Grand Prix of Long Beach facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach

IndyCar Series
Location	Long Beach, California 33°45′59″N 118°11′34″W / 33.76639°N 118.19278°W / 33.76639; -118.19278
Corporate sponsor	Acura (Honda)
First race	1975
First ICS race	2009
Distance	167.28 mi (269.21 km)
Laps	85
Previous names	Long Beach Grand Prix (1975) United States Grand Prix West (1976–1983) Toyota Grand Prix of the United States (1980–1981, 1983) Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach (1984–2018)
Most wins (driver)	Al Unser Jr. (6)
Most wins (team)	Team Penske (7) Ganassi (7)
Most wins (manufacturer)	Chassis: Dallara (15) Engine: Honda (21) Tires: Firestone (21)
Circuit information
Length	1.968 mi (3.167 km)
Turns	11
Lap record	1:05.309 (USA Colton Herta, Dallara IR18 Honda, 2022, IndyCar)

The Grand Prix of Long Beach is a famous car race. It happens on a special street circuit in downtown Long Beach, California. Since 2019, it's called the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. This is because of a company that bought the rights to use its name.

This race is a big part of the IndyCar Series. From 1996 to 2008, it was the main race for the CART and Champ Car series. The 2008 race was the very last Champ Car race. After that, the open-wheel racing series joined together. Since 2009, the race has been part of the unified IndyCar Series. It usually takes place in April. It is one of the longest-running events in IndyCar racing. Many people think it's one of the most important races on the circuit.

The Long Beach Grand Prix is the longest-running major street race in North America. It started in 1975 as a Formula 5000 race. Christopher Pook founded the event. In 1976, it became a Formula One race. Formula One cars with turbo engines were becoming popular then. But no turbo-powered car ever won at Long Beach. This was true from 1977 until the last Formula One race there in 1983.

John Watson won for McLaren in 1983. He started 22nd out of 26 cars. This is a Formula One record for the lowest starting position for a winner. His teammate, Niki Lauda, started 23rd and finished second in the same race. Only René Arnoux ever finished on the Formula One podium at Long Beach in a turbo-powered car.

In 1984, the race changed from Formula One to a CART IndyCar event. Many other races have been held during the Grand Prix weekend. These include Indy Lights, IMSA, and Formula E. Toyota was a sponsor from the start until 2018. This is believed to be the longest continuous sports sponsorship in the U.S.

Bruce Flanders has announced the Long Beach Grand Prix since 1978. The Grand Prix in April is the biggest event in Long Beach. Over 200,000 people attend the weekend. In 2006, the Long Beach Motorsports Walk of Fame was created. It honors past winners and important people in auto racing.

Race History

Gunnar Nilsson driving a Lotus 77 in the 1976 United States Grand Prix West.

Mark Smith driving in the 1993 race.

The Long Beach Grand Prix was the idea of Chris Pook. He was a travel agent from England. Pook was inspired by the Monaco Grand Prix. He thought a similar race could work in Southern California. The city of Long Beach was chosen. It is about 25 miles (40 km) south of downtown Los Angeles.

A track was built on city streets near the Port of Long Beach. The area was mostly industrial back then. But the first event in September 1975 drew 30,000 fans. It was part of the Formula 5000 series.

In 1976, the United States Grand Prix West was created. This meant two Grand Prix races in the U.S. for a while. Long Beach became a Formula One event in 1976. The race moved to March or April. The race at Long Beach quickly became popular. This was due to its nice weather and beautiful setting. It was also close to Los Angeles and Hollywood. When another U.S. Formula One race was dropped after 1980, Long Beach became even more important.

Even with exciting races and many fans, the Formula One event didn't make much money. The organizer risked a small profit against a huge budget. Chris Pook worried that one bad race could cause financial problems. So, he convinced city leaders to change the race. It became a Championship Auto Racing Teams IndyCar event starting in 1984.

The event quickly became famous on the IndyCar circuit. It helped bring new life to the city of Long Beach. The race was used to promote the city. Since the race started, many old buildings have been replaced. Now there are high-rise hotels and tourist spots.

The event was a CART/Champ Car race from 1984 to 2008. Then it became an IndyCar Series race in 2009. The 2017 race was the 43rd time it was held. It was the 34th time in a row as an IndyCar race. This makes it one of the longest continuous events in American championship car racing.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 race was canceled. In 2021, the race was moved from April to September 26. This was done to help with pandemic planning. There were worries about the Delta variant. But the organizers and the city worked together. They allowed the event to happen with full attendance. The Grand Prix returned to its usual April date in 2022.

In March 2024, it was announced that Gerald Forsythe would buy half of the Long Beach Grand Prix. He was a former ChampCar owner.

First-Time Winners

The Long Beach Grand Prix is a challenging course. But it has been the place where many drivers got their first Indy/Champ Car wins. Drivers like Michael Andretti, Paul Tracy, and Juan Pablo Montoya won their first races here. Takuma Sato and Kyle Kirkwood also got their first wins at Long Beach. For Michael Andretti, Long Beach was special. It was where he got his first Indy car win in 1986. It was also where he got his 42nd and final win in 2002.

James Hinchcliffe won his first Indy Lights race at Long Beach in 2010. Then he won an IndyCar Series race there in 2017. In 2005, Katherine Legge won the Atlantic Championship support race. It was her first race in that series. She became the first female driver to win a major open-wheel development race in North America.

Race Track Layout

The current race track is a 1.968-mile (3.167 km) temporary road course. It is set up on the city streets around the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center. The convention center was even used as the pit area during the Formula One days. The track also goes over where the old The Pike amusement park used to be.

The track is known for its last section. This includes a sharp hairpin turn and a long, slightly curved straightaway. This straightaway runs along Shoreline Drive. The track is on the Long Beach waterfront. It has palm trees along the straightaway, making it very scenic. Long Beach is rated as an FIA Grade Two circuit. This means it's suitable for most major international races.

The track has changed many times since 1975. All versions have had a signature hairpin turn. They also had a main stretch along Shoreline Drive. And a back stretch along Seaside Way or Ocean Boulevard. The first track layout was 2.02 miles (3.25 km) long. It had two hairpin turns.

In 1982, the hairpin turn at the end of the main stretch was removed. It was replaced with two 90-degree turns. When the race became a CART series event, the layout changed a lot. The final hairpin turn moved closer to the pit entrance. Other slow turns were removed. The track was shortened in 1992. This made a longer back stretch and a faster run to the passing zone.

In 1999, new buildings caused changes to the track. The turn one curves were removed. A new fountain complex replaced them. Turn one became a 90-degree left turn. It led into a roundabout around a fountain. A year later, this part was changed again. This created a longer straightaway leading to Pine Avenue. This track layout is still used today.

Track Layouts Over Time

• 

  Grand Prix Circuit (1975–1977)

• 

  Grand Prix Circuit (1978–1981)

• 

  Grand Prix Circuit (1982)

• 

  Grand Prix Circuit (1983)

• 

  Grand Prix Circuit (1992–1998)

• 

  Grand Prix Circuit (1999)

• 

  Grand Prix Circuit (2000–present)

• 

  ePrix Circuit (2015–2016)

Race Events

Formula 5000 and Formula One Years

The first race in 1975 was part of the Formula 5000 series. From 1976 to 1983, the event was a Formula One race. It was known as the United States Grand Prix West.

In 2014, the city and the Grand Prix Association signed a contract. It kept the Grand Prix as an IndyCar Series race until 2018. There were options to extend it to 2020. In 2016, the city council looked into making it a Formula One race again. But in August 2017, after studying it, they decided against it. The city council voted to keep the event as part of the IndyCar Series.

2008 "Split Weekend" Race

Jimmy Vasser at the 2008 Grand Prix of Long Beach.

In 2008, the Champ Car World Series and the IRL IndyCar Series joined together. But there was a problem with the schedule. The IndyCar race was on April 19 in Japan. The Champ Car race at Long Beach was on April 20. Neither race could be moved.

So, they made a special "split weekend." The Indy Racing League teams raced in Japan. The old Champ Car teams raced at Long Beach. Both races gave equal points for the 2008 IndyCar Series championship. The Long Beach Grand Prix in 2008 was called the "final Champ Car race."

Drifting and Other Races

Since 2005, the event has included demonstrations by Formula D drifting drivers. Since 2006, Formula D has held the first round of their pro series at Long Beach. This happens on the weekend before the Grand Prix. In 2013, the Motegi Super Drift Challenge was added. This is a drifting competition during the Grand Prix weekend. It uses the same turns as Formula D. It's the only event during the Grand Prix that runs at night under lights.

Long Beach also hosted the first round of the 1997 North American Touring Car Championship. Neil Crompton won this race in a Honda Accord.

Formula E Races

A changed version of the Long Beach Grand Prix track was used for the Long Beach ePrix. This was part of the FIA Formula E Championship. The track was 1.3 miles (2.1 km) long and had seven turns. Admission to the first event in 2015 was free. This allowed everyone to see the historic event. The ePrix was held again in 2016. But it was not renewed for the 2017 Formula E season.

Race Winners

Season	Date	Driver	Team	Chassis	Engine	Tires	Race Distance		Race Time	Average Speed (mph)	Report
							Laps	Miles (km)
Formula 5000
1975	Sept 28	Brian Redman	Carl A. Haas Racing	Lola	Chevrolet	Goodyear	50	101 (162.543)	1:10:12	86.325	Report
Formula One
1976	March 28	Clay Regazzoni	Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC	Ferrari 312T	Ferrari	Goodyear (2)	80	161.6 (260.069)	1:53:18	85.572	Report
1977	April 3	Mario Andretti	Team Lotus	Lotus 78	Ford–Cosworth	Goodyear (3)	80	161.6 (260.069)	1:51:35	87.073	Report
1978	April 2	Carlos Reutemann	Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC (2)	Ferrari 312T3 (2)	Ferrari (2)	Michelin	80	161.6 (260.069)	1:52:01	86.555	Report
1979	April 8	Gilles Villeneuve	Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC (3)	Ferrari 312T4 (3)	Ferrari (3)	Michelin (2)	80	161.6 (260.069)	1:50:25	87.812	Report
1980	March 30	Nelson Piquet	Brabham Racing Team	Brabham BT49	Ford–Cosworth (2)	Goodyear (4)	80	161.6 (260.069)	1:50:18	87.899	Report
1981	March 15	Alan Jones	Williams Racing Team	Williams FW07	Ford–Cosworth (3)	Goodyear (5)	80	161.6 (260.069)	1:50:41	87.601	Report
1982	April 4	Niki Lauda	McLaren International	McLaren MP4/1	Ford–Cosworth (4)	Goodyear (6)	75	159.75 (257.092)	1:58:25	80.939	Report
1983	March 27	John Watson	McLaren International (2)	McLaren MP4/1 (2)	Ford–Cosworth (5)	Michelin (3)	75	152.55 (245.505)	1:53:34	80.624	Report
CART/Champ Car World Series
1984	March 31	Mario Andretti (2)	Newman/Haas Racing	Lola (2)	Cosworth (6)	Goodyear (7)	112	187.04 (301.011)	2:15:23	82.898	Report
1985	April 14	Mario Andretti (3)	Newman/Haas Racing (2)	Lola (3)	Cosworth (7)	Goodyear (8)	90	150.3 (241.884)	1:42:50	87.694	Report
1986	April 13	Michael Andretti	Kraco Racing	March	Cosworth (8)	Goodyear (9)	95	158.65 (255.322)	1:57:34	80.965	Report
1987	April 5	Mario Andretti (4)	Newman/Haas Racing (3)	Lola (4)	Chevrolet (2)	Goodyear (10)	95	158.65 (255.322)	1:51:33	85.33	Report
1988	April 17	Al Unser Jr.	Galles Racing	March (2)	Chevrolet (3)	Goodyear (11)	95	158.65 (255.322)	1:53:47	83.655	Report
1989	April 16	Al Unser Jr. (2)	Galles Racing (2)	Lola (5)	Chevrolet (4)	Goodyear (12)	95	158.65 (255.322)	1:51:19	85.503	Report
1990	April 22	Al Unser Jr. (3)	Galles/Kraco Racing (3)	Lola (6)	Chevrolet (5)	Goodyear (13)	95	158.65 (255.322)	1:53:00	84.227	Report
1991	April 14	Al Unser Jr. (4)	Galles/Kraco Racing (4)	Lola (7)	Chevrolet (6)	Goodyear (14)	95	158.65 (255.322)	1:57:14	81.195	Report
1992	April 12	Danny Sullivan	Galles/Kraco Racing (5)	Galmer	Chevrolet (7)	Goodyear (15)	105	166.53 (268.004)	1:48:56	91.945	Report
1993	April 18	Paul Tracy	Team Penske	Penske	Chevrolet (8)	Goodyear (16)	105	166.53 (268.004)	1:47:36	93.089	Report
1994	April 17	Al Unser Jr. (5)	Team Penske (2)	Penske (2)	Ilmor	Goodyear (17)	105	166.53 (268.004)	1:40:53	99.283	Report
1995	April 9	Al Unser Jr. (6)	Team Penske (3)	Penske (3)	Mercedes-Benz	Goodyear (18)	105	166.53 (268.004)	1:49:32	91.422	Report
1996	April 14	Jimmy Vasser	Chip Ganassi Racing	Reynard	Honda	Firestone	105	166.53 (268.004)	1:44:02	96.281	Report
1997	April 13	Alex Zanardi	Chip Ganassi Racing (2)	Reynard (2)	Honda (2)	Firestone (2)	105	166.53 (268.004)	1:46:17	93.999	Report
1998	April 5	Alex Zanardi (2)	Chip Ganassi Racing (3)	Reynard (3)	Honda (3)	Firestone (3)	105	166.53 (268.004)	1:51:29	88.946	Report
1999	April 18	Juan Pablo Montoya	Chip Ganassi Racing (4)	Reynard (4)	Honda (4)	Firestone (4)	85	155.04 (249.512)	1:45:48	87.915	Report
2000	April 16	Paul Tracy (2)	Team Green	Reynard (5)	Honda (5)	Firestone (5)	82	161.376 (259.709)	1:57:11	82.626	Report
2001	April 8	Hélio Castroneves	Team Penske (4)	Reynard (6)	Honda (6)	Firestone (6)	82	161.376 (259.709)	1:52:17	86.223	Report
2002	April 14	Michael Andretti (2)	Team Green (2)	Reynard (7)	Honda (7)	Bridgestone	90	177.12 (285.047)	2:02:14	86.935	Report
2003	April 13	Paul Tracy (3)	Forsythe Racing	Lola (8)	Ford–Cosworth (9)	Bridgestone (2)	90	177.12 (285.047)	1:56:01	91.59	Report
2004	April 18	Paul Tracy (4)	Forsythe Racing (2)	Lola (9)	Ford–Cosworth (10)	Bridgestone (3)	81	159.408 (256.542)	1:44:12	91.785	Report
2005	April 10	Sébastien Bourdais	Newman/Haas Racing (4)	Lola (10)	Ford–Cosworth (11)	Bridgestone (4)	81	159.408 (256.542)	1:46:29	89.811	Report
2006	April 9	Sébastien Bourdais (2)	Newman/Haas Racing (5)	Lola (11)	Ford–Cosworth (12)	Bridgestone (5)	74	145.632 (234.371)	1:40:07	87.268	Report
2007	April 15	Sébastien Bourdais (3)	Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing (6)	Panoz	Cosworth (13)	Bridgestone (6)	78	153.504 (247.04)	1:40:43	91.432	Report
IndyCar Series
2008*	April 20	Will Power	KV Racing Technology	Panoz (2)	Cosworth (14)	Bridgestone (7)	83	163.344 (262.876)	1:45:25	92.964	Report
2009	April 19	Dario Franchitti	Chip Ganassi Racing (5)	Dallara	Honda (8)	Firestone (7)	85	167.28 (269.211)	1:58:47	84.491	Report
2010	April 18	Ryan Hunter-Reay	Andretti Autosport	Dallara (2)	Honda (9)	Firestone (8)	85	167.28 (269.211)	1:47:13	93.619	Report
2011	April 17	Mike Conway	Andretti Autosport (2)	Dallara (3)	Honda (10)	Firestone (9)	85	167.28 (269.211)	1:53:11	88.676	Report
2012	April 15	Will Power (2)	Team Penske (5)	Dallara (4)	Chevrolet (9)	Firestone (10)	85	167.28 (269.211)	1:54:02	88.021	Report
2013	April 21	Takuma Sato	A. J. Foyt Enterprises	Dallara (5)	Honda (15)	Firestone (11)	80	157.44 (253.375)	1:50:09	85.763	Report
2014	April 13	Mike Conway (2)	Ed Carpenter Racing	Dallara (6)	Chevrolet (10)	Firestone (12)	80	157.44 (253.375)	1:54:42	82.362	Report
2015	April 19	Scott Dixon	Chip Ganassi Racing (6)	Dallara (7)	Chevrolet (11)	Firestone (13)	80	157.44 (253.375)	1:37:35	96.8	Report
2016	April 17	Simon Pagenaud	Team Penske (6)	Dallara (8)	Chevrolet (12)	Firestone (14)	80	157.44 (253.375)	1:33:54	100.592	Report
2017	April 9	James Hinchcliffe	Schmidt Peterson Motorsports	Dallara (9)	Honda (16)	Firestone (15)	85	167.28 (269.211)	1:50:29	90.845	Report
2018	April 15	Alexander Rossi	Andretti Autosport (3)	Dallara (10)	Honda (17)	Firestone (16)	85	167.28 (269.211)	1:53:15	88.622	Report
2019	April 14	Alexander Rossi (2)	Andretti Autosport (4)	Dallara (11)	Honda (18)	Firestone (17)	85	167.28 (269.211)	1:41:35	88.622	Report
2020	Canceled in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic
2021	September 26*	Colton Herta	Andretti Autosport with Curb Agajanian (5)	Dallara (12)	Honda (19)	Firestone (18)	85	167.28 (269.211)	1:49:10	91.935	Report
2022	April 10	Josef Newgarden	Team Penske (7)	Dallara (13)	Chevrolet (13)	Firestone (19)	85	167.28 (269.211)	1:46:48	93.977	Report
2023	April 16	Kyle Kirkwood	Andretti Autosport (6)	Dallara (14)	Honda (20)	Firestone (20)	85	167.28 (269.211)	1:43:17	97.171	Report
2024	April 21	Scott Dixon (2)	Chip Ganassi Racing (7)	Dallara (15)	Honda (21)	Firestone (21)	85	167.28 (269.211)	1:43:03	98.350	Report

Race Highlights

Mario Andretti won the Long Beach Grand Prix four times (1977, 1984, 1985, 1987).

• 1984: The race became a CART series event. Mario Andretti won from the pole position. He led all 112 laps.
• 1985: Mario Andretti won again. He was trying to finish on one pit stop. Danny Sullivan ran out of fuel late in the race, helping Andretti win.
• 1986: Michael Andretti got his first CART career win. He battled Al Unser Jr. right to the end. Andretti won by a tiny 0.380 seconds.
• 1987: Mario Andretti led every lap to win his fourth Long Beach race. This was the first Indy car win for the Ilmor–Chevy Indy V-8 engine.

Al Unser Jr. won the Long Beach Grand Prix a record six times, including four in a row from 1988–1991. He was called the "King of the Beach."

• 1988: Al Unser Jr. won for the first time. He took the lead on the first lap. Unser Jr. led 72 of 95 laps. He lapped the entire field.
• 1989: Al Unser Jr. won again. He had a controversial moment with Mario Andretti. Unser Jr. bumped Andretti, sending him spinning. Unser Jr. still won despite damage to his car.
• 1990: Al Unser Jr. won his third race in a row. He held off Emerson Fittipaldi and Danny Sullivan. A late caution made the race exciting.
• 1991: Al Unser Jr. won his fourth race in a row. This set a new event record. The race is also remembered for a pit road crash. Michael Andretti and Emerson Fittipaldi crashed.

Paul Tracy's first Indy car victory came at the 1993 Long Beach Grand Prix.

• 1992: Danny Sullivan won after a crash with his teammate Al Unser Jr.. Unser Jr. was going for his fifth win in a row.
• 1993: Paul Tracy won his first Indy car race. He led most of the race. He overcame a flat tire and an unscheduled pit stop.
• 1994: Al Unser Jr. won his fifth Long Beach race. He had joined Team Penske. His teammates had problems, but Unser Jr. won easily.
• 1995: Al Unser Jr. won his sixth Long Beach Grand Prix. He dominated most of the race. This was his sixth win in eight years.
• 1996: Jimmy Vasser won the race. The leader, Gil de Ferran, had a problem with his car with four laps to go.
• 1997: Alex Zanardi won after a battle with Gil de Ferran. Zanardi's pit crew did faster stops. De Ferran crashed late in the race.

Alex Zanardi won back-to-back races at Long Beach in 1997 and 1998.

Michael Andretti's first career Indy car victory (1986) and final victory (2002) both came at Long Beach.

• 1998: Alex Zanardi won for the second year in a row. He had fallen a lap behind early in the race. He came back to win in the final two laps.
• 1999: Rookie Juan Pablo Montoya won his first Champ/Indy car race. He led after the race leader crashed. This was in front of a record crowd.
• 2000: Paul Tracy started 17th but climbed to the front. He won his second Long Beach race. He used good pit strategy.
• 2001: Hélio Castroneves led every lap to win. He held off Cristiano da Matta for a very close finish.
• 2002: Michael Andretti won his 42nd and final Indy/Champ car race. This win came 16 years after his first win at the same race.
• 2003: Paul Tracy won his third Long Beach race. The leader, Michel Jourdain Jr., had a clutch problem late in the race.

Sébastien Bourdais won three years in a row (2005, 2006, 2007).

• 2004: Paul Tracy won his fourth Long Beach Grand Prix. He took the lead at the start. He led almost the entire race.
• 2005: Sébastien Bourdais won after starting fourth. He controlled most of the race. A late caution made it close, but he held on.
• 2006: Sébastien Bourdais won for the second year in a row. He started from the pole position. He led 70 of 74 laps.
• 2007: Sébastien Bourdais won his third Long Beach race in a row. He led 58 of 78 laps.
• 2008: Will Power won the "final Champ Car race." He took the lead at the start. He led 81 of 83 laps.

Mike Conway won twice at Long Beach (2011, 2014).

Takuma Sato won his first career Indy car race at Long Beach in 2013.

• 2009: Dario Franchitti won his first IndyCar win since 2007. He benefited from early pit stops and cautions.
• 2010: Ryan Hunter-Reay won. Will Power made a mistake with his pit road speed limiter. Hunter-Reay pulled away for the victory.
• 2011: Mike Conway won his first Indy car race. He charged to the lead with less than 20 laps to go.
• 2012: Will Power won a very close race. He held off Simon Pagenaud on the final lap. Many Chevrolet cars had grid penalties.
• 2013: Takuma Sato won his first IndyCar race. He took control early and led most of the race.
• 2014: Mike Conway won for the second time. A big crash took out six cars, including the leaders. Conway held off Will Power at the end.
• 2015: Scott Dixon won his first Long Beach race. A pit stop delay for another driver helped him take the lead.
• 2016: Simon Pagenaud won a very close race. He held off Scott Dixon by a tiny margin.
• 2017: James Hinchcliffe won his first race since a serious crash in 2015. He held on for the victory after other leaders had problems.
• 2021: The race was the season finale due to the pandemic. Colton Herta won from 14th place. Alex Palou finished fourth to win the championship.
• 2022: Josef Newgarden won his second Long Beach race. He battled with Romain Grosjean late in the race. The race ended under caution.
• 2023: Kyle Kirkwood won his first IndyCar race. He took the lead after a smart pit stop strategy.
• 2024: Scott Dixon won his second Long Beach race. He used a fuel-saving strategy. He held off Colton Herta at the end.

Other Race Winners

Road to Indy

Atlantic Championship history Season Date Driver 1978 April 1 Howdy Holmes 1979 April 7 Tom Gloy 1980 March 29 Tom Gloy 1981 March 14 Geoff Brabham 1982 April 3 Geoff Brabham 1983 – 1988 Not held 1989 April 16 Hiro Matsushita 1990 April 21 Mark Dismore 1991 April 14 Jimmy Vasser 1992 April 10 Mark Dismore 1993 April 17 Claude Bourbonnais 1994 April 17 Richie Hearn 1995 April 17 David Empringham 1996 April 13 Case Montgomery 1997 April 12 Alex Tagliani 1998 April 4 Memo Gidley 1999 April 17 Alex Tagliani 2000 April 15 Buddy Rice 2001 April 8 David Rutledge 2002 April 14 Michael Valiante 2003 April 13 A. J. Allmendinger 2004 April 18 Ryan Dalziel 2005 April 10 Katherine Legge 2006 April 9 Andreas Wirth 2007 April 15 Raphael Matos 2008 April 20 Simona de Silvestro

Indy Lights history Season Date Driver 1989 April 16 Tommy Byrne 1990 April 22 Paul Tracy 1991 April 14 Éric Bachelart 1992 April 12 Franck Fréon 1993 April 18 Steve Robertson 1994 April 17 Steve Robertson 1995 April 9 Greg Moore 1996 April 14 David Empringham 1997 April 13 Hélio Castroneves 1998 April 5 Cristiano da Matta 1999 April 18 Philipp Peter 2000 April 16 Scott Dixon 2001 April 8 Townsend Bell 2002 – 2008 Not held 2009 April 19 J. R. Hildebrand 2010 April 18 James Hinchcliffe 2011 April 17 Conor Daly 2012 April 15 Esteban Guerrieri 2013 April 20 Carlos Muñoz 2014 April 13 Gabby Chaves 2015 April 19 Ed Jones

Sports Car Races

Rolex Sports Car Series
Year	Drivers	Car	Report
2006	Scott Pruett Luis Díaz	Riley Mk XX–Lexus	Report

Year	LMP1	LMP2		GT1	GT2	Report
2007	Rinaldo Capello Allan McNish Audi R10 TDI	Romain Dumas Timo Bernhard Porsche RS Spyder		Oliver Gavin Olivier Beretta Chevrolet Corvette C6.R	Mika Salo Jaime Melo Ferrari F430 GT2	Report
2008	Marco Werner Lucas Luhr Audi R10 TDI	Scott Sharp David Brabham Acura ARX-01b		Johnny O'Connell Jan Magnussen Chevrolet Corvette C6.R	Dominik Farnbacher Dirk Müller Ferrari F430 GT2	Report
2009	Gil de Ferran Simon Pagenaud Acura ARX-02a	Adrián Fernández Luis Díaz Acura ARX-01b		Oliver Gavin Olivier Beretta Chevrolet Corvette C6.R	Patrick Long Jörg Bergmeister Porsche 911 GT3-RSR	Report
	LMP		LMPC	GT	GTC
2010	David Brabham Simon Pagenaud HPD ARX-01c		Elton Julian Gunnar Jeannette Oreca FLM09/Chevrolet	Patrick Long Jörg Bergmeister Porsche 911 GT3-RSR	Juan González Butch Leitzinger Porsche 997 GT3 Cup	Report
	LMP1	LMP2	LMPC	GT	GTC
2011	Klaus Graf Lucas Luhr Lola-Aston Martin B09/60	Scott Tucker Christophe Bouchut HPD ARX-03b	Gunnar Jeannette Ricardo González Oreca FLM09/Chevrolet	Dirk Müller Joey Hand BMW M3 GT2	Tim Pappas Jeroen Bleekemolen Porsche 997 GT3 Cup	Report
2012	Klaus Graf Lucas Luhr HPD ARX-03a	Scott Tucker Christophe Bouchut HPD ARX-03b	Alex Popow Ryan Dalziel Oreca FLM09/Chevrolet	Oliver Gavin Tommy Milner Chevrolet Corvette C6.R	Peter LeSaffre Damien Faulkner Porsche 997 GT3 Cup	Report
2013	Klaus Graf Lucas Luhr HPD ARX-03a	Scott Sharp Guy Cosmo HPD ARX-03b	Jon Bennett Colin Braun Oreca FLM09/Chevrolet	Bill Auberlen Maxime Martin BMW Z4 GTE	Sean Edwards Henrique Cisneros Porsche 997 GT3 Cup	Report

IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship

Year	Prototype			Prototype Challenge		GT Le Mans		GT Daytona		Report
2014	Scott Pruett Memo Rojas Riley DP/Ford			did not participate		Antonio García Jan Magnussen Chevrolet Corvette C7.R		did not participate		Report
2015	Ricky Taylor Jordan Taylor Corvette DP/Chevrolet			did not participate		Dirk Werner Bill Auberlen BMW Z4 GTE		did not participate		Report
2016	Ricky Taylor Jordan Taylor Corvette DP/Chevrolet			Misha Goikhberg Stephen Simpson Oreca FLM09/Chevrolet		Patrick Pilet Nick Tandy Porsche 911 RSR		did not participate		Report
2017	Ricky Taylor Jordan Taylor Cadillac DPi-V.R			did not participate		Oliver Gavin Tommy Milner Chevrolet Corvette C7.R		Gunnar Jeannette Cooper MacNeil Mercedes-AMG GT3		Report
Year	Prototype					GT Le Mans		GT Daytona		Report
2018	João Barbosa Filipe Albuquerque Cadillac DPi-V.R					Oliver Gavin Tommy Milner Chevrolet Corvette C7.R		did not participate		Report
Year	Daytona Prototype international					GT Le Mans		GT Daytona		Report
2019	Filipe Albuquerque João Barbosa Cadillac DPi-V.R					Earl Bamber Laurens Vanthoor Porsche 911 RSR		did not participate		Report
2020	Canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2021	Pipo Derani Felipe Nasr Cadillac DPi-V.R					Tommy Milner Nick Tandy Chevrolet Corvette C8.R		Bryan Sellers Madison Snow Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo		Report
Year	Daytona Prototype international					GT Daytona Pro		GT Daytona		Report
2022	Sébastien Bourdais Renger van der Zande Cadillac DPi-V.R					Ross Gunn Alex Riberas Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3		Bryan Sellers Madison Snow BMW M4 GT3		Report
Year	Grand Touring Prototype					GT Daytona Pro		GT Daytona		Report
2023	Mathieu Jaminet Nick Tandy Porsche 963					Ben Barnicoat Jack Hawksworth Lexus RC F GT3		Bryan Sellers Madison Snow BMW M4 GT3		Report
2024	Sébastien Bourdais Renger van der Zande Cadillac V-Series.R					did not participate		Ben Barnicoat Parker Thompson Lexus RC F GT3		Report

• Overall winners in bold

Stadium Super Trucks

Year	Date	Driver	Ref
2013	April 21	Justin Lofton
2014	April 13	Robby Gordon
2015	April 19	E. J. Viso
2016	April 16	Sheldon Creed
	April 17
2017	April 8	Matthew Brabham
	April 9	Robby Gordon
2018	April 14	Gavin Harlien
	April 15	Matthew Brabham
2019	April 13	Matthew Brabham
	April 14	Robby Gordon
2020	Canceled due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic
2021	September 25	Jerett Brooks
	September 26	Robby Gordon
2022	April 9	Max Gordon
	April 10	Robby Gordon
2023	April 15	Matthew Brabham
	April 16	Matthew Brabham
2024	April 20	Max Gordon
	April 21	Myles Cheek

Lap Records

As of April 2024, here are the fastest official race lap records at the Grand Prix of Long Beach:

Images for kids

• 

  2005 Long Beach Grand Prix, showing turn 10 and the Long Beach skyline, including the Villa Riviera.

See also

• Long Beach Motorsports Walk of Fame