Dixon Dominates at Toronto, Ties Mario Andretti With 52 Wins

With a dominant drive north of the border, Dixon notched his 52nd career win, which ties him with the legendary Mario Andretti. The only person to win more races than Dixon is AJ Foyt. The six-time champion led 40 laps today, earning his first victory of the year. This is the 18th consecutive season that Dixon has won a race.

"It was a tough drive. We struggled a little bit on rears, but we made some adjustments after this morning, and that definitely helped. Ended a streak too, which is just fantastic. It's been a funny year for us and I still feel bad for what happened in the 500. Being back in Victory Circle feels good, and massive thanks to Honda, because getting that fuel mileage today was so easy. I'm hoping this is the start of the roll. The team has been working as hard as any."

This is the fourth win at Exhibition Place for Dixon, where he also has a pair of runner-up finishes. The win also moves him closer to another possible championship. The veteran is just 44 points out of the lead with seven races remaining.

Mario took to social media shortly after the race to congratulate Dixon. "Utmost respect for my friend Scott Dixon and truly happy to congratulate him on 52 wins. Also congratulate his team because nobody does it alone. I hope this is just a step on your continuing journey. Well done."

Dixon relished the victory, and the significance of it. "It's amazing to be close to Mario," Dixon said. "I'm just so thankful that he and AJ are in the pits and we get to talk to them. It's huge, it feels so good to be a part of this group."

Colton Herta finished 0.8106 seconds behind Dixon, as the pole sitter wasn't quite able to reel in the No. 9 Honda. Herta had some visibility issues late in the race, which caused him to have to brake earlier than he wanted. “Felix was really fast and I’m glad we were able to keep him behind us. Obviously got beat up out there by Dixon, but a race I can be proud of. A pole and second place, I can be proud of that.”

“Hopefully we can continue with these results more consistently,” Herta added. “We just struggled a little with tire wear at the end. Other than that our car was amazing. We just need to make this a bit more regular and then do it again next year. Then we'll be looking a lot better in the championship.”

Joining them on the podium was Felix Rosenqvist, who did so for the first time since his Road America win in 2020. “What a fun race,” he said. “We had to fight really hard for it. First podium with the team, really stoked.” Rosenqvist had a sensational weekend, but it was not without controversy.

The Arrow McLaren SP driver was battling with Alexander Rossi for 4th place on Lap 45 when he made a late-braking maneuver going into Turn 3 that didn't go as planned. Felix lost control of his No. 7 Chevrolet and made wheel contact with Rossi, who could be his teammate next season. Rossi was sent into the outside concrete barrier, and his day was done. Rosenqvist was not given a penalty, and was unapologetic on his team radio.

"Car is good," he said during the caution. "It wasn't big. He's (Rossi) also staying on the outside. It's crazy. You can never pass that guy without touching. He's always touching you. He has to blame himself." After the race, the Swede briefly touched on his future.

"I hope this weekend makes Zak Brown (McLaren CEO) doubt some things,” Felix said. “There's still a long way to go in the year, and every race keeps getting better and better. We took the opportunities we had. This is the trajectory we want to be on and I'm so excited for the rest of the season."

Graham Rahal had a phenomenal drive from the 14th starting position and earned his best finish of the season in 4th. The Rahal Letterman Lanigan driver was 3rd fastest in Friday's practice, but got caught out during qualifying on Saturday. He had a top-flight car this weekend, and was able to deliver a great finish for the team. “Feels like a win,” Rahal said. “This is a good kick start to the rest of our year.”

Marcus Ericsson collected another top-five finish on Sunday, extending his lead in the championship to 35 points over Will Power. The Indianapolis 500 winner had another close encounter with teammate Alex Palou, who finished just behind him in 6th. That was a positive result for Palou, who had a rough week off and on the track.

“It looks close,” Palou said of the close battle with Ericsson. “But I had to try. It was all jammed up. I couldn’t really go much more there and we were all fighting, but it was fun, and yeah, super happy with how the race ended up.” The reigning series champion sits 37 points behind Ericsson in the standings.

Simon Pagenaud withstood a barrage of physical contact on Sunday to collect a solid 7th place result. Christian Lundgaard brought home a season-best 8th place finish to make it a great day for RLL Racing. Penske teammates Scott McLaughlin and Josef Newgarden rounded out the top ten today. Newgarden was strong in the early stages of the race but an issue on pit road foiled his shot at another victory.

Pato O'Ward rebounded from his misfortune yesterday to finish 11th while rookie David Malukas capped his brilliant weekend with a 12th place result. Rinus VeeKay sliced his way through the field and grabbed a 13th place finish with a little luck during his final pit stop. Following his terrific qualifying effort, Callum Ilott finished 14th for Juncos Hollinger Racing.

Power was not able to replicate his drive at Mid-Ohio when he went from the rear of the field to the podium. Passing was more difficult on the tight concrete course, and he was only able to finish 15th. It was a big blow for him in the points, but he remains within striking distance in 2nd place with seven races to go.

Romain Grosjean had another rough afternoon as the Andretti Autosport driver was on the receiving end of some aggressive driving once again. His 16th place finish was just another gut punch for the team as teammates Devlin DeFrancesco (18th) and Rossi (23rd) were not able to have the success that Herta displayed.

There was an extended caution period on Lap 55 when some of the concrete surface in Turn 1 was coming apart. The field was bunched up after that, and most of the drivers were on the same strategy. It also helped those that had been fuel saving, allowing them to drive with more aggression. This was the 36th race on the streets of Toronto.

The return to Canada was a successful one, but there is no time for teams and drivers to rest. The series moves on for a doubleheader event next weekend at Iowa Speedway. Coverage for Saturday's race begins at 4 PM ET while Sunday's event begins at 3 PM. Both races will air live on NBC.