IndyCar gives Scott Dixon big penalty in Road America qualifying as Josef Newgarden lucks out

Chip Ganassi Racing's Scott Dixon has been disqualified (penalty) after the end of Round 1 among the first 12 cars. The veteran driver had initially made it into the top six, but because of impeding, he was knocked out.

During the closing stages of Round 1, Dixon impeded Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing's Devlin DeFrancesco, who was on a fast lap. The incident took place at Turns 11-12 of the Road America racing circuit.

In line with this, Dixon has also reacted, and his take is as follows (via IndyCar on FOX on X):

"I have to see, obviously, I knew he was getting close, but I was trying to stay clear of the 15 and get a lap in. So I got the gap, and then, unfortunately, had a big over boost, kind of getting back up to speed and close the gap again. But, yeah, I didn't want to ruin anybody's day and obviously, uh maybe got in the way a little bit there with Devlin."

With Scott Dixon getting disqualified and not going into Round 2, the two-time IndyCar Champion, Josef Newgarden, has gotten through. The latter had initially ended Round 1 in P7.

Scott Dixon received 'green-flag' from IndyCar for breaking Mario Andretti's record

During the 2025 Indy 500, Scott Dixon became the driver with the highest number of IndyCar race starts. He broke motorsport legend Mario Andretti's 407 race starts record.

In line with this, the 44-year-old was recently presented with the green flag. On the occasion, Dixon shared IndyCar's post for him on Instagram. The caption was as follows:

"History made. This morning, @scottdixon9 received the green flag from the 109th #Indy500, marking his record-breaking 408th career start in INDYCAR."

Scott Dixon has been competing in America's highest class of open-wheel racing for over two decades. He has, over the years, amassed several accolades, and among them, the most notable are his six IndyCar championships. Dixon triumphed in the sport in 2003, 2008, 2013, 2015, 2018, and 2020.

In the 2024 season, Dixon finished his run in sixth place in the drivers' standings, behind Arrow McLaren's Pato O'Ward. Moreover, in the process of doing so, he was able to put on board 456 points with two wins, eight top-fives, and 11 top-ten finishes. The championship was eventually secured by his Chip Ganassi teammate, Alex Palou.

In the ongoing 2025 IndyCar season, Dixon is currently in fifth place in the drivers' standings with 206 points. He has so far managed three top-five and five top-ten finishes. Next up on the race calendar is the Grand Prix at Road America (June 22).