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Qualification for the featured IndyCar race of the Acura Long Beach Grand Prix will take place on Saturday along with the conclusion of the drift competition.
On Friday, six-time IndyCar Series Champion Scott Dixon had the second-fastest practice time of 1:06.9649, just behind Pato O’Ward’s 1:06.6999.
The 20-year-old racer from New Zealand said he was looking forward to tomorrow’s race. “It’s a permanent fixture on the calendar, you know, and one that all drivers and especially the fans love,” said Dixon.
Dixon won the Indianapolis 500 in 2008 and Long Beach in 2015.
It was just announced Friday that Dixon would be inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America next March in Daytona Beach, Fla.
Dixon won his first series title in 2003 in his second season with Chip Ganassi Racing. He also won in 2008, 2013, 2015, 2018 and 2020.
On Saturday he talked about the overall preparation for race day. “There’s a lot of preparation going into these cars. They’re very technical, very detailed. This morning they’re going to go through a lot of set-up changes that we decided overnight on how the car felt yesterday,” said Dixon.
To prepare for all of those wins… Dixon says a lot of the training is now simulated and virtual. “When I first got into the sport 20 years ago we had almost 60 days of testing, now we’re limited to four or five due to budget issues. So you know a lot of that is being done in the simulator now,” said Dixon.
He said he keeps meals fairly simple right before the race and takes naps to stay calm.
The Historic F1 Challenge race, featuring Formula 1 cars from the 1970s and 1980s, including many that raced at Long Beach when it was part of the Formula 1 circuit from 1976 to 1983, is also part of Saturday’s race day .
A second Historic F1 Challenge race will take place on Sunday from 10:45 a.m. to 11:05 a.m.
The 100-minute Long Beach IMSA SportsCar Grand Prix will be held from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. featuring what has been billed as “the world’s most advanced, exotic sports cars”.
A Speed Energy Stadium Super Trucks race begins at 4:30 p.m. The 600-horsepower V-8 engine truck series was founded by former IndyCar and NASCAR driver Robby Gordon, who also drives in the series, and will start from pole.
Gordon’s 15-year-old son Max will start third in the field of 12 drivers. The younger Gordon has been racing since he was 8 years old. He was second in the Driver Series points standings in 2022, three places ahead of his father. A second truck race will take place on Sunday at 3:30 p.m.
From 5:15 p.m. to 5:55 p.m., a Porsche Deluxe Carrera Cup race will take place, with drivers driving identically prepared, street-based Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars. A second race of the Porsche Deluxe Carrera Cup takes place on Sunday from 4:20 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
The final round of the two-round Formula Drift Super Drift Challenge takes place from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m
The Kings of Chaos concert takes place in the plaza in front of the Long Beach Convention Center’s Terrace Theater at 6:30 p.m. and is free for Saturday race ticket holders. Space is limited and will be allocated on a first come, first serve basis.
The 48th edition of the Grand Prix ends on Sunday with the start of the IndyCar race over 85 laps at 12:45 p.m