Ganassi pair rue Indy pit delays

The pair - winners of the last two Indy races and IndyCar championships - were running one-two for much of the middle of the race before things went wrong in the pits.

Franchitti, who led 66 laps, was leading when a miscommunication led him to leave his pit box before the fuel hose was disconnected from his car on the 134th lap.

"That's what it takes to win at Indianapolis - everybody has to be flawless, and we had problem in the pits," Franchitti said.

"The Target guys are normally fantastic on pit lane. They do a great job. But one mistake, unfortunately, is very, very costly. We'll go back, regroup and try to get ourselves a championship."

Dixon then appeared to be in position to challenge eventual winner Helio Castroneves when his crew bobbled on a stop on lap 163.

"On that last stop, we fumbled," Dixon said. "I'm not sure which tyre it was."

Both drivers struggled to make progress on track after losing positions, with Dixon admitting that overtaking among the frontrunners had become very tricky.

"That's the problem now with the competition being so tight," he said. "You give up a few seconds here and there, and that's nearly your day. You lose six or seven spots.

"It's just too tough when everybody at the end is full fuel and trying to go flat out. It's too tough to pass."