2012 Detroit Grand Prix Results: Scott Dixon Pulls Off Wire-To-Wire Victory

After a nightmarish situation where track conditions delayed the completion of the race, Honda driver Scott Dixon put forth an impressive wire-to-wire performance to take the 2012 Detroit Grand Prix in exciting fashion.

With a green flag for the race's final seven laps after a litany of problems forced the 90-lap race to be cut to 60, Dixon was able to fight off Indy 500 winner Dario Franchitti and rookie Simon Pagenaud in the remaining trips around the track to pick up the victory.

Dixon, the pole-sitter, and Will Power, who started in the No. 2 spot, remained locked in their initial 1-2 positions until the race was put under a red flag and eventually shortened after roughly a two hour delay. After the restart, recent champion Franchitti made a valiant effort to pick up a back-to-back victory with a series of impressive passes with caution flags popping up left and right, but was unable to make up enough ground on a near-flawless Dixon in the end.

Dixon's wire-to-wire victory will unfortunately be marred by the downright awful track conditions that put all of the drivers' safety in jeopardy, but owner Chip Ganassi's latest coup of back-to-back top two finishes from his two hottest drivers might be the real story.

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PHOTO: Mangled Track Conditions At Belle Isle's 2012 Detroit Grand Prix

In easily one of the worst conceivable situations for fans of racing in the city of Detroit, Sunday's long-awaited 2012 Belle Isle Grand Prix has been put under a red flag due to extreme track conditions.

After a handful of drivers smacked the wall due to apparently getting bits of the track caught in their cars coming around certain turns, the ABC telecast caught a number of pit members attempting to pry away loose pieces of road while the race remained under a yellow caution. The shots of the track caught by broadcast cameras were, in a word, horrific.

In addition to the track coming apart, pieces of asphalt have also begun to fly into the stands, offering fans in attendance one of the oddest, most unique types of racing souvenirs imaginable. With officials working tirelessly to repair the track into a workable racing condition, it remains unclear when the race will resume, if at all.

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2012 Detroit Grand Prix Update: Scott Dixon Leads Sold-Out Race At Red Flag Stoppage After 45 Laps

The 90-lap Detroit Grand Prix is underway on Belle Isle, and Honda driver Scott Dixon holds the No. 1 spot by a wide margin over Will Power at the race's halfway point with a sold-out crowd in attendance.

Dixon, the pole-sitter after a 105.978 qualifying speed, has been virtually flawless thus far, and leads Power by more than 10 seconds through 45 laps as the two have quite literally dominated the first half of the race. In third place sits first-year Honda driver Simon Pagenaud, a rookie who is continuing his strong week in Motown.

2012 Indianapolis 500 winner Dario Franchitti made a valiant effort early on after starting in the No. 15 spot, but clipped a left wing on the 24th lap and was passed by a number of other racers. His car was reportedly okay and he currently sits in the eighth spot, but will have a hard time catching the duo of Dixon and Power over the final 45 laps on such a tight track.

Over the last few laps the track has taken plenty of abuse unfortunately, as pieces have come up and caused a number of drivers to wreck. With the drivers' safety the utmost concern, the race entered a red flag after the 45h lap as IndyCar officials determined how to best deal with the mangled track.

With Dixon and Power going a perfect 1 and 2 all day, the final stretch, if it ever happens, would figure to bring a great deal of excitement to all of the eager Detroit fans who turned out for a glorious Sunday afternoon in the city. Dixon can already sniff a victory after coming in second place at last week's Indy 500 however, and is just another near-perfect 45-lap stretch away from taking this year's race in spectacular fashion.

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Detroit Grand Prix 2012: Start Time, TV Schedule And More

The field for the Detroit Grand Prix on Belle Isle Park is set to run on Sunday afternoon. The 25-car field will be led to the starting line by pole sitter Scott Dixon who posted a record qualifying lap on the 2.07-mile street circuit with the top speed of 105.978 m.p.h.

IZOD Indy Car Series points leader Will Power will be filling up Dixon's mirrors at the start of the race, as the strong road and street course racer looks to extend his points lead with his fourth win in 2012. It will be interesting to see how long Dixon can hold off Power on the 14-turn circuit.

Here is more info on the race, including a video analysis of the street circuit facing the drivers on Sunday:

Where: The Raceway at Belle Isle Park road course

When: Sunday, June 3rd at 3:30 p.m. ET

TV: ABC coverage starting at 3:30 p.m. ET

Radio: IMS Radio Network and Sirius satellite XM Radio Channel 94

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VIDEO: Justin Verlander Takes In Belle Isle, Detroit Grand Prix

Detroit Grand Prix 2012: Scott Dixon Breaks Qualifying Record, And Full Pre-Race Positioning

Belle Isle is hosting the Detroit Grand Prix after a three-year absence, and there's already a ton of exciting thing happening - and the race hasn't even started yet. On Saturday, a strong qualifying record was broken, as noted by the Detroit Free Press.

Scott Dixon broke the 2.07-mile street circuit course record with a lap of just over one minute:

Scott Dixon broke the 2.07-mile, 14-turn street circuit course record with a lap of one minute, 10.3162 seconds in the Firestone Fast Six and will sit on the pole for Sunday's Chevrolet Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix.

That bested the old record by 0.004 seconds. Dixon will be in the pole position for the race, just ahead of Will Power in second and Alex Tagliani in third. We've got the full qualifying results for Sunday's race below:

1. (9) Scott Dixon, Honda, 105.978 m.p.h.
2. (12) Will Power, Chevrolet, 105.972.
3. (98) Alex Tagliani, Honda, 105.45.
4. (77) Simon Pagenaud, Honda, 105.191.
5. (5) E.J. Viso, Chevrolet, 104.832.
6. (28) Ryan Hunter-Reay, Chevrolet, 104.288.
7. (38) Graham Rahal, Honda, 105.041.
8. (2) Ryan Briscoe, Chevrolet, 104.963.
9. (3) Helio Castroneves, Chevrolet, 104.947.
10. (7) Sebastien Bourdais, Chevrolet, 104.718.
11. (18) Justin Wilson, Honda, 104.461.
12. (15) Takuma Sato, Honda, 103.771.
13. (67) Josef Newgarden, Honda, 103.347.
14. (27) James Hinchcliffe, Chevrolet, 104.003.
15. (10) Dario Franchitti, Honda, 103.031.
16. (14) Mike Conway, Honda, 104.003.
17. (22) Oriol Servia, Chevrolet, 102.679.
18. (11) Tony Kanaan, Chevrolet, 103.777.
19. (4) J.R. Hildebrand, Chevrolet, 102.668.
20. (8) Rubens Barrichello, Chevrolet, 102.921.
21. (83) Charlie Kimball, Honda, 102.667.
22. (78) Simona de Silvestro, Lotus, 102.643.
23. (20) Ed Carpenter, Chevrolet, 99.517.
24. (26) Marco Andretti, Chevrolet, 102.57.
25. (19) James Jakes, Honda, 102.297.

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Detroit Grand Prix 2012: Power Leads IndyCar Field Into Qualifications

Indy Car drivers brought the Belle Isle Park circuit to life on Friday with practice leading up to Saturday's qualifying session for the Detroit Grand Prix on Sunday.

Team Penske driver Will Power piloted the fastest car on the 2.1-mile course Friday with a lap of 102.313 m.p.h., which should be no surprise since Power has been the dominant street/road course driver in the IZOD IndyCar Series so far this season. Power has won three of the five races and looks to bounce back from an early exit in last week's Indianapolis 500.

Justin Wilson of Dale Coyne Racing was second fastest at 102.174 m.p.h. with Penske's Ryan Briscoe clocking in at 101.918 for third fastest among the field.

Here's a quick run-down of the Saturday schedule at Belle Isle Park;

• IZOD IndyCar qualifying - 11:45 a.m. ET
• Firestone Indy Lights race - 1:30 p.m. ET
• Cadillac V-Series Challenge - 2:45 p.m. ET
• Chevrolet GRAND-AM 200 - 5:05 p.m. ET

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Detroit Grand Prix 2012: Kid Rock, Helio Castroneves Take Spin Around Track

In an unlikely reunion, Detroit-born recording artist Kid Rock took a spin with IndyCar racer Helio Castroneves on Thursday in preparation for the 2012 Detroit Grand Prix at Belle Isle Park. Kid Rock, who sat passenger while Castroneves navigated three laps and routinely flirted with triple digit speeds, was invited to the park as a guest of racing legend Roger Penske. Video below:

Aside from a near disaster with Kid Rock's hat flying off, the brief session went off without a hitch. As far as the music of choice in the car though, the IndyCar driver let his vehicle do the majority of the talking. "Fortunately, we listened to the engine of the Chevy," Castroneves said.

Always one to embrace the city at every opportunity, Kid Rock is hoping to return to Bell Isle on Saturday for the big race. The multi-dimensional artist has not only been a huge racing fan since childhood, but was an outspoken supporter of bringing the Grand Prix back to Belle Isle.

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Detroit Grand Prix 2012: Race, Slew Of Events Set For June 1-3

The Detroit Grand Prix returns to Belle Isle Park this weekend. Here's a look at the races and the handful of events taking place all week.