Tag: Long Beach GP

Penske Entertainment purchases Long Beach Grand Prix

Penske Entertainment has purchased the Long Beach Grand Prix. The acquisition adds the popular Southern California street race founded by Chris Pook and Dan Gurney in 1975 to a portfolio that includes the NTT IndyCar Series, the Indianapolis Motor …

Penske Entertainment has purchased the Long Beach Grand Prix.

The acquisition adds the popular Southern California street race founded by Chris Pook and Dan Gurney in 1975 to a portfolio that includes the NTT IndyCar Series, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Detroit Grand Prix. Penske Entertainment is also involved at varying levels in promoting IndyCar’s Iowa Speedway, Milwaukee Mile, and the upcoming Arlington Grand Prix in 2026.

Earlier this year, and after receiving inquiries from rival sanctioning bodies about buying the event, longtime IndyCar team owner Gerry Forsythe acquired the half of the grand prix offered for sale by the estate of his late partner Kevin Kalkhoven and became its sole owner, ending any speculation as to whether NASCAR or Formula 1 would buy the event and replace IndyCar.

In the sale to Penske, the steward of IndyCar and its marquee Indy 500 has taken ownership of its second-most popular event, which also features IMSA’s WeatherTech SportsCar Championship as its Saturday feature, and heads into 2025 when Long Beach will celebrate its golden anniversary

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“As we prepare to celebrate a truly remarkable milestone, the 50th anniversary of this amazing event, it’s fitting that we have such exciting and important news to share about its future,” said Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach CEO Jim Michaelian.

“Roger and the team at Penske Entertainment understand the special history and unique qualities that give us such a strong foundation and will be ideal partners as we continue to deliver an exceptional race weekend for our fans moving forward. I also want to acknowledge the significant contribution that the previous owners, Gerry Forsythe and the late Kevin Kalkhoven, made to the success of our event over the past 19 years.”

Roger Penske will retain Michaelian and his highly experienced Grand Prix At Long Beach promotions team.

“We’re incredibly proud to be the new stewards of this cherished and iconic event,” Penske said. “This is the most historic and prestigious street circuit race in North America, and we’re excited to work with Jim Michaelian and his great team in Long Beach to ensure continued success and growth over the long term. This race and its loyal fans matter so much to everyone across the IndyCar community, and we’re looking forward to a very special 50th anniversary celebration this April, as well.”

Pruett’s cooldown lap: Long Beach

Long Beach is always an event that runs on the rev limiter from beginning to end, and I swear its 49th annual gathering was the busiest I can recall since my first visit as a Formula Atlantic mechanic in 1991. And with the quick turnaround between …

Long Beach is always an event that runs on the rev limiter from beginning to end, and I swear its 49th annual gathering was the busiest I can recall since my first visit as a Formula Atlantic mechanic in 1991. And with the quick turnaround between Long Beach and Barber this weekend, we need to take an expedited look through some of the items that stood out from the event before moving into the next.

UNDEFEATED

I’ve lost track of how many races where I’ve seen Scott Dixon beat everyone– and handily — through saving fuel while lapping at race-winning speed. Of all the thoughts that ran through my head as Dixie sealed his latest I-can-make-miracles-happen win, the main one was an appreciation for how, after nearly 20 years of performing fuel-related miracles, he’s still the only one in IndyCar who can do this.

At a time where everybody seemingly knows everything about each other’s abilities, and with a few decades of Dixie’s onboard videos to watch and listen and learn from after these fuel-conservation masterpieces, nobody has been able to match him. In an era of spec cars and infinitesimal differences from entry to entry, it’s wild to think that one driver in one team can repeatedly achieve success with a skill that apparently cannot be copied.

GRUMPY JO

Josef Newgarden was rather grumpy after the race, and deservedly so. After losing out on a podium and a chance to continue challenging Dixon for the win after he was hit from behind by Colton Herta in the closing minutes of the 85-lap contest, Newgarden wasn’t pleased with IndyCar’s decision to swallow the whistle and rule the hit from Herta was not worthy of a penalty.

His frustration — and that of Penske president Tim Cindric — was certainly valid; IndyCar penalized Pato O’Ward for hitting his teammate Alexander Rossi early in the race, and the damage from that impact, which was of the same nose-to-tail variety between Herta and Newgarden, affected Rossi’s day in a negative way. If the whistle was used the first time, it should have been used a second.

Newgarden’s pursuit of leader Dixon was summarily (rear) ended. Joe Skibinski/Penske Entertainment

SO WHAT HAPPENED WITH THE CAR?

In lifting the back of the No. 2 Team Penske Chevy off the ground with the nose of Herta’s No. 26 Andretti Global Honda, the electronics that manage Newgarden’s gearbox saw no reporting of speed from the rear wheels for the brief moment the car was off the ground. Thinking the zero-miles-per-hour signal meant he was about to stall, the system instructed the hydraulic clutch to disengage the transmission from the engine in order to prevent the motor from stalling.

That left Newgarden sitting idle for a brief moment that allowed Herta and Alex Palou to rocket by while he re-engaged the transmission to connect with the engine and start accelerating down Shoreline Drive.

The anti-stall system worked to perfection. It just didn’t have an actual stall it needed to prevent.

DISPIRITING DAY FOR FRO

Polesitter Felix Rosenqvist sank like a rock in the opening stage of the race. Did his Meyer Shank Racing team miss the setup? Nope, try stopping issues.

“After leading one lap, Rosenqvist dropped off the lead, but stayed in the top five through the first half of the race as he managed an issue with his brakes,” the team wrote. “He stayed out with the lead group when a lap 17 caution split the field in half from a fuel strategy standpoint, but ran with the leaders through the 85 trips around the 1.968-mile Long Beach street course.

“The Swedish-born driver started the day’s final stint from 12th place, rejoining the fray after a stop on lap 60. He fought his way towards the top five over the last 25 laps of the day before settling for a hard-fought ninth-place result.”

TEDDY BEAR

Everybody loves a teddy bear, and that also applies to Arrow McLaren’s new driver Theo Pourchaire, nicknamed “Teddy” by the team’s sporting director Tony Kanaan.

Separate from all the 20-year-old Frenchman did on the racetrack while firing the No. 6 Chevy from 22nd to 11th on Sunday, Pourchaire infused the team with new levels of positivity and joy. From the top to the bottom, folks at Arrow McLaren loved everything about him.

He also produced the best finish for the No. 6 Chevy so far this year, and as a result of placing 11th in his first race, Pourchaire sits 22nd in the drivers’ championship, one spot ahead of RLL’s Christian Lundgaard, which is a shocker, and ahead of four other drivers who’ve competed in both points-paying races in 2024.

With a solid run on Sunday, Pourchaire could easily find himself inside the top 20, all while lacking points from St. Petersburg.

Pourchaire’s poise and demeanor were a hit with one and all. James Black/Penske Entertainment

BLAME CANADA

Heard from a few friends in Canada who were not pleased to learn their network and cable options for Long Beach were null and void. Here’s what one sent through: “Can’t watch IndyCar on cable TV in Canada, even though we pay stupid amount of money to TSN for their five channels. They put it on TSN+ which is an extra streaming subscription and that’s broken for most and we can’t watch from there either, as app is broken and when it does work, it’s for a minute or two, regardless of device. Not just me, either. IndyCar makes it so hard to stay an IndyCar fan. Brutal.”

WOOOOOOOOOOOOO

In more Josef Newgarden news, he and the No. 2 Team Penske Chevy crew accepted an amazing invitation from the Tennessean’s biggest fan, Greg Dixon, and Greg’s mom Shirley, who lives in Long Beach and hosted the reigning Indy 500 winner and his squad for a pre-race backyard barbeque.

It’s hard to imagine a Max Verstappen or Chase Elliott saying yes to such a fan invite, but Newgarden and the No. 2 crew jumped right in and ate and drank with the Dixons. If you’ve been to an IndyCar race and nearly shat yourself when Greg fires off one of his explosive “WOOOOOOOOOs” behind Newgarden’s pit stall, you know he’s as passionate a fan as you’ll find anywhere in the sport.

It was great for everyone to join Greg and Shirley — she proudly sports a Scott Dixon jersey at the races — after they went through a really hard time right after last year’s Long Beach race when her husband — Greg’s dad — Larry died. It took a while, but she eventually returned to IndyCar events with Greg, and they’ll make it out to Indy for their first visit to IMS in May. The spirit of Larry — “Ole Sarge” — was with them in the backyard, and according to Newgarden, the BBQ with the Dixons will become an annual event in Long Beach.

BRAVO HMSA

The good people at the Grand Prix at Long Beach Association who run the event, and their longstanding partners at HMSA, the Historic Motor Sports Association which has but on numerous historic races at the track, hit a home run with the retro IndyCar field that ran from Friday through Sunday.

Fans loved seeing Indy cars from 1966-2007, and the HMSA paddock inside the convention center was constantly busy with IndyCar Series team owners, engineers, mechanics, and drivers stopping by to see and appreciate the cars of yesteryear. Led by Cris Vandagriff, the HMSA staff was its usual warm and inviting self, and with the 50th anniversary of Long Beach coming in 2025, look for some important cars from Long Beach’s past to be part of next year’s show.

MISC

  • We had one caution for four laps. At Long Beach. That has to be a once-in-a-lifetime thing.
  • It’s too early to say what kind of impact the placement of “100 Days To Indy” Season 1 on Netflix will have in spreading awareness of the series like “Drive To Survive” did for Formula 1, but I did get a great note from a fan over the weekend that made me smile. He said his son has never shown an interest in IndyCar, but since they watched 100 Days on Netflix, the lad has been following the series and keeps asking how many days there are until the Indy 500.
  • Rookie Kyffin Simpson is 15th in the championship. Said another way, Simpson is ahead of 12 other drivers after completing two steady races. He’s had plenty of spins and trips into runoff areas prior to the races, but when it matters, Simpson’s been solid for someone with so little open-wheel experience. He won’t stay in 15th for long if he keeps finishing in the bottom half of the field, but for those who predicted he’d be out of his league, the kid has defied those expectations and leads all rookies.
  • Thursday night’s Road Racing Drivers Club dinner was another unforgettable affair. Sir Jackie Stewart was the guest of honor and the RRDC also inducted by friend and former driver Margie Smith-Haas to the group.

IndyCar debut thrills Pourchaire: ‘The racing here is incredible’

Arrow McLaren team principal Gavin Ward and sporting director Tony Kanaan were delighted by rookie Theo Pourchaire’s debut performance in the No. 6 Chevy. Both men stood within a few feet of the Frenchman after he placed 11th on Sunday in Long Beach …

Arrow McLaren team principal Gavin Ward and sporting director Tony Kanaan were delighted by rookie Theo Pourchaire’s debut performance in the No. 6 Chevy. Both men stood within a few feet of the Frenchman after he placed 11th on Sunday in Long Beach and heaped praise on the Formula 2 champion’s clean and heady drive.

“It’s a tough spot to put him in and you can see how much he struggled to begin, but I’m impressed, man. He really did a good job,” Kanaan told RACER.

“Theo was dropped in the deep end, and you can’t be dropped in much more deeply than that,” Ward added. “There’s a lot to like about his approach. I think he’s taken the weekend at the right level of aggressiveness. He’s built up to it. He’s got better and better. Theo got all the laps in the race and got all of that learning in.”

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For Pourchaire, who wanted to race in IndyCar as he was completing his European open-wheel training, the hype matched reality across 85 laps where he improved from 22nd to 11th.

“I thought it was going to be a little bit more boring because it’s a street course, you know, so I expected the race to be like a train — everybody behind each other, because it’s tough to overtake on a street course. And in the end, I was really surprised,” he said.

“I had a really good car. That’s why I enjoyed it as well. But I didn’t do any mistakes. I drove well, I did some good overtakes. After doing my first full weekend in IndyCar, the racing here is incredible. I enjoyed it so much from practice one to the last lap of the race. It was a real pleasure. I expected IndyCar to be good, but it’s really amazing. The cars are amazing.”

Pourchaire was pleasantly surprised by the racey nature of both his car and the Long Beach street track. Josh Tons/Motorsport Images

Arrow McLaren’s Alexander Rossi was hit by teammate Pato O’Ward early in the race and suffered slight damage that slowed his outright pace. As a result, Pourchaire was able to follow and learn from Rossi — a two-time winner at Long Beach — and crossed the finish line directly behind the No. 7 Chevy.

“You know, the guys at the front, in the top 10, are really good drivers. My teammates as well — I was behind him [Rossi] and that was really good for me; I could follow him to follow his pace, and that helped me a lot to achieve a good result,” Pourchaire said. “We were the biggest mover of the race as well. Big thanks to the team; they helped me a lot. It’s amazing.”

The 20-year-old hasn’t been confirmed by the team for next weekend’s race at Barber Motorsports Park, but after his performance at Long Beach, it would be a shock if he isn’t in the No. 6 Chevy when practice begins on Friday.

Dixon ekes out fuel to land dramatic Long Beach GP victory

Scott Dixon delivered one of his fuel-saving masterclasses to triumph in the 49th Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, his second around the 1.968-mile street course, and the 57th of his career. Despite running an alternate strategy and making his last …

Scott Dixon delivered one of his fuel-saving masterclasses to triumph in the 49th Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, his second around the 1.968-mile street course, and the 57th of his career. Despite running an alternate strategy and making his last stop 10 laps before Colton Herta and Alex Palou, Chip Ganassi Racing’s six-time champion was able to stave off his attackers – first Josef Newgarden of Team Penske, then Herta’s fellow Honda-powered Andretti Global entry – and clinched a brilliant win.

Will Power, Kyle Kirkwood and Alex Rossi were the only drivers in the top 17 on the 27-car grid to select Firestone alternates with the green guayule sidewalls to start the race, with front-row starter Power’s mission very clearly to get ahead of polesitter Felix Rosenqvist as soon as possible.

Rosenqvist made a strong start, but in protecting the inside line he allowed Power to go around the outside, and by the end of lap one his lead was 1.1s, with Rosenqvist pursued by Newgarden, Marcus Ericsson, Herta and Palou. Dixon got around Christian Lundgaard for seventh, while Kirkwood on his softer rubber got Marcus Armstrong into Turn 8.

Newgarden and Ericsson passed Rosenqvist on successive laps, and soon the polesitter was under pressure from Herta, while Kirkwood got another place on lap five, deposing Lundgaard. Meanwhile, there was some internal strife at Arrow McLaren, when Pato O’Ward ran into Alex Rossi’s sister machine at the fountain turn, sending the latter to the pits with a punctured tire, and O’Ward to the pits for a drive-through penalty for avoidable contact.

Herta and Palou got around Rosenqvist on laps seven and eight respectively, leaving him as prey for Dixon.

Up front, on lap 12, Power held a 6.3s lead over teammate Newgarden, with Ericsson, Herta, Palou and Rosenqvist running 1.3s apart behind.

The first and only yellow flew on lap 15 when Christian Rasmussen spun his Ed Carpenter Racing car out of Turn 4 due to a broken toe link sustained in a wall-brush at Turn 11. While he was crashing, poor Jack Harvey of Dale Coyne Racing tried to squeeze between the ECR car and the wall but sustained significant damage on both sides.

When the pits opened on lap 16, Power chose to stop, as did Dixon, Kirkwood, Lundgaard and Scott McLaughlin. Lundgaard was sent into the path of Kirkwood but no harm done. Power, Dixon, Lundgaard, Kirkwood and McLaughlin led the alternative strategy cars in 12th-16th, but Power and Lundgaard had chosen this stint to go for primaries, while Dixon, Kirkwood and McLaughlin elected to take alternates.

The restart was clean, although Newgarden couldn’t extend his lead over Ericsson until he put the repaired car of Harvey between them. Further back, Dixon used his alternates to pass Power by cannoning out of the hairpin and getting him into Turn 1. Meanwhile, Lundgaard’s unsafe release on pitlane had elicited a penalty from race control, whereby the Dane had to give up five places.

Rosenqvist, who had been struggling with brake issues since the start, was the first of the “regular strategy” cars to stop, pitting on lap 29. Newgarden and Ericsson pitted next time around, with Palou stopping and re-emerging between them. Ericsson tried hard to remedy that situation but finally ceded the track position at Turn 8. Herta stopped last of the leaders, emerging behind Newgarden but ahead of Palou and Ericsson.

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Up front, the alternative-strategy cars were now to the fore. On lap 40, Dixon was leading Power by 6s, with Kirkwood 1.5s further back and McLaughlin another 2.7s in arrears.

Newgarden was cutting through slower cars to rise to sixth by lap 49. And crucially, he was staying within 20s of the fuel saving Dixon up front. Rahal pulled into the pits from fifth, but there was a refueling issue with the No. 15 RLL car.

Dixon and Power pitted on lap 51, the Kiwi taking more alternates, the Aussie taking more primaries, while Kirkwood went one lap longer and emerged still ahead of McLaughlin.

Thus Newgarden was back up front on the normal strategy, leading Herta by 3.7s, with Palou another 2.2s back and being chased hard by former teammate Ericsson. Newgarden set some scintillating times, pitting on lap 57 and coming out in the gap between Dixon and Power. Herta went for scrubbed alternates when he stopped, as did Palou. The latter emerged behind the pace-crippled Power, but soon demoted him to fifth to resume his chase of Herta. Up front, Dixon’s lead over Newgarden was down to 3.6s by lap 65 with 20 to go.

Ericsson was the next to pass Power, taking fifth on lap 66, while McLaughlin also struck misfortune, limping the No. 3 to the pits with a mechanical issue.

Dixon was doing a fine job up front, using just enough push-to-pass to squirt away from Newgarden out of the hairpin, but the overall pace was backing Newgarden up toward the Herta vs. Palou battle, an issue exacerbated by backmarkers. The top four were covered by just 2.15s.

At the end of lap 77, Herta struck the back of Newgarden’s car, apparently triggering the anti-stall on the No. 2 Penske machine. As Newgarden struggled for pace off the corner, Herta and Palou shot past to become Dixon’s leading pursuers.

Herta, like Newgarden, could not make it happen, and Dixon chalked up his second Long Beach win, and the 57th of his career by 0.9798s, with Herta just 0.7866s adrift.

Newgarden held off Ericsson, while Power trickled home just ahead of Kirkwood to claim sixth. Romain Grosjean clinched eighth for Juncos Hollinger Racing ahead of the disappointed Rosenqvist and Rossi. Rossi’s new teammate, IndyCar debutant Theo Pourchaire claimed an impressive 11th.

RESULTS

Rahal heads Palou, Newgarden in Long Beach warm-up

Almost all drivers tried out both Firestone compounds in the 64 degree F conditions, Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden being the first to get under 68 seconds with a 1m07.6677s. However, this was soon eclipsed by many, including Alex Palou of Chip …

Almost all drivers tried out both Firestone compounds in the 64 degree F conditions, Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden being the first to get under 68 seconds with a 1m07.6677s. However, this was soon eclipsed by many, including Alex Palou of Chip Ganassi Racing who went top with a 1m07.0932s, a couple of tenths ahead of today’s polesitter Felix Rosenqvist of Meyer Shank Racing-Honda.

Will Power, who will start the race from the outside of the front row, practiced his start by hanging to the right on the exit of the hairpin, the final corner, and hugging the pit wall all the way down to the Turn 1 brake zone. On one occasion this didn’t work so well as he tried to outbrake Scott Dixon on the outside, and Power had to use the Turn 1 runoff, but he easily recovered and continued his endeavors.

With 12 minutes to go, Romain Grosjean put Juncos Hollinger Racing-Chevrolet into third, while teammate Agustin Canapino took a trip into the Turn 9 runoff but was bump-started without the need for a red flag, and kept on the gas to finish the session in the top half of the grid.

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Graham Rahal snipped 0.0447s off Palou’s benchmark time to go top with under 10 minutes to go, while Colton Herta moved into third to become top Andretti Global representative.

Dixon suffered a radio problem, Power lost the push-to-pass display on his dashboard, while Rosenqvist locked up his fronts over the bumps into Turn 9 and slithered into the runoff zone.


Worryingly for the opposition, Newgarden was able to clock third-fastest time while running the harder primary tires, although this became fourth when Dixon delivered a fine lap on his penultimate effort to claim second.

Engines fire at 12:38pm local (Pacific) time, and the 27 drivers will get the green flag at 12:45pm.

RESULTS

STARTING LINEUP & TIRE DESIGNATION

Harder Firestones making Long Beach an epic slideshow

If you love the sight of IndyCar drivers fighting oversteer, Friday and Saturday at the Acura Long Beach Grand Prix have been a gift as most of the field has dealt with sideways moments at multiple points on each lap. The snaps of opposite lock have …

If you love the sight of IndyCar drivers fighting oversteer, Friday and Saturday at the Acura Long Beach Grand Prix have been a gift as most of the field has dealt with sideways moments at multiple points on each lap.

The snaps of opposite lock have persisted after the street circuit’s surface improved overnight as rubber was ground into the corners, so what’s causing the constant sawing at the steering wheels?

“It’s not really the track grip, right?” Andretti Global’s Kyle Kirkwood told RACER. “We’re doing the same lap times as what we did last year, if not quicker in qualifying. I think it has to do with the tire. It’s just a stiffer tire in general. They’ve made it more durable and that just causes you to have bigger snaps and it’s less forgiving, in a sense. That’s what it’s mostly due to.”

 

Polesitter Felix Rosenqvist also points to the harder Firestone tires—ones designed with higher durability — as the cause of the fun.

With Firestone having made harder tires to cope with the extra weight that was meant to be carried with IndyCar’s new-for-2024 hybrid energy recovery systems that have been delayed until summer, drivers are hustling cars around Long Beach with lighter cars that lack a tire that’s matched to their mass.

“I think also the tires are pretty hard right now for the weight of the car we have because we’re in a bit of a window here where we’re waiting for the hybrid,” Rosenqvist said. “When the tires are cold, it’s a bit icy and it’s easy to lose the rear. I feel like they get there eventually. My steering wheel was upside down out of Turn 5. I guess that’s good for you guys to watch.”

McLaren left stunned by sudden lack of LBGP qualifying pace

The Arrow McLaren team had high expectations for qualifying at Long Beach after Pato O’Ward paced Friday’s practice session, but an unproductive morning session on Saturday foretold what took place while setting the grid for Sunday’s 85-lap race. …

The Arrow McLaren team had high expectations for qualifying at Long Beach after Pato O’Ward paced Friday’s practice session, but an unproductive morning session on Saturday foretold what took place while setting the grid for Sunday’s 85-lap race.

O’Ward’s teammate Alexander Rossi was the best of the Arrow McLaren trio—newcomer Theo Pourchaire wasn’t likely to feature—in 10th, and the situation worsened in qualifying when O’Ward and Rossi failed to make it into the Firestone Fast 12. Rossi topped the roster with a run to 13th, one spot ahead of a bewildered O’Ward in 14th. Pourchaire rounded out the group in 22nd.

“That was a tough one,” said Rossi, a winner in 2018 and 2019 at his home-state race. “I don’t know how we go from the some of the strength we had in practice yesterday to where we ended up today. This series is wild; you never know what you’re going to get.”

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O’Ward shared in the confusion.

“We just didn’t have the pace. I have no real explanation for that,” O’Ward said. “I thought we were going to be able to transfer, but I think we went the wrong direction in practice two and missed the window a little bit. It’s a good thing that we have a fresh set of green [tires] for the race tomorrow. It will be tough to make the climb, but if we can get things dialed in, then we can do it.”

Team principal Gavin Ward tried to find the positives among the negatives.

“These challenges become opportunities to learn and get better, and that’s what we’ll focus on,” he said. “Theo did a good job; he’s been thrown in the deep end here and he’s just been building things up. He beat everyone he realistically probably could have beaten there. We have an opportunity to learn an awful lot tomorrow, so let’s see what we can do in the race.”

‘I’m having more fun because I’m going faster’ – Power

Will Power credited his improved demeanor to rediscovering his qualifying mojo, after qualifying on the front row for tomorrow’s Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. Although he was frustrated to fall just 0.0039s of Felix Rosenqvist’s time in the Meyer …

Will Power credited his improved demeanor to rediscovering his qualifying mojo, after qualifying on the front row for tomorrow’s Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. Although he was frustrated to fall just 0.0039s of Felix Rosenqvist’s time in the Meyer Shank Racing-Honda, the Team Penske driver was also elated to not only reach his first Firestone Fast Six since he won the championship in 2022 — the same year he broke Mario Andretti’s all-time pole-winning record.

Asked about his sunny demeanor in the post-qualifying press conference, he stated: “I’m having more fun because I’m going faster, honestly. I’ve been quick all year, even in testing. Everywhere I have been quick. St. Pete qualifying I didn’t put it together. Went the wrong way on the setup. I have been quick.

“Super-stoked to be in the top six. I’ve worked pretty hard in the off-season. I’ve continually worked hard my whole career. I’m still working extremely hard on all my driving details, constantly improving and evolving. It’s never ending for me. Enjoying it. Enjoying it. I love the competition. It’s tough extracting the most out of yourself.

“You get to compete with different eras of guys. The young group will be around for another 20 years. Competing with the middle group, which is sort of [Josef] Newgarden, [Alexander] Rossi. And then you have [Scott] Dixon and myself [in our 40s].”

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The three Penskes of Power, Newgarden — who took pole and victory in Round 1 at St. Petersburg and qualified third for tomorrow’s race — and Scott McLaughlin who qualified 11th were the sole Chevrolet representatives in the top 12, yet Power credited Chevy as well as the team with Penske’s more convincing qualifying form this year compared with last.

“It’s a couple of things,” he said. “I think the engine’s better. I think Chevy did some really good work in the off-season. As a team, we’ve worked hard on street course setups and road course. Overall actually we were kind of disappointed with the season, even though the team won the 500 [with Newgarden]. We’re just stronger overall. I’ve personally worked hard. I’m sure the other two boys, they’re working hard as well. I think it’s all clicking well.”

Power, who won the GP of Long Beach in 2008 and 2012, said he couldn’t think of any areas of the 1.968-mile course where he could have found the missing four thousandths of a second that would have put him ahead of Rosenqvist.

‘There was not much left on the table. Like really, I know, every sector… The only thing I could say is a bit into [Turn] 10 and the hairpin [Turn 11]. But you’re not going to see a chunk anywhere. It’s going to be hundredths. That just shows how good of a lap Felix did and how tight it is in this series.”

After twice thumping his left-rear wheel against the wall at Turn 8 — the corner leading onto the back straight — in this morning’s practice session, Power said he built up to speed through that corner in qualifying.

“[I did] pretty much my best on my last lap. Slowly got better and better and better and better. The last lap was the best. [This morning] all I was doing was damaging the toe link. I was so sideways, it bent the toe link. Done it three times [once on Friday]. It just lights up the tires out of there. It’s much nicer. You used to have a big hump there. Now it’s really nice and smooth. A really cool corner…

“It just made it so you can get on the throttle earlier, so you have more power when you’re getting out near the wall. Yeah, I keep testing it. You should lift a little. You’ll crash otherwise…”

Regarding the large yaw angles the Indy cars have been ascribing on the exit of certain turns, Power said it was due to “the lighter rear we have now. You can actually get away with being a little sideways and not lose time. It’s a more nimble car. You can hustle it.”

Power also threw out the comment that he believes that a Team Penske car can claim pole for this year’s 108th running of the Indianapolis 500. Qualifying at the Brickyard has been a struggle for Penske over the last four years, with Power even starting on the back row in 2021. Although Newgarden won last year, he had to climb from 17th on the grid.

Power, who doesn’t count P1 at the Indy 500 among his 70 Indy car poles, said he reckoned a Penske could win it “because we’ve worked so hard. I don’t think we’ve left anything on the table. I’ve said that for the last five years! But I haven’t said we’d be on pole. I’ve said we have a good shot. This year I really feel like we’ve put everything together.

“We’ll see. I feel like one of our cars have a great shot at pole, if not all on the front row. I hope so. I hope so.”

‘We needed each other’ – Shank on MSR’s first pole with Rosenqvist

“We needed each other,” Michael Shank told RACER while walking down pit lane after Felix Rosenqvist secured Meyer Shank Racing’s first IndyCar pole. “We’re two groups, Felix and Jim [Meyer] and I, that needed each other. And this was the time to do …

“We needed each other,” Michael Shank told RACER while walking down pit lane after Felix Rosenqvist secured Meyer Shank Racing’s first IndyCar pole. “We’re two groups, Felix and Jim [Meyer] and I, that needed each other. And this was the time to do it.”

Rosenqvist offered a glimpse of what was possible after qualifying second to open the season at St. Petersburg and claiming the pole — albeit one that was unofficial — at the non-championship visit to The Thermal Club. Going one step better, Rosenqvist’s Long Beach pole was among the most popular in recent memory as Shank and Meyer were cheered and congratulated the entire length of pit lane as they headed towards the pole celebration.

“For Jim and I, we’ve been together six or seven years now, and to have this is just awesome,” Shank added. “Our guys did a great job; I can’t believe the time Felix ended up doing on those tires. And even though we’re running well, the expectations are still like I told you three or four months ago: Be cool and whatever tomorrow gives us, it gives us. But now the team has to deliver now too, so we’ve got to make sure it happens.”

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MSR’s technical partner Andretti Global was on pole last year at Long Beach; its top driver was fourth as Rosenqvist gave great chassis information back to assist the three Andretti cars.

“That’s a really important thing for us to be able to do,” Shank said. “It’s a great point that we are now contributing to them and we can help the whole group. That’s what we always wanted. I think we’re becoming more valuable.”

Rosenqvist beats Power to pole at Long Beach

Felix Rosenqvist put Meyer Shank Racing’s No. 60 Honda on pole for the 49th running of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, beating Will Power by 0.0039s. It is the sixth pole of his IndyCar career, but MSR’s first. Team Penske’s Power and Marcus …

Felix Rosenqvist put Meyer Shank Racing’s No. 60 Honda on pole for the 49th running of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, beating Will Power by 0.0039s. It is the sixth pole of his IndyCar career, but MSR’s first.

Team Penske’s Power and Marcus Ericsson of Andretti Global elected to start the Firestone Fast Six on alternate tires, and the Penske driver produced a 1m06.3993s before pitting for a second set of alternates while Ericsson’s first effort was just 0.0046s adrift.

Penske’s Josef Newgarden then grabbed P1 with 1m06.1059, but Rosenqvist jumped to the top with a 1m06.0172s on his fourth lap, despite a huge slide out of Turn 5. Power’s final effort fell less than four thousandths short but was content to end up on the front row, the Australian admitting he couldn’t think of anywhere on the track where he could have done better and shaded Rosenqvist.

Newgarden made it two Penskes in the top three, ahead of Colton Herta and teammate Ericsson — who adopted his teammate’s setup. The only Chip Ganassi Racing entry to make it to Q3, Alex Palou, will start sixth, but set the fastest time of the session in Q2, a 1m05.9103s, which equates to 107mph around the 1.968-mile circuit.

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Christian Lundgaard of Rahal Letterman Lanigan was just two-hundredths short of making it into Q3, but shaded Ganassi’s Scott Dixon, whose teammate Marcus Armstrong — who topped Q1 Group 1 — will roll off ninth.

Defending Long Beach pole winner and race winner Kyle Kirkwood was surprised to get eliminated in Q2 after having been quickest this morning, but dirty air from the car ahead spoiled the final part of his fastest lap, leaving him 10th. Another rapid entry to not make the Firestone Fast Six was the third Penske of Scott McLaughlin, who finished qualifying in 11th, just ahead of Graham Rahal (RLL).

Surprising exclusions in Q1 were Pato O’Ward and Alexander Rossi of Arrow McLaren, who finished seventh in Group 2 and Group 1 respectively. O’Ward sounded puzzled, saying he wasn’t unhappy with the car, it was just slow. Their IndyCar debutant teammate, F2 champion Theo Pourchaire, will start 20th after producing a brave lap that left him only 0.52s off O’Ward.

Neither Rinus VeeKay nor Christian Rasmussen got through to Q2, a disappointing result given the pace the Ed Carpenter Racing cars showed in practice.

Agustin Canapino caused a yellow with a spin in Q1 and lost his best lap, while his Juncos Hollinger Racing teammate Romain Grosjean was only hundredths faster but will start from the eighth row.

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