ESPN3 To Broadcast ALMS Race In 2011 Long Beach Grand Prix

As part of an ABC/ESPN partnership with the American Le Mans Series, ESPN3.com will feature live practice, qualifying and race coverage with a delayed two-hour program covering the race on ESPN2. Previously, the ALMS race was only broadcast on the SPEED Channel after a one-day delay.

Either ABC or an ESPN station will broadcast every ALMS race in the 2011 season live, a huge step forward for a popular but below-the-radar racing series. The ALMS is a production-based racing league that features battles between marquee names like Corvette, Porsche, Ferrari, BMW and Panoz. It is the second most high profile race of the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach race weekend each April.

In last year's race, an Acura ARX-01c made a thrilling last-lap pass over the leading Aston Martin-Lola to win the prototype class and the overall victory. In the production GT class, a Porsche GT3-RSR held off pressing Corvette C6.Rs and BMW M3-GTRs to take the class win.

ALMS President/CEO Scott Atherton called the agreement "a here-and-now benchmark example of how fans will be able to access their favorite sports programming whenever and however they wish. It combines a core conventional television component, a live digital Web delivery component, an on-demand option and potential other methods of viewing that are being embraced by our ever-growing 18-34 demographic."

The TGLB main event, the open-wheeled IndyCar Series race, is broadcast live on ABC each year. Defending champion Ryan Hunter-Reay will defend hungry challengers like Dario Franchitti, Helio Castroneves and Danica Patrick in the oldest street race in North America.