With more advance than expected, IndyCar Series has received the green light to extend its contract with the Long Beach Grand Prix, his most iconic race except for the Indianapolis 500. Founded in 1975, the test became part of the calendar in 1984 after eight years in Formula 1. The new contract comes with the return of the test to its traditional date of April, after the COVID-19 pandemic forced to cancel the event in 2020 and postpone it in 2021 to a final appointment in September, thus being the scene of the coronation of Álex Palou.
Unlike the last two renovations, IndyCar did not have the formal competition of a promoter group looking to attract Formula 1, and Roger Penske’s role as owner has further streamlined the process. With a current contract whose completion was located in 2023, the Long Beach Citizen Council has given its approval to the agreement reached with the Grand Prix Association of Long Beach (GPALB), the promoters of the event, to extend the agreement for five more seasons. With it, Long Beach is guaranteed to be on the calendar until 2028, with IMSA and the Stadium Super Trucks as complementary events.
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In this new agreement, the city has committed to make improvements to the asphalt of the 3,167-meter circuit for the next two years, since GPALB may defer the payment of a permit fee of almost $ 100,000 corresponding to the canceled 2020 event. In turn, GPALB will become an interested party in potential urban modifications that interfere with the current layout, something that has not happened in the last two decades. Local rectors must notify them of any agreement reached, and real estate developers may have to agree on the adequacy of their project with GPALB regarding the impact it would have on the circuit.
The new terms of the contract also include a four-day reduction in the assembly and disassembly period of the circuit as of 2023, the limitation of the work on the track to the standard work day (from 09:00 to 18:00), an annual payment of $ 30,000 by GPALB to repair the damages in the streets, Y a “prioritization” of the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, which may require certain locations in the area for logistical reasons. Among them, the ‘elephant parking’ that houses a good part of the final section of the route, and which in 2018 had already been indicated as a candidate to host new constructions.
«This extension is the result of long conversations, and we believe that it benefits all parties involved. The Grand Prix has always been a very strong community event, and this agreement amplifies that special relationship with the city of Long Beach ”, says the president of GPALB, Jim michaelian, who was also satisfied with the urban aspect of the agreement. “Without this requirement, any promoter could have executed a plan that did not allow us to discuss or contribute anything.”
Long Beach’s last renovations had taken place in April 2014 and August 2017, both of which were much more complex due to a rival proposal that planned to return Formula 1 to the street circuit. Behind her was the founder of the Grand Prix, Chris Pook, who alleged a great deterioration of the event at an economic and hospitality level that the World Cup could have solved. But nevertheless, a feasibility study advised against this idea Based on the proven experience of the current promoters, as well as the great economic cost that would have involved adapting the track to FIA Grade 1 (including a two-year break until the track was ready in … 2020), the limitation of the real estate development in the area and the payment of high annual fees.
All contract extensions with Long Beach have been done for five years, except for 2014 in which it was only extended for three years to give room to Pook’s proposal. The 2008 renewal came in March, a month after the reunification with Champ Car (the final race of this category would be held in April on this same track), and three years after the cumbersome 2005 renovation which closed in June three weeks after the expiration of CART / Champ Car’s 1999 contract. Along the way, a rival IndyCar proposal fell through, and GPALB acquired the circuit’s assets from Dover Motorsports for $ 15 million.83 less than they paid to Pook in 1998. The executor of that purchase was Kevin Kalkhoven, co-owner of Champ Car at the time, and who remained in the promoter group until his death a few days ago.