The 44th Annual Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach took place April 13th - 15th on the streets of Long Beach. Over 185,000 race fans filled the grandstands over the span of the 3-day event; the largest crowd this event has seen since 2000. The crowds were treated to non-stop racing on track all weekend including the Verizon IndyCar Series, IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Series, Pirelli World Challenge, Vintage Trans-Am, Stadium Super Trucks, & Formula Drift. From sun up to sun down; there was something for everyone to enjoy.
Saturday’s feature race was the IMSA Bubba Burger Sports Grand Prix. Southern California race fans got their first glance at the most competitive sports car series on the planet right now. The growing Prototype class featured the pair of brand new Penske Acura ARX-05 DPI’s. Penske stacked their driver lineup with 7-time F1 Grand Prix winner Juan Pablo Montoya, 3-time Indy 500 winner Helio Castroneves, 2016 Prototype Champion Dane Cameron, & 2017 Prototype Champion Ricky Taylor. The new Acura’s managed to qualify 1st & 4th but couldn’t secure a podium at the conclusion of the 100-minute sprint race. The Mustang Sampling Racing Cadillac DPI driven by Joao Barbosa & Filipe Albuquerque took home the victory.
In the GT Le Mans class, the Corvette C7-R piloted by Oliver Gavin & Tommy Milner brought home the victory ahead the pair of Ford Chip Ganassi Racing’s Ford GTs.
Sunday’s events were of course highlighted by the IndyCars. This year’s IndyCars feature a new universal aero kit on the DW12 chassis that has drawn praise from race fans everywhere for it’s sleek design. The numerous small winglets and huge rear bumpers that covered the rear tires are gone; taking hundreds of pounds of downforce off the car and putting the control back in the hands of the driver. Indy 500 winner & former Manor Marussia F1 driver, Alexander Rossi continued his red hot start to the season by absolutely dominating the field all weekend. Rossi found himself atop the charts during all three practice sessions. He then put his #27 NAPA Autoparts Honda on pole and dominated the race on Sunday from start to finish. Former series champion Will Power and 2nd year man Ed Jones rounded out the podium.
