The most improbable outcome of the day -- Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Racing driver (9), surprised and took his second title at the 49th Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach on Sunday.
Dixon finished the race with plenty of fuel to go, awarding him the highest place on the podium in Southern California.
Nobody in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES saves fuel better than Dixon, and he drove the last 34 laps of the 85-lap street race on one tank.
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Strategy won this race.
"It was a tough and very competitive race and incredible race by Dixon," said Spanish racing driver Alex Palou.
Even Dixon was surprised with his victory.
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“That was tough; that was really tough,” he said. “Honestly, I didn’t think we were going to make it, and they kept giving me a (fuel) number, and it just wasn’t getting ... I was close but not enough. Luckily, we were on the safe side there.”
This marked the 57th career victory for Dixon, who has won four of the last six IndyCar races. The first time Dixon won in Long Beach was in 2015.
The early laps of the race were dominated by Will Power as he grabbed an early lead over the other drivers and had a comfortable gap of five seconds over the rest of the field after ten laps.
The street course
According to most drives, the Long Beach track is one of the hardest street courses in the circuit.
Known for its tight curves, the track is dramatically intense to navigate, leading to many close calls, slow traffic due to rookie drivers and, surprisingly, no major crashes.
Race results
Dixon finished first gaining 53 points, followed by the runner-up Colton Herta, who got 41. Third place went to Palou, who scored 35 points. The top five were completed by Josef Newgarden and Marcus Ericsson.
Click here for full results from the 85-lap race on a 1.968-mile street course in Long Beach, Calif.
