Will Power and Scott Dixon have made amends after a heated confrontation following a crash that ended the second IndyCar practice early for both drivers Saturday at Road America.
During the session Dixon was slow on the track having just recovered from a spin. Power was following Romain Grosjean at speed entering Turn 12 known as Canada Corner. Grosjean passed Dixon who was on the low side, but as soon as Grosjean went by, Dixon moved up and into Power sending both cars into the outside wall at the exit of the corner.
“What the fuck!” Power shouted over the radio as he came to rest.
Power quickly exited his car and charged towards Dixon who was also out of his mangled machine. After what appeared to be a heated exchange, Power shoved Dixon. The two drivers were quickly separated by members of the AMR safety crew. Power walked away kicking a piece of debris from Dixon’s car.
“We were on really old, almost 20-lap tires just trying to get some balance checks (and) kind of spun going into (Turn) 12 there,” Dixon said. “I’m just watching the replay here now. And then I saw Grosjean out of my mirror after I recovered. I didn’t realize Power was even there. So, really sorry for him (and) obviously, his team. Yeah, mistake on my behalf and feel frustrated for wrecking our car and his car, as well.”
For his part Power said he felt Dixon “moved abruptly as I was coming.”
“It was a very unfortunate incident, there was just nothing I could really do there,” a diplomatic Power said after he had calmed down a bit. “I didn’t expect him to move. (It’s) such a pity, felt like we had a pretty good car. We’ll rebuild it and see what happens.”
Dixon said he apologized to Power and felt they had come to an understanding.
“We ended up getting in the medical car together; he was fine after that,” Dixon said. “Everybody gets pretty fired up and especially with how tight things are at the moment. It is what it is, but I feel bad for the situation.”
Power still seemed a bit upset as he ended his interview saying, “These things happen.”
Power and Dixon were 10th and 12th, respectively, at the time of the incident, which brought out the second of five red flags in the session. The session was led by Alexander Rossi who also led Friday’s first practice.
Greg has been published in major publications across the country including the Los Angeles Times, the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He was also a contributor to Chicken Soup for the NASCAR Soul, published in 2010, and the Christmas edition in 2016. He wrote as the NASCAR, Formula 1, Auto Reviews and National Veterans Affairs Examiner for Examiner.com and has appeared on Fox News. He holds a BS degree in communications, a Masters degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate majoring in psychology. He is currently the weekend Motorsports Editor for Autoweek.