EVENT // TOYOTA GRAND PRIX OF LONG BEACH

A full grid of cars took to the streets of Long Beach this weekend for the 36th running of the Long Beach Grand Prix. As usual, the weather was beautiful for the marquee race, with cloudless blue skies and a cool ocean breeze making its way over the 2 mile, 11-turn street course.

Qualifying saw Will Power once again claim the Pole Position, his 3rd of the season, ahead of Dana Point resident (and local hero) Ryan Hunter-Raey, and 3rd place qualifier Justin Wilson. Helio Castroneves, Ryan Briscoe and Tony Kanaan – three names that need no introduction for fans of the Indy Racing League – finished out the Top 6 qualifying positions for the 85 lap race... [read more]



The 4th round of the 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series was largely free of incident, save for a brief full course caution three-quarters of the way into the race as a result of a Turn 1 collision between Mario Romancini and Graham Rahal. Will Power was dominating the race from the start, as has become common this season, until lap 18 when his car got stuck in first gear exiting the famous 30mph hairpin turn exiting onto the front straight. This hiccup allowed both Ryan Hunter-Raey and Justin Wilson to slip past the current season points leader. Despite displaying impressive speed, the Australian was unable to retake his position and ended up finishing the race in 3rd place, behind Justin Wilson.


The day belonged to Ryan Hunter-Raey. The Florida-born driver and local resident won the event after a dominant performance in which he led 64 of 85 laps. Amazingly, Ryan does not yet have a full ride for the season in place, though that is likely going to change soon! With two Top 5 finishes thus far this season and a growing reputation as the best American open wheel racer in the league (media darling Danica Patrick did herself no favors with her critics with her 16th place finish), it can probably be said with confidence that Ryan Hunter-Raey will be on the podium many more times before the season comes to a close in Homestead.



Taking place in the shadows of high rise condominium buildings and the Queen Mary ocean liner, the Long Beach Grand Prix is second only to the Indianapolis 500 on the IRL racing calendar, and for good reason. The racing atmosphere and enthusiasm of the crowds simply cannot be beat; the sounds of Honda V8 engines bouncing off of the city walls is intoxicating, and the sight of a Dallara chassis making its way down Shoreline Drive at close to 200mph must truly be seen to be believed! With the race now in the books, Ryan Hunter Raey can place his name among such legends as Mario Andretti, Gilles Villeneuve, Nelson Piquet, Niki Lauda, Al Unser, Jr., Alex Zanardi and Juan Pablo Montoya as the winner of the Long Beach Grand Prix!



Pos Driver Team Gap
1. Ryan Hunter-Reay Andretti 85 laps
2. Justin Wilson Dreyer & Reinbold + 5.6031s
3. Will Power Penske + 8.5864s
4. Scott Dixon Ganassi + 10.6287s
5. Tony Kanaan Andretti + 11.7732s
6. Mario Moraes KV + 16.5171s
7. Helio Castroneves Penske + 16.8928s
8. Ryan Briscoe Penske + 18.2214s
9. Dan Wheldon Panther + 19.4575s
10. Mike Conway Dreyer & Reinbold + 19.9307s
11. Vitor Meira Foyt + 27.4005s
12. Dario Franchitti Ganassi + 28.1352s
13. Hideki Mutoh Newman/Haas/Lanigan + 28.6037s
14. Marco Andretti Andretti + 30.0120s
15. EJ Viso KV + 31.6182s
16. Danica Patrick Andretti + 32.1804s
17. Simona de Silvestro HVM + 33.1652s
18. Takuma Sato KV + 1 lap
19. Alex Lloyd Dale Coyne + 1 lap
20. Raphael Matos Luczo Dragon/de Ferran + 1 lap

Retirements:

Alex Tagliani Fazzt 65 laps
Graham Rahal Sarah Fisher 58 laps
Mario Romancini Conquest 58 laps
Bertrand Baguette Conquest 45 laps
Milka Duno Dale Coyne 10 laps

For a look at more photos from the 2010 Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, click here

Photo/Editorial: Robert Carrier