Live coverage of the race began at 12:30 PM
Central Daylight Time (CDT) in the United States on
ESPN. Weather conditions at the start of the race were fair, with
air temperatures reaching and track temperatures measuring .
A. J. Foyt, for whom the race is named, gave the command for drivers to start their engines; prior to the race weekend, he had spent the past three weeks recovering from
knee replacement surgery.
Johnny Rutherford drove the
pace car. During the
pace laps, Bucknum was forced to start in the 18th position, despite qualifying 16th, due to an engine swap after the final practice session. Castroneves maintained his pole position advantage on the first lap, while Kanaan passed teammate Andretti and Hornish Jr. to move into the second position. Castroneves managed to open his lead over Kanaan to 0.62 seconds by the tenth lap; meanwhile, Briscoe drove into
pit road with a right-rear
suspension issue. Ten laps later, Castroneves began navigating around
lapped drivers, allowing Kanaan to close the gap. He drove down the track in an attempt to take the lead on lap 21, though Castroneves kept the position and built a quarter-second lead by the 25th lap. Kanaan moved into the lead in the first turn on lap 32. Matsuura entered pit road on the 42nd lap for tires and adjustments. Castroneves was passed by Andretti for the second position on the 54th lap,
(pictured in 2018) won the race after passing teammate
Marco Andretti on lap 180.
Green-flag pit stops began on lap 70, with Andretti and Franchitti making pit stops for new tires and fuel. Kanaan made his stop four laps later, handing the lead to Scheckter and Simmons, who each led one lap before entering pit road. After the pit stops had concluded, Kanaan regained the first position and held a seven-second lead over Andretti until the first
caution was flown on lap 96, when debris was spotted in the third turn. During the caution period, most of the leaders made pit stops; Castroneves stopped for a front
wing adjustment and Carpenter was forced to stop twice after dropping a
wheel weight while exiting his pit stall. Kanaan, Franchitti, and Meira chose to stay on track and remained the leaders at the lap-108
restart. two laps later, the second caution was prompted after Castroneves and Carpenter collided in the third turn, damaging the left-front suspension of Castroneves' car and the right-rear suspension of Carpenter's car. Carpenter retired from the race. Most of the leaders, with the exception of Scheckter, did not make pit stops. Kanaan drove to the left to pass Franchitti in the first turn on lap 125, but backed off. He completed the pass and reclaimed the lead on the 135th lap. After Castroneves' team repaired his suspension, he returned to the race one lap later in order to gain points. Hornish Jr. moved into fourth place over Herta on the 183rd lap, and Dixon pitted for tires and fuel two laps later. All the leaders elected to make pit stops under the caution. Kanaan led the field at the lap-209 restart, followed by Andretti and Franchitti. On lap 220, Kanaan's car began sputtering, igniting fears that he may run out of fuel; despite this, he maintained the lead for the final five laps and earned his seventh IndyCar Series win and the first of the season for him and his team,
Andretti Green Racing. The race featured four cautions and eight lead changes among six different drivers. Kanaan led four times for a total of 127 laps, more than any other competitor. He also cited his teammate Castroneves' brief return to the race as an indication of how intense the championship battle had become. Scheckter, whose third-place finish marked the first top-five result for
Vision Racing, stated that his last pit stop for tires helped him gain enough momentum to pass four drivers following the final restart. After finishing fifth, Andretti said his attempt to save fuel and his ill-handling car gradually caused him to lose several positions in the final 20 laps. Both
Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammates voiced complaints about their issues throughout the weekend, with Wheldon feeling a sense of urgency in his championship battle: "From here on out, it’s pretty simple; win at all costs." The final result maintained Hornish Jr.'s lead in the Drivers' Championship with 356 points, ahead of Dixon with 331. Castroneves held onto third place with 326 points, two more than Wheldon in fourth. Kanaan, with 277 points, was tied with Meira for the fifth position with four races left in the season.
Race classification ; Notes • — Includes three bonus points for leading the most laps. == Championship standings after the race ==