Full race results for the Honda Indy Toronto, round 12 of the Verizon IndyCar Series season.<doc-sep>TORONTO — It was shaping up to be defending champion Josef Newgarden’s day. The two-time winner at the Honda Toronto Indy had a third title in his sights Sunday, but on Turn 11 of lap 33, the American hit the wall, allowing Scott Dixon to overtake him for the lead and complete the feat instead. "When I saw it — the seas were parting — away we went, which for us, especially for the championship, he’s our closest competitor right now," said Dixon. "That’s where our race was won today, was through the bad luck or bad situation that Josef had," he added Dixon of New Zealand finished the 85-lap course on the streets surrounding Exhibition Place first, with Simon Pagenaud of France in second and Robert Wickens, from Guelph, Ont., taking part in his first race on Canadian soil in more than a decade, in third. The victory put the 37-year-old Dixon in some elite company. Three-time winners in Toronto included Australia’s Will Power, Scotland’s Dario Franchitti and American Michael Andretti, who holds the record for the most victories at seven. It also stretched his lead in the points standings over Newgarden to 62 points from 33. They both have three wins this season. Pagenaud and Wickens admitted it might be tough to stop Dixon from clinching the championship, heading into Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio where he has won five times in two weeks. "Too many, yeah," said Pagenaud, "Yeah, he’s good there. Sometimes he’s unlucky, too. We all (are). It’s just part of life. (We) get to work and find a way to beat him." "Is there a track he’s not good at?" quipped Wickens. It’s the third year in a row a Canadian has landed on the podium. James Hinchcliffe of Oakville, Ont., ended in fourth, after two straight years of third-place finishes, while Zachary Claman De Melo of Montreal was in 14th. Newgarden was leading for most of the first 32 laps on the hot and humid day. The start-time temperature was listed at 27 C but felt like more like 35 C. But when the 27-year-old American hit the barrier, losing his top spot, he was slowed and caused a momentum-turning pile-up at Turn 1 of the following lap. Ryan Hunter-Reay, Graham Rahal, Will Power, Max Chilton, Ed Jones, Alexander Rossi and Sebastien Bourdais were involved in the collision. Rossi said Saturday a repave of the course would likely create more action heading into the first corner. "I think it’ll allow Turn 1 to be a passing zone now. Before it was still bumpy on the inside, pretty low percentage chance, so now we’re able to improve everything from practice for the race." The restart after the crash allowed Wickens and Hinchcliffe to surge up the ranks. "I just got a super lucky restart. Josef got a little bit wide in Turn 11 coming to the green. It was just right place at the right time," said Wickens. "Basically everyone else was checking up for Josef. I looked up at the flag. I saw the green waving. I had a run, the seas just parted. I had an open line down the inside to Turn one and I took it." Wickens briefly moved up to second to trail Dixon, who led until he pitted on lap 55 but retook the lead shortly after. This was the first race in Canada for Wickens, an IndyCar rookie, since competing in Toronto as part of the 2007 Champ Car Atlantic. He spent 12 seasons in Europe, including six with German’s DTM series. "I think I would take a home race every race, if I could. It’s such a cool feeling. I’ve never had one as a professional driver," said Wickens. Hinchcliffe came into the race carrying momentum from a come-from-behind win over Newgarden at the Iowa Corn 300 last weekend. "Obviously, we came in here with high hopes," said Hinchcliffe. "…Robby has been doing a great job all season. We managed to kind of stay out of trouble on those restarts. (We were) able to capitalize from other guys having bad days today. Kept ourselves relatively out of trouble, him less than me. That’s why he finished up a position ahead." Paul Tracy remains the only Canadian to win in Toronto, taking the checkered flag in 1993 and 2003. Newgarden took his sixth pole of his career, and fourth of the year, on Saturday. Dixon started the race second and Pagenaud was third. He also had the fastest lap time of 59.1394 seconds during the final practice earlier today. He was trailed by Newgarden (59.3684) and American Ryan Hunter-Reay (59.3684). Fans filled the grandstands at the race, which routinely attracted more than 70,000 people and about 170,000 over the course of the weekend during the 1990s and early 2000s. A representative for Green Savoree said Sunday he expected the three-day turnout to be between 125,000 and 145,000. Dixon has been racing in Toronto since 1999 and said joining the likes of the retired Franchitti as a three-time winner has special meaning. "Yeah, it’s pretty sweet. I’ll have to call Dario tonight and say I finally tied him at something," he said. "…But I love coming to Toronto. I feel like it’s kind of my closest home. I’m part of the Commonwealth, which is nice. Bit of a longshot there, but I’ll take it," he joked, referencing his native New Zealand. Over the weekend there was also renewed talk about the potential of another race north of the border at IndyCar’s lone Canadian stop. Co-owner of Schmidt Peterson Motorsports, Ric Peterson, said Saturday he is still pushing for a race in Calgary. He said 2019 is no longer on the table but the following year is still a possibility.<doc-sep>Here’s What Drivers Are Saying about this weekend’s Honda Indy Toronto INDYCAR race north of the border: JOSEF NEWGARDEN (No. 1 Hitachi Team Penske Chevrolet): “Toronto is always a race I look forward to. It’s such a fun city with a lot for everyone traveling with the series to do and the racing is great. It can be challenging but always exciting. The new car is going to be fast there and I think that’s going to make it really fun. Strategy will be really important here as with any road or street course, so that’s something I know a lot of teams are really thinking about. The No. 1 Hitachi Chevy is going to be all dialed in and I know myself and my crew are really working to win there again.” MATHEUS LEIST (No. 4 ABC Supply AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet): “I’m excited to be racing at Toronto again, it’s a pretty cool track. It’s a street course which are tracks that I love, so we’ll try to have a great car so we can finish up front. The city is a pretty cool place in itself. I’ve only been there once, which was last year when I raced Indy Lights. It was good fun and I had a great time so I’m looking forward to going back.” JAMES HINCHCLIFFE (No. 5 Arrow Electronics SPM Honda): “It’s been pretty nonstop since the win in Iowa, but the momentum we have is hopefully going to carry over into the race this weekend in Toronto. It’s always so special to be able to race in front of my hometown, and I’m really looking forward to sharing that with Robbie (Wickens). The support coming home is always so incredible. The Arrow Electronics crew have been working really hard all year, and after the win, we are all hungrier than ever.” ROBERT WICKENS (No. 6 Lucas Oil SPM Honda): “I can’t express enough how excited I am to race the Lucas Oil car in front of my hometown in Toronto. The team is coming off a great result in Iowa with both cars in the top five and James’ (Hinchcliffe) win. It’s already been a crazy week here, and the rest of the week is going to be so much fun. I can’t wait to get my helmet on and get on with practice because it’s a track I’ve always wanted to drive an Indy car on. It’s a bucket list item of mine to race as a professional driver in front of my hometown, so I’m really looking forward to checking that off the list.” SCOTT DIXON (No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda): “I don’t think we really had the weekend we wanted to in Iowa after having a string of five or so podiums over the last six races. We stayed with it as best we could, though, in the PNC Bank car and had a reasonable points day with some of the other top point contenders having issues in the race. So, it’s on to Toronto where we’ve had some success in the past. It’s a great city that I know we all love coming to, and I hope it’s a good show Sunday and a good performance for the No. 9 team.” ED JONES (No. 10 NTT DATA Chip Ganassi Racing Honda): “We’re really looking forward to Toronto this weekend. We were very strong at the last two street circuit races in Detroit, and I hope we can continue that on Sunday. I’ll be hoping to keep up that run of strong results going for the team. We had a rough go of it last weekend in Iowa and will be pushing hard to turn that around in the NTT DATA car this weekend.” WILL POWER (No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet): “I’m really looking forward to going to Toronto. I’ve won there three times, so I know myself and the No. 12 Verizon Chevrolet team feel strong there. I know it’s been resurfaced so it’s always a fun track. It’s going to be very tough with there being so many good cars now. I think it’s going to be good with the new car. The racing at Iowa was phenomenal. There were so many passes. It was amazing. It’s going to be really exciting for the fans there to watch and will be fun for all us racing there.” TONY KANAAN (No. 14 ABC Supply AJ Foyt Racing Chevrolet): “Toronto is always a fun track to go to – it’s a really fast street course. I love the venue, it’s one of the most fun races of the year. I know we have a good street course car so I’m looking forward to maybe getting a podium for A.J. (Foyt) and cheer him up a bit. The fans in Toronto support INDYCAR big time there, and the city’s a lot of fun. We always take the kids. There are a lot of things to do and a lot of great places to go to dinner. We go to the aquarium all the time – they have a beautiful one downtown. Usually, we go on Saturdays because we finish up early at the track. We take the kids there and to the CN Tower. Toronto is definitely a fun place to go and not just to race but also because you can take your family and have fun, too.” GRAHAM RAHAL (No. 15 Rousseau Honda): “It looked like we were going to have a good race last year after starting second. The Rousseau Metal car was solid. We just got really hosed by a yellow that basically put Helio (Castroneves), (Simon) Pagenaud and myself to the back and we were the lead three, so obviously that ruined our day. The car was pretty good though, there were no major complaints. Were we good enough to beat Helio or Pagenaud on that day if we didn’t get hosed by that yellow? I don’t know, but we were certainly a podium contender so it was disappointing not to make it all happen. I’m excited to go back. If I look at our street course performances so far, it’s our strongest package. Hopefully, we can just make it happen. Right now, we need to get a win and need to get some points. Toronto is an iconic event in our sport. There is always great crowd support. Nowadays with Hinch (James Hinchcliffe) and with Robbie (Wickens), I fully expect there to be a ruckus crowd as usual. Hopefully, we can go up there and try to spoil their dreams.” SEBASTIEN BOURDAIS (No. 18 Team Mouser Electronics/Molex Honda): “I like the Toronto race. The fans and the atmosphere are really great. The circuit is fun and, other than my first year, my results have been consistently good. Hopefully, we can collect another win there this weekend for our sponsors Mouser Electronics and Molex.” ZACHARY CLAMAN DE MELO (No. 19 Paysafe Honda): “I’m extremely excited to go to Toronto. I have a lot of friends and family there that will be watching, so it’s a really special race for me. I love the track and I think it should be a fun race. I got a double podium in Toronto last year in Indy Lights, so hopefully I can be strong there again and get a really good result for the team in front of my friends and family.” JORDAN KING (No. 20 Ed Carpenter Racing Fuzzy’s Vodka Chevrolet): “I haven’t been to Canada in a very long time so I am actually quite looking forward to going to Toronto. I’ve got some good support from my family coming over, so that will be nice. I’ve been on the simulator but it’s really difficult to say what the track will be like until I get in the car. It seems quite tight and twisty and seems very bumpy, but I’ve also been told it’s been resurfaced in a couple of areas. Learning the circuit as a whole might be a bit easier just because it’s a short one, but it seems to be a very nice track.<doc-sep>
The last time I went to the Honda Indy Toronto prior to returning this year was in 2014. Although four years isn’t that long in terms of time, it’s seems like an age given how much has changed in my personal and professional lives since then. At the time of the 2014 race, I wrote a regular motorsports column, I served as the editor for the event’s official souvenir program and spent a lot of my free time following racing, in person, online and on television. Back then I had been to every Toronto Indy race since 2007. Fast forward to 2018, and it’s a completely different story. The column was retired at the end of 2015, the souvenir program is now produced by others (although I still do freelance work for the publisher), and I spend far less time following racing than I once did. As one can see by searching my name on this site, I write about cars and the car industry, not racing. Simply put, racing is mostly a part of my past these days. But despite its diminished role, I still have a lot of great racing memories. And I’d been away from the Honda Indy Toronto for long enough that I had become curious about it again. I decided it was time to go back. There are things I wanted to see for myself such as the relocated pit lane and media centre, but mostly I just wanted to experience a race weekend up close again. The sights, the smells, the sounds and the old friends and colleagues I’ve known for years – it was time to refresh old memories. Change is good? I elected to skip Friday because I was busy with work and nothing of consequence usually happens during what is essentially a day of non-stop practice sessions. Arriving during a steady drizzle on Saturday at around 12:30 pm, I picked up my media credential and parking pass and parked under the Gardiner Expressway near the entrance beside Ricoh Coliseum. Once on the grounds, I went to the media centre to see if I could find a seat, set up my laptop and drop my bag off. Back in 2014, the media centre was housed in the Beanfield Centre, which is in the Automotive Building, but it was moved to the Enercare Centre after the construction of Hotel X required race organizers to move the pit lane to the north side of the main front straight between turns 10 and 11. The new location makes sense logistically given its proximity to the pitlane and Verizon IndyCar Series paddock (Enercare Centre), but the room feels a bit cramped. At any rate, I found a seat beside some old colleagues and got myself set up. After watching some support race activity and IndyCar qualifying (Team Penske driver Josef Newgarden won the pole), I decided it was time to wander around, take some photos and see what was happening on the grounds. Honda here, there and everywhere Honda Canada has sponsored the Toronto Indy event since 2009 (the agreement has been extended through 2020), and the company takes full advantage of the marketing opportunity title sponsorship affords, with loads of its many products scattered throughout the grounds. From production cars to racecars, motorcycles to ATVs and more, there was enough Honda and Acura product on site to stock a dealership or two. It was nearly impossible to not see a Honda product during my walkaround. Much of it was concentrated in and around Honda World, an air-conditioned tent filled with interactive displays and exhibits that highlight Honda’s racing history, including IndyCar and Formula One. The show cars and racing simulators were big draws, but so was the giant TV screen and rows of bench seating (full when I cruised through) that allowed hot and weary spectators to watch on-track activity in air-conditioned comfort. Outside, in addition to rows of cars and motorcycles, Honda also set up a dirt track demo area (complete with hay bales!) where kids ages 6 – 12 could learn how to ride a Honda dirt bike. I’m way past the age limit, but it looked like a lot of fun. These promotional aspects of title sponsorship not only align well with Honda’s rich racing history, but also its ultimate mission which is to sell more cars, motorcycles, ATVs and so on. And the company isn’t afraid to spend large sums of money to make it happen.