(Speedway, IN) – Scott Dixon is a six-time IndyCar Series champion, has won an Indianapolis 500, and is the second all-time winningest driver in the history of North American open-wheel racing.
Dixon, who will turn 45 in July, is arguably the most decorated driver in the IndyCar paddock, and yet hardly anyone is talking about him as we head into the 2025 season.
Overshadowed by the likes of his teammate Alex Palou gunning for a third championship in a row or Josef Newgarden looking for a third Indy 500 in a row, Dixon finds himself in a position that he usually does not find himself in: the role of ‘dark horse.’ Yet it’s the position he loves to be in.
“I’m fine with flying under the radar, man. That’s what I love the most,” Dixon said. “Yeah, keep those guys working flat out. That sounds good to me.”
It’s with sheer finesse that the Kiwi driver has won his six previous championships, and he doesn’t intend to deviate from that plan as he guns for his seventh.
Now in his 25th season in the NTT IndyCar Series, 23 of those seasons with Chip Ganassi Racing, Dixon is chasing his own history just like Palou and Newgarden. By the time the Month of May rolls around, Dixon, considering he qualifies for the Indianapolis 500, will have started 408 races in his career putting him most all-time.
A seventh championship would also tie him for most all-time with AJ Foyt. Finally, Dixon is nine races shy of Foyt’s all-time wins record of 67.
In order to make some of the aforementioned history Dixon said he and his team will need to be better than they were in 2024. Despite winning two races last season, Dixon finished 6th in the championship standings. That’s his worst finish in the championship since 2016.
“It was a trying year. I think we led kind of the first half of the season and then just — it kind of went to sh**,” Dixon said. “We had some little mistakes. We had kind of an issue with the tire at Road America. Then we had a hybrid failure at Mid-Ohio. Then crashed out in Portland. The list kind of goes on. It was a bit of a rough end to the season.”
Dixon is confident his Chip Ganassi Racing team can put him in a position to compete again for that seventh championship. The team has gone through some changes during the off-season. With the introduction of IndyCar’s new charter system, the team was forced to downsize from five full-time cars to three. Dixon, Palou, and Linus Lundqvist make up the CGR stable for the 2025 season.
They also welcome a new technical partnership with Meyer Shank Racing. The partnership facilitated a place for former CGR driver Marcus Armstrong. Felix Rosenqvist, another former CGR driver, is also back in the mix with Meyer Shank.
For Dixon heading into year 25, he says he’s not slowing down any time soon.
“It’s just the competition. It sucks to get beat and I hate it. I think that’s what drives me,” Dixon said. “The fire burns strong, man. I’m looking forward to getting after it for another year.”
(Story by Network Indiana)