Next race: Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, April 19
Long Beach

By the Numbers: The Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach

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The Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach may not have been the most spectacular race, but it was a fast one—it was the second-fastest race ever in Long Beach! As the second consecutive race without any cautions, we’ve already seen 546 miles (878 kilometers) of green-flag racing this season. While Scott Dixon competed in his 300th race, many drivers achieved their best-ever finishes. What else stood out? We’ve summarized the race weekend in a series of numbers!

546 – Just like the race at The Thermal Club, the Grand Prix of Long Beach ran entirely without caution periods. Add to that the season opener in St. Petersburg, which was only neutralized after the opening lap, and we’ve now had over 546 miles (878 kilometers) of IndyCar racing without any cautions!

300Scott Dixon made his 300th IndyCar start on Sunday; he finished eighth.

194Andretti Global made a big move in the OpenWheelWorld.net team championship with Kyle Kirkwood’s win: the team overtook McLaren and Team Penske and now holds second place, behind Chip Ganassi Racing.

142Josef Newgarden put in a strong recovery drive from 15th on the grid to sixth by lap 59. But it was all for nothing: a loose seatbelt forced him to make two extra pit stops, costing him 142 seconds—over two minutes! He ultimately finished 27th and last.

100.3 mph – The average speed of race winner Kyle Kirkwood was 100.3 mph (161.5 km/h). That made this race just slightly slower than the fastest Long Beach race (2016), when Simon Pagenaud won with an average speed of 100.5 mph (161.8 km/h).

68.1355 – Surprisingly, the fastest lap of the race was set by Kyffin Simpson. The Ganassi Racing driver clocked a time of 1:08.1355 (68.1355 seconds) on lap 32.

34 – After two wins and a second-place finish, Alex Palou now leads the drivers' championship by 34 points! Kyle Kirkwood sits in second place.

18Robert Shwartzman finished 18th, earning the best IndyCar result to date for both himself and Prema Racing.

16Louis Foster was the highest-finishing rookie, coming home in 16th.

16 – Even though the race ran entirely under green, Santino Ferrucci gained an impressive 16 positions! The AJ Foyt Racing driver started 27th and finished 11th.

11 – The softer, alternate tire compound was clearly not favored for the race: the longest stint on this tire lasted just 11 laps. Both Christian Lundgaard and Sting Ray Robb ran 11 laps on the green-sidewall tires.

11 – Overtaking on the streets of Long Beach isn’t easy, but not impossible! Christian Lundgaard pulled off 11 successful overtakes during the race—the most of any driver.

10 – For the first time, Kyffin Simpson finished a race inside the IndyCar top ten, placing tenth.

9 – With a surprising ninth-place finish, Sting Ray Robb matched his best-ever IndyCar result. He also finished ninth at Gateway last year.

6 – While the front of the field didn’t see much action, a total of six different drivers led laps: Kyle Kirkwood (46 laps), Christian Lundgaard (26 laps), Sting Ray Robb (12 laps), Kyffin Simpson (3 laps), Scott Dixon (2 laps), and Marcus Armstrong (1 lap).

6 – You wouldn’t expect it from someone with his résumé, but Scott McLaughlin’s sixth place was his best-ever finish at Long Beach!

3 – Three drivers went the entire race without being overtaken: winner Kyle Kirkwood, Will Power, and Santino Ferrucci.

0 – Just like in St. Petersburg, the race officials had a quiet day: not a single penalty was handed out.

PhotographyPenske Entertainment
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