Scott Dixon Wins Second Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach in Front of Record Crowd – The562.org

After a few years of seeing young and up-and-coming drivers enjoy success at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, veteran driver Scott Dixon hit it old school Sunday in the 49th running of the historic race in front of a record crowd.

Dixon, 43, used his veteran strategy and composure from eighth to lead 42 laps on his way to taking the NTT Indycar checkered flag for the Chip Ganassi Racing team. He also won here in 2013.

“That was fun, this is always a prestigious event,” Dixon said. “The first time I came here I think it was 1999 and the IndyLights (progressive series) and the history of this race, it’s 50 years next year, there aren’t many events on the Indy schedule where people can celebrate like that.”

This is the 40th IndyCar race at Long Beach, and Dixon’s second win here is the 57th of his IndyCar career. That’s just 10 wins behind all-time wins leader AJ Foyt. Dixon is also a six-time series champion.

“I think what we really enjoy as drivers and as a team is the environment,” Dixon said of Long Beach. “This place is wild, it has a lot of energy. It’s a lot of fun and that’s what we need to do.”

According to Grand Prix Association of Long Beach President and CEO Jim Michaelian, preliminary reports indicate that weekend attendance of nearly 194,000 is the largest since the 2008 IndyCar/Champ Car series merger.

“We always say, ‘We hope we can have more events like Long Beach, or the 500, or Nashville and places like that. It’s hard to beat,'” Dixon added.

A pair of young drivers Colton Herta and Alex Palou finished second and third, respectively. Both have had festive occasions on the 1.968-mile, 11-turn street circuit that circles the Long Beach Convention Center.

On Thursday, Herta said the youth’s recent performance in Long Beach was just the rhythm of the game.

“Will Power is still there and (Scott) Dixon is still here, but they haven’t won here in the last couple of years,” he said. “But I don’t know. I guess that’s how it is in this game. Given enough time you can see people rise and fall.”

Herta ended up running with the old dogs all day and they had new tricks.

Power, 43, has six podium finishes at Long Beach and a second-place finish. He showed his experience by passing pole-sitter Felix Rosenqvist in the tight first turn towards Dolphin Springs. An early caution put Power on the wrong race strategy as he took to the field early expecting more caution flags. They haven’t come in the cleanest IndyCar race since 2008.

After the leaders went to the pits for the last time, Dixon set to work stretching his last tank of gas for an impressive 34 laps. He even weaved a donut for the principals before entering the winner’s circle and taking the top step of the podium for the fourth time in his last six IndyCar appearances.

“I don’t think I could have made it work like Scott,” Palou said of his teammate. “Once he took (the lead), I was like, ‘He’s going to make it work.’ It’s hard if you know the numbers he’s got, what he’s got to do driving wise. I don’t know how. He’s probably lying and he’s got extra fat I don’t know yet.”

“It’s a tough discipline,” Dixon said of saving fuel. “It’s not just about technique. There are a lot of steps to take to get there. Even for me today, I wasn’t sure we were going to get that. When you do that, you feel really good.”

The craziest moment of the day came very late on the final hairpin turn with eight laps to go. Former race and series champion Josef Newgarden was weaving through traffic behind Dixon when Herta made contact. Newgarden’s rear tires lifted off the ground and his car went into a pit stop that caused him to finish fourth. There was no penalty for the contract.

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