Kiwi pair battle through field

The three Kiwis in this year’s IndyCar championship were separated by little more than four seconds as they crossed the finish line at the Grand Prix of Arlington.

Scott Dixon was the highest-placed New Zealander after finishing eighth in the race on Monday (NZ time), with Marcus Armstrong 10th and Scott McLaughlin in 11th.

America’s Alexander Rossi split the group as he claimed ninth, while his compatriot Kyle Kirkwood won the contest in Texas and climbed to the top of the drivers’ standings.

Dixon, pictured, started 20th on the grid before clocking an elapsed time of 1h 55m 52.8975s on the Arlington street circuit. Armstrong finished in 1h 55m 55.5530s and McLaughlin stopped the clock at 1h 55m 56.9535s.

McLaughlin also made significant progress through the pack during the contest and made up 14 places after starting at the back of the 25-driver grid. Armstrong, meanwhile, had qualified sixth for the event.

McLaughlin is now fifth in the drivers’ standings on 85 points, with Armstrong ninth with 70 and Dixon 11th on 59.

The next race in the 2026 series is the Indy Grand Prix in Alabama on March 30 (NZ time).

Drivers’ standings

1. Kyle Kirkwood, 126 points
2. Alex Palou, 100pts
3. Pato O’Ward, 93pts
4. Josef Newgarden, 93pts
5. Scott McLaughlin, 85pts
Also: 9. Marcus Armstrong, 70pts; 11. Scott Dixon, 59pts