IRL IndyCar Series - Top Ten

1. Scott Dixon

The driver of the year, no question. Admittedly luck was often on his side, but he was always quick enough that no-one could begrudge even the rain or strategy-assisted wins. He generally needed no help, he was just the class of the field.

2. Helio Castroneves

Kept Dixon in sight long after all the other big names had faded away, and was the fastest man in the final third of the season. Didn't deserve to beat Dixon to the title, but did deserve more than two wins.

3. Tony Kanaan

Kept pushing throughout a tough season for Andretti Green Racing, and was normally at least in podium contention even though Ganassi and Penske tended to have the edge. Still driving as well as when he took the 2004 title.

4. Ryan Briscoe

Briscoe looked destined for a short stay at Penske when he spent much of the spring bouncing off walls, but he turned things around with a vengeance after Indianapolis. Fast on every type of track, despite his relative inexperience, Briscoe showed he will be a future champion.

5. Ryan Hunter-Reay

Former Indianapolis winners Rahal-Letterman Racing had slumped into the midfield before Hunter-Reay turned up. Now the team are winning again and are a factor everywhere, thanks largely to their driver's talent and determination.

6. Dan Wheldon

It can't be easy to learn in mid-summer that your team are eyeing up potential replacements for you, but Wheldon managed fourth in the championship despite this backdrop. An outstanding superspeedway racer, his lack of road course results for Ganassi remains perplexing.

7. Justin Wilson

Had there been a 2008 Champ Car series, Wilson probably would've won it. Instead he hinted at his true ability with outstanding performances like his Detroit win, Watkins Glen qualifying, and his early charge in the rain at Lexington. Started to get to grips with the ovals, too.

8. Oriol Servia

Few expected a Champ Car convert to take ninth in the championship (just 21 points from the top six), but that's what Servia did in a characteristically quietly impressive season. Often the top transition driver on the ovals, he thrilled with his charge from last to sixth at Milwaukee.

9. Marco Andretti

After last year's early season difficulties, Andretti proved he can fight for victory on superspeedways and produced some excellent passes, although another win remained elusive. First lap crashes at Motegi and Nashville didn't help his cause either, and he ended the year on a low.

10. Graham Rahal

While teammate Wilson built up speed steadily, Rahal took a more gung-ho approach to his oval education and wowed by fighting for oval podiums much earlier than his fellow 'transition drivers'. His string of crashes was tough on his already-stretched team, but his St Pete win was an early boost.