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DETROIT — Mission accomplished.

The four-driver Andretti Green Racing team had a specific plan for the Detroit Indy Grand Prix on Belle Isle, and it was executed Sunday afternoon.

Tony Kanaan won the race, the first in the city since 2001, but more importantly his teammate, Dario Franchitti, regained the series lead with one race remaining.

“We came here to take the championship lead away from (Scott) Dixon,” said Kanaan, a five-time winner this season and currently third in a tight points battle. “We accomplished what we wanted to do.”

Danica Patrick finished second and Dan Wheldon third, in a race that finished under caution and shortened by a lap because of time issues. There were six cautions.

Franchitti, winner of this year’s Indianapolis 500, had led the points race much of the season but entered Sunday trailing Dixon by four points after Dixon won last week on a road course at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif. Franchitti now leads Dixon by three points as the series heads to its final event at Chicagoland Speedway next weekend.

One thing that has not much changed about the 14-turn racing circuit since it last held a race is there is very little opportunity to pass. That certainly was the case on Sunday.

But on lap 88, with Kanaan leading and Buddy Rice in second, Dixon, running third at the time, decided to make a move to overtake Rice, who was running low on fuel with a lap left.

Rice went into the tire barrier in turn 13, Dixon spun on the exit of the corner and collected Franchitti.

Dixon, who had accused the Andretti Green Racing team of unsportsmanlike tactics the week before, saying they blocked him to protect Franchitti’s points lead, was the one being accused after the incident.

“Poor sportsmanship is what I saw,” said Michael Andretti, co-owner of AGR.

“He clearly took Dario out on purpose. He’s going in there, he was going fine and then he saw Dario trying to go on the outside of him, let off his brake and took Dario out. It’s so not the way to do it. I’m really disappointed in Scott.”

Franchitti, who was running in fourth at the time of the incident, finished sixth. Dixon was eighth.

Rice said later that he had run out of fuel.

“I can’t really say it was unsportsmanlike — I had no control of the car, it spun out,” Dixon said, explaining why he collected Franchitti. “It’s just unfortunate what happened. I don’t know what Buddy was doing; maybe he was out of fuel. I tried to get on the inside, and it looked like he sped up again, so I tried to brake, and he came down a little bit. My rear hit (Rice) and then I spun.

“It was kind of weird that Buddy had slowed down so much. I wasn’t anticipating that. I wasn’t trying to pass him, because I knew I was happy with where I was, so that’s what makes me think he was maybe out of fuel. How was (taking out Franchitti) intentional? I was better off … I would have made five points on the guy if I kept going.”

Chip Ganassi, for whom Dixon drives, was not pleased with Andretti’s remarks.

“Why would he do that, is right,” Ganassi said.

“I don’t understand why he would possibly do that. He had two guys in front of him that were running out of gas, (but) that’s typical of a comment from that team.”

Beneficiary of the incident was Patrick, who finished a career-best second.

“It was a bit of an up-and-down day,” she said. “We didn’t have the best weekend. We qualified 11th, in the middle of the pack. We knew we’d have to settle in, and get good fuel mileage.”

Pole-sitter Helio Castroneves finished 14th and was eliminated from the race after contact with Tomas Scheckter on lap 67 in turn one. Castroneves was running fifth at the time, and Scheckter was fourth.

“I don’t know what he was thinking — maybe he should start thinking about driving and stop thinking about dancing because that was a stupid move,” Scheckter said, referring to Castroneves’ upcoming participating in “Dancing with the Stars.” “To ride me into a fourth-gear corner and hit me from the back, it’s not good for any of us.”

Castroneves, a two-time winner of the race, was visibly angry with Scheckter, pumping his fists in his car as he sat stuck in the tire barrier.

“I don’t understand why Tomas let Tony (Kanaan) by and not me,” he said. “I was putting pressure on him and all of a sudden he shut the door. Needless to say, I was a little confused.”

There was no confusion for Kanaan, who led 20 laps, third most behind Franchitti (27) and Castroneves (26).

“The track was awesome,” Kanaan said. “A bit bumpy, but that’s the way street courses are.”