For nearly two hours on Sunday, Helio Castroneves did everything in his power to deprive Scott Dixon of a second IndyCar Series championship. The determined Brazilian came from last place to lead the most laps and win the PEAK Indy 300 at Chicagoland Speedway in a photo finish - and it wasn't enough. The 28-year-old Dixon, driving for Target Chip Ganassi Racing, held a seemingly insurmountable 78-point lead heading into the last three races of the season. But Castroneves put on a late-season charge that included both of his 2008 race wins and put a definite scare into the New Zealander. Castroneves won the race in the second closest finish in the history of the IndyCar Series, winning by 0.0033 seconds, which translates to 12 1-8 inches. It was so close that Dixon was initially declared the winner and went to Victory Circle before race officials studied photos of the finish and gave the win to Castroneves. Only former Team Penske driver Sam Hornish Jr.'s 0.0024 seconds win over Al Unser Jr. in 2002 on this same track has been closer in the 13-year history of IndyCar. Dixon knew coming in he only had to finish eighth or better to win the title and, after struggling in the middle portion of the race, he left no doubt at the end about the championship. He came into the race with a 30-point lead and wound up winning the title and the $1 million bonus that goes with it by 17 points. It was sweet redemption for Dixon, who lost both the race and the title to Dario Franchitti last year at Chicagoland Speedway when he ran out of fuel two turns from the finish. It was far from a perfect race for Dixon, who didn't lead until 15 laps from the end and fell as far back as 11th in the middle of the 200-lap event. But he came on strong when he had to and was able to celebrate the title, hugging team owner Chip Ganassi and getting pounded on by his crew. His pit stops were not great for most of the day, including one in which a tire briefly got away from one of his crewmen, but Dixon said the last stop was perfect.
