P – Australia’s Will Power and Kiwi driver Scott Dixon were involved in a costly incident for a second straight week, ruining both men’s hopes in a crash-marred Indycar Grand Prix of Baltimore.
Last week at Sonoma in California, Power’s first victory of the season was soured when Dixon accused one of his pit crew of gamesmanship after losing the lead in the race to a drive-through penalty for clipping a tyre held by the crew man and sending him sprawling.
This time, Power’s car swerved right in a crowd in front of Dixon during a restart on the 53rd lap. Power clipped the wall, and Dixon lost control and smacked into the wall, ending his day on the Baltimore street circuit.
Power made it to the pit, but he was given a penalty for interference and finished 18th, one spot ahead of Dixon.
The restart came after a pileup on the turn in front of the baseball stadium. On Lap 48, Graham Rahal spun Dixon and created a logjam involving five cars.
Minutes before that, IndyCar points leader Helio Castroneves received a black flag for a safety violation during a restart. Castroneves finished ninth.
Simon Pagenaud emerged as the winner, his second victory of the year.
The 29-year-old Frenchman became the third driver to win in three years on the bumpy, challenging street course that runs through the middle of Baltimore.
Josef Newgarden was second, the best finish of his career, and Sebastien Bourdais took third.
Tony Kanaan, the Indianapolis 500 winner, made IndyCar history by participating in his 212th consecutive race. He eclipsed the mark held by Jimmy Vasser while driving in the No. 11 Chevrolet for Vasser’s KV Racing team. Kanaan hit the wall near the end of the race and finished 15th.