IndyCar championship battle fast facts

• Can Rossi catch Dixon?

  Scott Dixon leads the Verizon IndyCar Series championship with two races to go for the second time in his career. He also led the championship with two to go when he won the title in 2008. Dixon has led the championship lead since his win at Texas in June.

• Scott Dixon leads Alexander Rossi by 26 points with Will Power (-68) and Josef Newgarden (-78) just behind. With 54 maximum points available at Portland, the points lead could change for the eighth time in 2018.
• There are five drivers still mathematically eligible for the 2018 Verizon IndyCar Series championship: Scott Dixon, Alexander Rossi, Will Power, Josef Newgarden and Ryan Hunter-Reay. Any driver who trails the points leader by 105 points or more following the race will be eliminated from contention.
• The Portland winner has gone on to win the Indy car championship 10 times: Bobby Rahal (1987), Danny Sullivan (1988), Emerson Fittipaldi (1989), Michael Andretti (1991), Al Unser Jr. (1994), Alex Zanardi (1998), Gil de Ferran (2000), Cristiano da Matta (2002) and Sebastien Bourdais (2004 and 2007).

Key championship point statistic: Since 2008, the driver who has led the championship with two races to go has failed to win the championship in five of the last 10 seasons. Scott Dixon in 2008, Dario Franchitti in 2011, Will Power in 2014, Simon Pagenaud in 2016 and Josef Newgarden in 2017 are the exceptions.

Point differential: The 26 points which separate Scott Dixon and Alexander Rossi is the fifth-largest margin with two races remaining since 2010. Ryan Hunter-Reay, who trailed Will Power by 36 points with two races remaining in 2012, and Dixon, who was 34 points behind Juan Pablo Montoya in 2015, have overcome a larger deficit. Dario Franchitti overcame a 25-point deficit to Ryan Briscoe in 2009. The average deficit with two races to go since 2007 is 23.54 points.

Championship-eligible drivers’ results at Portland: Three of the five championship-eligible drivers have raced an Indy car at Portland International Raceway at least once – Scott Dixon, Will Power and Ryan Hunter-Reay…Power has the best finish among the contenders, finishing fourth in 2007, while Dixon finished seventh in 2002 and 2003. Hunter-Reay’s best finish in three starts is 12^th.

CHAMPIONSHIP WITH 2 TO GO