Once Scott Dixon realized he had to “win or else” in order to contend for the 2019 NTT IndyCar Series championship, the five-time champion has been on a charge.

Dixon has finished no lower than second in his last four races, including a victory in the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio on July 28. Prior to the start of his podium streak, Dixon had a fifth-place finish at Road America at the end of June.

Back-to-back second-place finishes at Toronto and Iowa followed by the Mid-Ohio win and another second-place finish in last Sunday’s rain-shortened ABC Supply 500 has Dixon heading into Gateway as the hottest of the four championship contenders.

The driver of the No. 9 PNC Bank Honda for Chip Ganassi Racing has trimmed the gap between himself and NTT IndyCar Series points leader Josef Newgarden to 52 points with three races remaining beginning with Saturday night’s Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway.

Just four races ago after the Honda Indy Toronto, Dixon trailed by 106 points.

Dixon could continue that charge with another podium finish at Gateway. He finished second in IndyCar’s return to the track in 2017 and third in 2018 after leading a race-high 145 laps.

Prior to that, Dixon was new to the old Indy Racing League when the series raced there in 2003. He finished 15th in that race.

“When we raced there with the old cars at 2003, I was leading the race and got taken out in the pits,” Dixon told NTT INDYCAR Mobile. “Since then, we’ve been on the podium both times.

“I like St. Louis. We had a good test there. This year, we’ll have a lot more power. Felix Rosenqvist felt very comfortable in the car, but man, it can happen and change quickly.”

For Dixon, his fight to be a serious contender for another championship has happened slowly. He has been fourth in points since he won the second race of the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix in June.

He battled for a second-straight victory when he led 32 laps at Pocono but finished second to Team Penske’s Will Power.

“The car just wouldn’t turn after that last pit stop, and I don’t know why that happened,” Dixon said. “I think we could have held on if we knew the race was going to end early, but after Will got to the front, I think he would have won the race, even if we went out there using headlights.”

Dixon’s focus now is on the championship and with three races to go he knows it’s all about winning races in order to make up the deficit.

“For us, we have to keep our head down and get as many points as possible,” Dixon said. “It packs up the top four pretty heavily with three races to go. That feels good. It’s good for us, but it’s also very good for the spectators and TV as well.”

Next up for the NTT IndyCar Series is Saturday's Bommarito Automotive Group 500 at World Wide Technology Raceway at Gateway, a 1.25-mile oval track in Madison, Ill. The television broadcast will begin at 8 p.m. ET on NBCSN with the green flag set for 8:45 p.m. Live radio broadcasts will be available on the Advance Auto Parts INDYCAR Radio Network and Sirius Satellite Radio (XM 209, Sirius 98, Internet/App 970).