Photo: © 2018 Sam Cobb
Six-time Indycar champion Scott Dixon has finished third in a chaotic season opener in St Petersburg in Florida.
Fellow New Zealand driver Scott McLaughlin season's however got off to a disastrous start.
McLaughlin was on course to defend his St Petersburg grand prix title but crashed along with pole sitter Romain Grosjean when the pair were duelling for the lead at the 72 lap mark in the 100 lap event.
The incident forced Grosjean out of the race while McLauglin received a penalty eventually finishing 13th with Sweden's Marcus Ericsson going on to win the event and and chalk up his fourth Indycar race win.
Dixon who started ninth on the grid was fortunate to reach the podium having been involved in a six-car crash shortly after the race started.
"Defintely a wild race and glad everybody's okay," said Dixon.
"I think how the cautions fell played to us until the untimely one where we clearly would have got the lead and I think it would have been smooth sailing. Third place finish is fantastic here considering how the day was."
Marcus Armstrong Photo: Chip Gannassi Racing
The third New Zealand driver in the field, Marcus Armstrong finished 11th on his Indycar debut.
"That was a good one considering what happened at the beginning when someone tried to do us and basically gave us a puncture," said Armstrong.
"From then on it was always an uphill battle....first race under my belt, it was pretty crazy. There was a lot of crashing, a lot of chaos."
-RNZ