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Day 2 of the Grand Prix of Long Beach underway, with IMSA race Saturday’s highlight

April 18, 2026

The second day of the Grand Prix of Long Beach, which will be highlighted by the IMSA SportsCar Grand Prix and the Saturday night concert, is underway.

And the thousands of fans who are expected to fill the concourse on Saturday, April 18, are in for a busy day.

Friday — which typically has smaller crowds than Saturday and Sunday — was easygoing, as usual, with only one real competition but a bunch of practice and qualifying. But the fun ramps up on day two, which will boast the first Historic Sports Car Challenge and Stadium SUPER Trucks Race, and two drifting challenges. The marquee race on Saturday, however, is the MSA SportsCar Grand Prix, which will begin at 1 p.m.

Then, at 3:30 p.m., qualifying will take place for Sunday’s titular Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.

Southern California’s 200-mph beach party is a popular, weekend-long motorsports spectacle featuring everything from historic muscle cars to IndyCar racing.

The city’s biggest annual event is expected to draw close to 200,000 people during its three-day run. Last year’s Grand Prix, the event’s 50th anniversary, broke attendance records for the third year running, with around 197,000 flocking to Long Beach from all over the region to enjoy the golden anniversary.

On Friday, early bird attendees were met with a classic overcast morning sky by the sea. But the marine layer burned off by early afternoon, giving way to a clear and sunny sky. And soon, the Grand Prix’s typically slow start sped up — with thousands of fans pouring into the concourse by mid-afternoon.

While some attendees stuck to the usual viewing spots, like the grandstands, others flocked to less-obvious locations, like the middle levels of the parking garage near the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center that directly abuts the Seaside Way portion of the street circuit — offering onlookers a perfect (and less crowded) location to watch the various vehicles as they speed toward Turn 9.

Others traipsed to all corners of the Grand Prix’s massive concourse, making their way over to the Shoreline Drive portion of the track near Pit Lane, or crossing over a pedestrian bridge or two to enjoy the Food Truck Experience, or simply stopping at Rainbow Lagoon Park to take a break from the sun in a shaded area by the water.

Saturday will be much the same, except the crowds will likely be larger — and with more action on the track.

Counting IndyCar Series qualifying and Firestone Fast 6, there will be six total competitions on Saturday, beginning with the Historic Sports Car Challenge No. 1 at 8:30 a.m., followed quickly by Porsche Carrera Cup Race No. 1, and ending with Super Drift Challenge No. 2 at 6:30 p.m.

And the evening will close with rock: The Kings of Chaos will perform at the Saturday night concert at the Terrace Theater. The show, which will begin at 6:30 p.m., will also feature LIVE’s Ed Kowalczyk, 311’s Nick Hexum and Aloe Blacc.

Once that show is over, all the focus will shift to Sunday — and the IndyCar Series’ Grand Prix of Long Beach.

Orange County Register

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Day 2 of the Grand Prix of Long Beach underway, with IMSA race Saturday’s highlight

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