Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach Track Construction Begins
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IndyCar News: Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach Track Construction Begins

Posted by AR1 staff

The roar of engines may still be weeks away, but the transformation of city streets into a world-class racing circuit is officially underway as track construction began Thursday for the April 17-19 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.

Over the next 50 days, more than 2,400 concrete blocks that anchor the safety system around the 1.97-mile, 11-turn racing circuit will be placed along with 14 large grandstands that line the racecourse. More than 200,000 fans attended the 50th anniversary race last year, the event’s best attendance since the 2008 Indy car “reunification.”

Today, Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson, Assistant Manager of Acura Regional Marketing Todd Knepp, LiUNA Local 1309 President Nick Santos and Treasurer Steven Mendoza joined Grand Prix Association of Long Beach President and CEO Jim Michaelian and General Manager Jim Liaw to drop a ceremonial concrete block commemorating the start of track construction in what will become Turn 10 of the racecourse.

Helping to kick off the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach track construction were, left to right: Jim Liaw, Acura Grand Prix General Manager; Eddie Rivera, Nick Santos, Steve Mendoza and Henry Thomas from LiUNA Local 1309; Jim Michaelian, Acura Grand Prix President & CEO; Todd Knepp, Acura Manager of Acura Regional Marketing, and Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson. Credit: Liezl Estipona/City of Long Beach.
Helping to kick off the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach track construction were, left to right: Jim Liaw, Acura Grand Prix General Manager; Eddie Rivera, Nick Santos, Steve Mendoza and Henry Thomas from LiUNA Local 1309; Jim Michaelian, Acura Grand Prix President & CEO; Todd Knepp, Acura Manager of Acura Regional Marketing, and Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson. Credit: Liezl Estipona/City of Long Beach.

They were joined by three Acura vehicles celebrating the company’s 40th anniversary: a 2001 Acura Integra Type R, an official Integra pace car, and an IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GT Prototype.

“The Acura Grand Prix is one of the largest economic drivers to our city,” said Richardson. “Last year, we generated about $60 million in economic impact and we welcomed 200,000 people to our coastline. And what’s unique about the event is that it allows us to showcase the city and for folks to experience the Long Beach vibe, our culture. Great people, great food, great diversity—and in two years, we welcome the world for the Olympic and Paralympic games. Right here where we are standing will be a venue for the Olympic games.”

“We’re coming off a very successful 50th anniversary celebration last year and we are planning to build on that success,” said Michaelian. “This is always a great day because the moment we begin building the racetrack is when it all truly comes to life. You can feel the energy start to build across the city as our team transforms the streets of Long Beach into a world-class racing venue. It’s a powerful reminder that we’re not just preparing for a race – we’re setting the stage for a memorable weekend in our beautiful community.”

In total, Grand Prix Director of Operations Dwight Tanaka, LIUNA Local 1309 and Grand Prix Operations staff will put in more than 33,000 working hours installing the safety system – more than 24 million pounds of concrete blocks, four miles of fencing and 17,000 bolted-together tires – along with 14 grandstands, seven pedestrian bridges and nine giant vision boards for full-circuit TV coverage.

Tanaka’s staff will also install 60 high-end hospitality suites, three hospitality clubs, tents, electrical lines and equipment, phones, porta-johns, trash containers, and a myriad of other items around the track.

The eastern portion of the racetrack (Turns 9, 10 and 11) will also be used for Round One of the eight-event 2026 Formula Drift season April 10-11, and part of the circuit will be used as a running course for the Grand Prix Foundation of Long Beach’s 8th Annual Grand Prix 5K Run on Sunday morning, April 12.

All businesses along the race circuit which includes Shoreline Drive, Aquarium Way and Pine Ave., will remain open during construction of the racetrack.

The 2026 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach will be headlined by the NTT INDYCAR SERIES and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. In addition, the weekend will include the Super Drift Challenge under the lights on Friday and Saturday nights, plus doubleheader action from Robby Gordon’s SPEED Energy Stadium Super Trucks, Porsche Carrera Cup North America and the Historic Sports Car Challenge, featuring muscle cars that competed on road and street courses from the 1970s through 1991.

Ticket prices range from $56 for a Friday General Admission ticket to $221 for a three- day ticket that includes Sat./Sun. reserved seating in grandstand upper levels. Pre-paid parking packages are also available, along with handicapped seating, NTT INDYCAR SERIES Paddock passes, Super Photo tickets and a wide variety of hospitality packages. As always. children 12 years and under will be admitted free with a ticketed adult, although they will need a Junior ticket to sit in the grandstands.

Fans can select and pay for their 2026 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach seats, parking and paddock passes online at gplb.com. Ticket orders can also be placed by calling the toll-free ticket hotline, (888) 827-7333.

The 2026 Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach can be followed on Facebook (GrandPrixLB), X (@GPLongBeach #AGPLB), Instagram (@GPLongBeach) and TikTok (GPLongBeach).