Heading into the final race of the season, two-time champion Scott Dixon led Hélio Castroneves by 25 points in a two driver fight for the championship.

The 2013 IndyCar Series schedule was formally announced on Speed's WindTunnel with Dave Despain, on the evening of September 30, 2012.

[46] O  Oval/Speedway R  Road course S  Street circuit BOLD indicates a Fuzzy's Ultra Premium Vodka IndyCar Triple Crown event.

James Hinchcliffe won the first IndyCar race of his career, taking the lead from Hélio Castroneves on a restart on lap 85 of 110.

Hinchcliffe held off Castroneves by 1.09 seconds, with Marco Andretti finishing third, passing Simona de Silvestro for the position on the final lap.

Dario Franchitti finished last after an early crash, and defending series champion Ryan Hunter-Reay dropped out with mechanical problems.

Takuma Sato led 50 of 80 laps, and won his first career IndyCar race at the 39th annual Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach.

After the leaders cycled through pit stops, Sato assumed the lead on lap 31, and did not relinquish the top spot for the remainder of the race.

In addition, contenders and Andretti teammates James Hinchcliffe and Hunter-Reay both dropped out early due to contact.

At the end of the backstretch, going into the final turn, Sato slid high, and Hinchcliffe slipped by on the inside to take the win by 0.3463 seconds.

On a restart with three laps to go, Ryan Hunter-Reay led rookie Carlos Muñoz, Tony Kanaan, and Marco Andretti.

Tony Kanaan completed the final two laps in the lead under yellow, and won his first Indy 500, a popular victory after eleven previous unsuccessful attempts.

The series began utilizing a revised and upgraded version of the Belle Isle circuit, a layout used by CART from 1998–2001.

Conway led 31 of the first 45 laps, but after a sequence of pit stops, and a failed tire strategy, was shuffled back to third in the closing stages.

After a ten-car accident that took out several front-runners, the final stint shaped up as a three-car battle between Simon Pagenaud, James Jakes, and Conway.

Second place Ryan Hunter-Reay mounted a charge in the waning laps as Hinchcliffe developed some handling problems, but fell short at the finish.

In the late stages, Ganassi teammates Scott Dixon, Charlie Kimball, and Dario Franchitti came to the front after a well-executed final pit stop strategy.

The Saturday race was scheduled to utilize a standing start, but it was waved off when Josef Newgarden stalled on the track.

On the final lap, 6th place Hélio Castroneves held off Scott Dixon at the line, allowing him to leave the weekend with a 31-point lead in the championship standings.

Lucas Luhr made his IndyCar Series debut, driving the #97 Honda for Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing.

This race however was marred by a major crash involving Dario Franchitti, Takuma Sato and E. J. Viso on the final lap.

At lap 111, Justin Wilson lost the rear of his car and was avoided by Josef Newgarden who collected Oriol Servià in the process.

At the checkered flag Will Power finally grabbed the win at Fontana, followed by Ed Carpenter and Tony Kanaan.