The circuit was conceived by promoter Chris Pook, a former travel agent from England who was inspired by the Monaco Grand Prix. Pook believed a similar event could succeed in Southern California, selecting a waterfront site near the Port of Long Beach. The inaugural race was held in September 1975 as part of the Formula 5000 series and drew 30,000 fans despite the surrounding area being largely an industrial port district at the time.
From 1976, the event ran as a Formula One race under the name United States Grand Prix West, providing two grand prix races annually in the United States alongside the United States Grand Prix East at Watkins Glen. The Long Beach circuit gained a reputation for being demanding and rough on equipment, but its pleasant weather and proximity to Hollywood allowed it to establish prominence. When Watkins Glen was dropped from the Formula One calendar after 1980, Long Beach assumed an even more prominent status.
Despite strong attendance, the event was not financially successful as a Formula One race. The promoter faced a meager $100,000 profit against a $6–7 million budget. Fearing a single poor running could bankrupt the event, Pook convinced city leaders to switch to CART from 1984.
From 1984, the circuit hosted Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) Indy car events. The race served as the CART season opener in 1984, 1985, and 1987, and as the final race before the Indianapolis 500 in seven separate seasons. The event grew to prominence on the Indy car circuit and is credited with triggering a renaissance in Long Beach, with dilapidated and condemned buildings replaced by hotels and tourist attractions.
The 2008 race was held under unique circumstances: following the unification of Champ Car World Series and Indy Racing League, an irreconcilable scheduling conflict arose between Long Beach and the Indy Japan 300 at Twin Ring Motegi. A compromise allowed former Champ Car teams to race at Long Beach using Panoz DP01 cars, while established IndyCar teams raced in Japan. Both races paid equal points toward the 2008 IndyCar Series championship. The 2008 Long Beach Grand Prix was billed as the final Champ Car race.
Since 2009 the race has been part of the unified IndyCar Series. In 2016, the Long Beach City Council issued a request for proposals considering a return to Formula One as early as 2019, but after a study was completed, the council voted unanimously in August 2017 to continue as an IndyCar event.
The 2020 race was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, the race was moved from its traditional April slot to September 26 as a season finale. From 2022, the event returned to its traditional April date. The race distance was extended from 85 to 90 laps for the 2025 edition.
A modified 2.1 km (1.3 mi) version of the circuit featuring seven turns was used for the Formula E Long Beach ePrix in 2015 and 2016; the ePrix was not renewed for the 2017 season. The circuit's hairpin at the end of the backstretch has frequently been a decisive overtaking point.
Support series over the years have included Indy Lights, IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, the Atlantic Championship, Stadium Super Trucks, the Trans-Am Series, and the Toyota Pro/Celebrity Race. Since 2006, Formula D has held the first round of its pro drifting series on Turns 9–11 the weekend prior to the Grand Prix. The Motegi Super Drift Challenge, added in 2013, runs at night under floodlights on the same section. In 1997, the circuit hosted the opening round of the North American Touring Car Championship, won by Neil Crompton in a Honda Accord.
Al Unser Jr. holds the record for most victories at Long Beach with six wins (1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1994, 1995). His four consecutive wins from 1988 to 1991 set an event record and tied a CART series record. Mario Andretti won the circuit four times overall, with his 1987 victory marking the first-ever Indy car win for the Ilmor-Chevy Indy V-8 engine.
Several drivers recorded their first career Indy car victories at Long Beach: Michael Andretti (1986), Paul Tracy (1993), Juan Pablo Montoya (1999), Mike Conway (2011), Takuma Sato (2013), and Kyle Kirkwood (2023). Michael Andretti's first and 42nd (final) career Indy car wins both came at Long Beach, in 1986 and 2002. James Hinchcliffe won his first career Indy Lights race at Long Beach in 2010, then won the IndyCar race there in 2017. In 2005, Katherine Legge won the Atlantic Championship support race at Long Beach in her first start in the series, becoming the first female driver to win a developmental open-wheel race in North America.
Sébastien Bourdais won three consecutive Long Beach Champ Car races from 2005 to 2007. The closest finish in Long Beach history was Simon Pagenaud's 2016 victory over Scott Dixon by 0.3032 seconds.
Toyota has been associated with the event since its beginning and was title sponsor from 1980 to 2018, a partnership believed to be the longest continuously running sports sponsorship in the United States. In March 2024, it was announced that former Champ Car owner Gerald Forsythe would acquire full ownership of the race organizer, Grand Prix Association of Long Beach. Later in 2024, Penske Entertainment acquired the race from Forsythe.
The Long Beach Grand Prix is the single largest event in the city of Long Beach, with weekend attendance regularly reaching or exceeding 200,000 people. In 2006, the Long Beach Motorsports Walk of Fame was created to honor past winners and key contributors to the sport of auto racing.
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