It’s a wrap on the 2023 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach — and it once again proved thrilling for racing fans and party-lovers alike.
The three-day party by the beach that took over the city’s downtown drew close to 200,000 spectators from around the globe over the weekend.
And the good-times crescendoed on Sunday, April 16. Visitors enjoyed the second Historic F1 Challenge Race of the weekend, an exotic car parade and — as had been the case the previous two days — plenty of diverse food options, an eclectic array of retailers at the Lifestyle Expo, adult beverages at a couple of party spots and, for those with kids, age-appropriate activities at the Family Fun Zone.
But all of the Grand Prix’s other offerings faded into the background as the clock neared 12:45 p.m. Sunday — the start time for the titular IndyCar Series race.
Thousands migrated from the Grand Prix’s central hub at the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center to the street circuit. Those with reserved seats flocked to the grandstands — while others ran to the general admission viewing areas along Pine Avenue, hoping to catch a glimpse of the racing machines flashing by at speeds of 180 mph and higher.
Rubber burned. Engines screeched. Onlookers whipped their heads side-to-side in a futile effort to keep their eyes on the leaders — with Kyle Kirkwood, a 24-year-old Floridian, taking the title — as the Southern California sun beat down, raising the track’s temperature on the asphalt to more than 110 degrees.
Some watched from big screens inside the Convention Center. Others took refuge from the heat, and scored a front row seat to the IndyCar Series race, on the lower levels of a parking lot facing Seaside Way. Others had a birds-eye view from the balconies of their apartments along Ocean Boulevard.
About two hours later and 85 laps later, the race — which had a turbulent start, with Hélio Castroneves crashing ont he first turn of the first lap, preceding several…
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