Will Scott Dixon Win Again at Honda Indy 200?

Scott Dixon has a great chance to end up in the winner’s circle after Sunday’s Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio. The defending Verizon IndyCar Series champion has an amazing streak going at the 2.258 mile road course in Lexington, Ohio.

In Dixon’s last nine Verizon IndyCar Series starts at this venue, he has collected five victories and finished third on another occasion. As a result, he has an amazing 2.7 average finish. That average is also the best of any active Verizon IndyCar driver. Furthermore, he has two poles that boost his starting average to a 5.7 starting spot.

Scott Dixon has finished all of the 780 circuits he has drove around the road course. The veteran speedster is looking forward to Sunday’s Honda Indy 200 and closing in on points leader Simon Pagenaud. Dixon also comes into the contest fourth in the standings, just 83 points behind the Team Penske-sponsored driver.

“I have a soft spot for Mid-Ohio, to be honest,” Dixon said. “I think we have five victories there over the years and 10 or so with the team in total. It’s a place that we always feel that all four of our teams will have a shot at winning, and there aren’t many tracks out there where your confidence level is that high as a team. It’s a track that really feels like home to me.”

Even though Dixon has owned the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio, all eyes will be on the Team Penske match-up between Will Power and Simon Pagenaud. Neither of the drivers have found a way to race to glory at this track. In fact, Team Penske hasn’t won here since Ryan Briscoe won in 2008. Chip Ganassi Racing Teams have reeled off six wins in a row from 2009 to 2014, thanks in large part to Scott Dixon.

With only five races remaining, one of which is a half-race at Texas, Simon Pagenaud points lead over Will Power is at 47. Power, who’s gained 90 points on Pagenaud in the last six completed races, hopes to close the gap even further after Sunday.

Power has the momentum going into the Honda Indy 200 after last week’s win. The problem is he has yet to excel at the Mid-Ohio race course. The Australian born driver’s best finish is second, which he did twice in 2010 and again in 2012. The same song and dance applies for points leader Simon Pagenaud. He has won here in the Le Mans Series but has three non-podium appearances in his last five Verizon IndyCar Series races here.

Juan Pablo Montoya and his Team Penske mates have gone through a bit of a rough patch at the mid way point in the 2016 season. As a result, Montoya has three 20th place efforts in his last four races. The savvy driver has also competed well at Mid-Ohio road course compared to other road races since he returned to IndyCar. He probably could have captured victory in last years race but got caught out on a yellow. The unfortunate set of circumstances placed him in the 11th spot at the contests end.

“Mid-Ohio… we really qualified well there last year,” Montoya told NBC Sports. “I’m hoping… we qualify well there and we race well there again this year. If find some more things in the package, we can turn this run around.”

Verizon IndyCar Rookie Max Chilton hasn’t finished better than 18th in his last five starts. The youngster hasn’t been that bad, but a couple of timely errors and some bad luck has dropped him back. The same goes for A.J. Foyt Enterprise’s Jack Hawksworth, who lost his top ten at Toronto after reported late race contact from Simon Pagenaud. Hawksworth also has been 15th or worse every other event, but has been fast in practices. With a little more work he hopefully can carry that speed into Sunday’s events.

2016 Verizon IndyCar Point Standings Heading into the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio: