Kiwis close in IndyCar battle

Only three points separate Kiwi rivals Scott McLaughlin and Scott Dixon after the pair both finished in the top five of the Sonsio Grand Prix on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.

McLaughlin, pictured, took fourth spot in the May 10 race and is now fifth in the IndyCar championship on 137 points.

“We were on the right strategy today, just made a mistake on the last pit exchange,” he says. 

Dixon started the weekend’s race 16th on the grid but climbed his way up to what he called a “solid” fifth by the end. He is also one spot behind his compatriot in the drivers’ standings with 134 points so far this season.

Marcus Armstrong, the other New Zealand driver in the competition, finished in seventh place and is 14th overall.

Spaniard Alex Palou took the chequered flag in the Sonsio Grand Prix ahead of Mexico’s Pato O’Ward and Australia’s Will Power respectively.

Palou leads the championship after winning four of this season’s opening five races, with American Kyle Kirkwood 97 points behind in second spot.

The next race in the series is the 109th running of the Indianapolis 500 on May 26 (NZ time).

Drivers’ standings

1. Alex Palou, 248 points
2. Kyle Kirkwood, 151pts
3. Christian Lundgaard, 150pts
4. Pato O’Ward, 148pts
5. Scott McLaughlin, 137pts
Also: 6. Scott Dixon, 134pts; 14. Marcus Armstrong, 91pts