Indianapolis 500 driver chases HISTORIC hat-trick this weekend

Indy 500

Indy 500 driver chases HISTORIC hat-trick this weekend

We could be set to witness history at the 107th running of the Indianapolis 500.

Matthew Hobkinson Lead Editor

F1 Editor & Journalist

Friday 19 May 2023 19:57

Indy 500 driver Scott Dixon has admitted that “the pressure is definitely on” ahead of his chance to become the first person to earn three consecutive poles.

Only 11 drivers have ever managed to secure successive pole positions in Indy 500 history. Nobody has ever found a way to make it three in a row.

But that is exactly what Dixon is hoping to achieve this weekend as he prepares for what could be his chance to etch his name in the history books.

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“Three in a row…honestly, I haven’t even thought about that,” he told RACER. “I haven’t even thought there was two in a row.

“Most of the time you think about the ones that got away more than the actual ones you knew you nailed and got. But what I love about qualifying is the roller coaster ride that you take to get there to try and pull it off.

“What’s special about the pole is just the amount of effort that goes into making these cars super-fast. It’s a whole team effort. The pressure is definitely on and then there’s trying to nail that right downforce level.

“And then each year is its own thing of what you’re finding, whether it’s wind direction, track temp, or a combination of the two. Last year’s pole for me was one of the most enjoyable because the car was so well balanced. It was just a perfect scenario.”

Three in a row 'would be huge'

Pole would see Dixon go level with all-time leader Rick Mears - with six starts from P1 each - something that the New Zealander is eager to achieve.

He added: “If we could pull that off, go for the six, three in a row, be the first to do that, obviously that would be would be huge.

“But at the moment, the process is just trying to make the car the best that we can and then come end of Saturday, be in the Fast 12 and then hopefully Sunday we can make it to the Fast Six and then obviously go on to try and fight for the pole.

“But you know this place can throw weird things at you and we could even be out of it on the first day. So, we’ll keep our heads down, keep after it and hopefully we can be fighting for a pole on Sunday.”