Myspace. Blackberrys. Presidents. All have come and gone during Scott Dixon‘s three-decade reign atop the IndyCar Series.
The New Zealander’s breakthrough championship came a lifetime ago at the age of 23 as George W. Bush was completing his first term as Commander-in-chief. Five more IndyCar championships would follow through the 2020 season, leaving Dixon tied for first on the all-time list at six with the legend of legends, A.J. Foyt.
Now 42, the Kiwi is in pursuit of a seventh title in the coming weeks. Dixon has become an icon, IndyCar’s version of Tom Brady, in the American open-wheel racing series that came to life with the 1911 Indianapolis 500. And unlike Formula One with its 24-year-old champion Max Verstappen, or NASCAR and its two most recent Cup titlists in Chase Elliott, 26, and Kyle Larson, 30, Dixon’s holding the line for IndyCar’s old guard.
He isn’t alone.
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Dixon’s chasing Will Power, the wild-eyed 41-year-old championship leader whose lone IndyCar title from 2014 is girded by years of inconsistency, littered with championship misses and maybes. Where Dixon’s on a quest to cement his legacy, the Australian’s on a mission to prove he’s more than a one-hit wonder by adding a second title before he retires.
Two races are left on the calendar to determine whether the 40-and-over crowd can keep the next-generation stars at bay. A change of eras is coming; the kids in the field and the mid-career types want to push the Dixons and Powers out to pasture, and that’s where IndyCar’s end-of-season story is unlike any other in motorsports.
“You know, it’s a 20-year span and I’ve seen championships go a lot of ways,” Dixon told ESPN. “I think Power has been extremely consistent this year. He’s put together a totally different style of season for himself. He’s been really focused and level-headed, which has been really cool to watch. But a lot can change in the next two races.”
After 15 of 17 rounds, seven drivers remain in the title conversation; they’re locked in the tightest championship battle of the modern era. From Power in first at 482 points to 23-year-old Mexican driver Pato O’Ward in seventh, just 58 points separate the contenders with the penultimate round in Portland on Sept….
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