Scott Dixon makes feelings clear as he sets sights on rare Long Beach feat achieved by only 4 IndyCar drivers

Chip Ganassi Racing driver Scott Dixon, who qualified in 14th place for the race on Sunday at the ACURA Grand Prix of Long Beach, shared his thoughts on potentially accomplishing a rare feat.

Dixon will look to become only the fifth driver to win the ACURA GP after starting from 14th or lower. During the 40-year history of IndyCar, only four drivers have done so: Paul Tracy (from 17th in 2000), Micheal Andretti (from 15th in 2002), Mike Conway (from 17th in 2014) and Colton Herta (from 14th in 2021).

Six-time champion Dixon hit the wall at turn 11 twice. The penalty for improperly crossing the line could impact his race on Sunday. While speaking to IndyCar staff writer Curt Cavin, he expressed how he could have qualified higher but was grateful that he could join back after his scrape with the wall.

“I think we were up on our teammate (series points leader Alex Palou) by about a tenth and a half (of a second) at that point (of the contact), so easily (could have advanced),” he said.

Dixon added:

“You’re always trying to find a little bit more, and obviously the wall kind of moves there on the way in. It’s obviously in the same spot every lap, but I just kind of got a little bit of a lock on the rear, and it kind of moved me sideways a little bit before I got to the wall and collected it.

"I thought it was OK because (the impact) was pretty square, but obviously it cut the rear tire. Luckily, I was able to come back in and run some laps later."

During the 2024 Long Beach race, Scott Dixon won from eighth with a good strategy, pitting 10 laps before Colton Herta, which helped him stay ahead and win the race, leading 42 of 85 laps.

---

Scott Dixon speaks about "mixed feelings" before being inducted into Long Beach's Motorsports Walk of Fame

Scott Dixon will be inducted into the Long Beach Motorsports Walk of Fame ahead of the Grand Prix's 50th anniversary. Alongside Dixon, Jim Michaelian and Beverly O'Neill will also be inducted.

Dixon told Los Angeles Daily Dixon about the mixed feelings he's experiencing ahead of the event.

“I don’t know, it felt weird. It’s hard, you know, and then being inducted this year into the Walk of Fame for Long Beach, which is amazing, too; it feels great,” he said.

“But it’s kind of hard because even when I was writing my speech for the Motorsports Hall of Fame, I’m like, man, I just want to be talking about how I’m trying to win next weekend as opposed to talking about my career and the people that helped me get there. It’s mixed feelings, I guess,” Dixon added.

Scott Dixon is one championship away from equaling A J Foyt's record of seven-title wins. The Kiwi has 57 wins, 140 podiums and 32 poles.