Dixon wins wild, caution-filled Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey at Laguna Seca.

Scott Dixon rebounded from misfortune to win the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey on Sunday, crossing the line a comfortable 7.3 seconds ahead of Scott McLaughlin on an afternoon that was not easy on anyone.

It was his 56th career win.

“I figured that the race was either going to go green to checkered or have a bunch of yellows,” says Dixon, driver of the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. “We had the yellows.”

A track record-tying eight caution periods accounting for 35 of the scheduled 95 laps reshuffled the field multiple times at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. The trouble began seconds after the green flag waved, when Dixon was caught up in a Turn 2 fracas with four other cars. To add insult to injury, IndyCar officials assessed a penalty on Dixon for avoidable contact, despite the crush of cars barreling into the tight hairpin.

It was a familiar story, playing out throughout the field on a day of contact and cars skidding through the gravel, as well as penalties issued by race control.

“I think I hit everything but the pace car today,” McLaughlin says, somewhat facetiously. “Certainly one of those crazy days, peak IndyCar days.”

The recently repaved track gave drivers a lot of grip, as long as they did not stray from a narrow groove. Once off the racing line, however, the fickle course raised its hackles.

Cautions flew at such a rate that at one point the pace car went missing under yellow. Crews were busy refueling the vehicle as race cars eased around the track on their own.

As the field accordioned into Turn 2 on the opening lap, Dixon came together with Rinus VeeKay, Josef Newgarden, Juri Vips and Graham Rahal.

“I haven’t really seen a replay to really understand what happened,” Dixon notes.

Such uncertainty was the norm. 

“I don’t remember what happened,” adds Marcus Armstrong, who was banged up but survived the Turn 1 encounter. “I can’t remember the other ones early in the race.”

But the driver of the No. 11 Ridgeline Honda from Chip Ganassi Racing, crowned Rookie of the Year, had a vivid moment.

“I remember a pink car flying across the track sideways into [Colton] Herta,” he says. “I actually made contact with them. My car looks like it’s been through the wars, for sure.”

When the track was under green flag conditions, however, the racing was record-setting. Literally. On Sunday at Laguna Seca there were a total of 432 on track passes, a new mark for IndyCar at the iconic track.

However, the lead was rarely challenged on track. Alex Palou, the 2023 series champion and driver of the No. 10 American Legion Honda prepared by Chip Ganassi, edged past polesitter Felix Rosenqvist in his No. 6 NTT Data Arrow McLaren Chevrolet after the first caution and quickly built a sizable gap. A year ago, Palou won the Firestone Grand Prix of Monterey by a whopping 30 seconds over the rest of the field.

“I felt like one with my car–it was just amazing,” Palou explained. “It felt like back to last year. But I knew it was not going to be an easy race.”

Cautions and the need to pit for fuel shuffled Palou back to 15th at one point. He eventually worked his way to third, completing the podium with Dixon and McLaughlin. All three drivers had to recover after losing positions during a wild afternoon.

Following the first lap accident, Dixon’s team changed their strategy. The fuel-saving stints through the first half of the race allowed him to emerge on top.

Will Power, last year’s series champion, crossed the line in fourth. Callum Ilott finished fifth.

The 2024 NTT IndyCar schedule has not been released. Laguna Seca will be on the list, but it will not host the season finale.

As the 2023 schedule came to an end, at least one driver lamented the finish.

“I'm a bit sad that this season is over honestly, because it seems like we go out on track, we know that we have a chance to win the races,” Palou says.