At one stage it looked like Scott Dixon would wrap up the first unified IRL IndyCar Series title with a few rounds to spare. He had finally notched up his first Indianapolis 500 victory, and seemed to be winning as he pleased in the middle of the season - extending his championship lead to 78 points with three rounds to go.
But thanks to the tenacity of Penske's Helio Castroneves, and a few uncharacteristic strategic slips from Dixon's Ganassi team, that gap has shrunk to 30 points going into this weekend's finale at Chicagoland Speedway.
Had Castroneves not been controversially ordered to hand over the lead in Detroit as a punishment for blocking Justin Wilson, he would be just 20 points adrift of Dixon - an achievable target in a series where winning and leading the most laps gives you 13 more points than your runner-up. Castroneves' job now looks a lot tougher, but the title showdown is still very much on.