The eyes of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES are focused Alex Palou, who has won four of the first five races this season. Palou’s eyes are on Scott Dixon.

If anyone needed reminding, the series points leader stressed Wednesday that Dixon has the talent, experience and general track record – not to mention actual event records – to be top of mind in preparation for the 109th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge.

“We saw him on his first lap (of Tuesday’s practice) go P1 (on the speed chart),” Palou said of his Chip Ganassi Racing teammate. “Then it took everybody kind of an hour or two to get to the speed he was at.”

Palou is in daily debriefings with Dixon, the winner of the 2008 Indy 500. He sees what Dixon sees, hears what Dixon says. It’s not teammate-speak when Palou heaps all this praise on the New Zealander. The words are rooted in fact.

Dixon has led more “500s” than any driver in history (16 of his 22). He has led more race laps than any driver in history (677). He has led the race on more occasions than any driver in history (74). He is one of only four drivers to have completed more than 10,000 miles in “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing,” and only Rick Mears (with six) has won the pole more often in this event (Dixon has won five). As if Dixon needed another record, he breaks Mario Andretti’s all-time INDYCAR SERIES record for career starts in the May 25 race.

The only thing missing from Dixon’s resume is another Indy win or two. Despite dominating several recent races – he led 111 laps in 2020 and 95 in 2022 – he hasn’t been able to get to Victory Lane. But he’s due. Overdue, actually.

“He’s always fast here – qualifying, the race,” Palou said. “He’s just had a lot of bad luck here.”

Dixon has finished second in three races here, with a pair of third-place finishes and nine races ending up in the top five. One of those results came last year when he finished third behind Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden and Arrow McLaren’s Pato O’Ward.

“It’s a privilege to race here, right?” the driver of the No. 9 PNC Bank Chip Ganassi Racing Honda said after last year’s close finish. “I’m in a situation where I’m lucky to have won, but Pato has come close a few times. It can go in cycles.

“As I’ve said many times, (being close) sucks. It’s horrible. You’d rather finish last, I think, at this place and be out of the race early.”

Dixon hasn’t been out of the race early since taking flight in the 2017 race after Turn 1 contact with Jay Howard.

Dixon hasn’t qualified well in the season’s first five races – his average starting position is 13.2 – but he has been very good when the green flag drops. His average finish is a full six positions higher. If not for Palou, Dixon would be more top of mind.

But Graham Rahal is among those paying attention. He knows who the field must never lose sight of.

“I think (Palou and Dixon) are on their game, like, they’re fast as hell,” he said. “They’re fast in a straight line. Alex is obviously on a different planet, but even Dixie … his race pace is better than anybody but Alex.”

Dixon said his car has been plagued “by a lot of small things” both in recent “500s” but also the early races of this season. But he expects this strong start to this month at IMS to continue and if the race falls his way, he hasn’t forgotten how to execute.

Dixon finished fourth on Tuesday’s speed chart, just a blink behind Palou. Dixon’s story was similar Wednesday, turning a big lap early on (225.047 mph) that was second only to Team Penske’s Will Power (225.584). That gave rivals something to think about and aim for.

Dixon ended Wednesday’s session with the fourth-fastest lap (225.092). Palou led the 34-car field at 227.546.

Chip Ganassi’s team has a first-year technical relationship with Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb-Agajanian. That brings Dixon and Palou to daily debriefings with Helio Castroneves, one of the four four-time Indy winners and a driver who actually has more experience here than Dixon. Dixon has noticed that Castroneves hasn’t shared much information in their preparation.

“Helio’s been pretty quick so far, so we’ll see where that goes,” he said, laughing.

Palou said Dixon doesn’t need any tips.

“His confidence is super high,” the Spaniard said. “He’s good.”