andretti With 52nd Win | IndyCar

With a dominant drive north of the border, Dixon notched his 52nd career win, which ties him with the legendary Mario Andretti. The only person to win more races than Dixon is AJ Foyt. The six-time champion led 40 laps today, earning his first victory of the year. This is the 18th consecutive season that Dixon has won a race.

“It was a tough drive. We struggled a little bit on rears, but we made some adjustments after this morning, and that definitely helped. Ended a streak too, which is just fantastic. It’s been a funny year for us and I still feel bad for what happened in the 500. Being back in Victory Circle feels good, and massive thanks to Honda, because getting that fuel mileage today was so easy. I’m hoping this is the start of the roll. The team has been working as hard as any.”

This is the fourth win at Exhibition Place for Dixon, where he also has a pair of runner-up finishes. The win also moves him closer to another possible championship. The veteran is just 44 points out of the lead with seven races remaining.

Mario took to social media shortly after the race to congratulate Dixon. “Utmost respect for my friend Scott Dixon and truly happy to congratulate him on 52 wins. Also congratulate his team because nobody does it alone. I hope this is just a step on your continuing journey. Well done.”

Dixon relished the victory, and the significance of it. “It’s amazing to be close to Mario,” Dixon said. “I’m just so thankful that he and AJ are in the pits and we get to talk to them. It’s huge, it feels so good to be a part of this group.”

Colton Herta finished 0.8106 seconds behind Dixon, as the pole sitter wasn’t quite able to reel in the No. 9 Honda. Herta had some visibility issues late in the race, which caused him to have to brake earlier than he wanted. “Felix was really fast and I’m glad we were able to keep him behind us. Obviously got beat up out there by Dixon, but a race I can be proud of. A pole and second place, I can be proud of that.”

“Hopefully we can continue with these results more consistently,” Herta added. “We just struggled a little with tire wear at the end. Other than that our car was amazing. We just need to make this a bit more regular and then do it again next year. Then we’ll be looking a lot better in the championship.”