The IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship paddock has been boiling over with intrigue since the start of the year, and in recent weeks, a number of fascinating developments have emerged that nobody wants to touch, much less acknowledge or put their name on.
The Long Beach Grand Prix holds a special place on the calendar for IndyCar and IMSA as the Southern Californian street race brings the biggest crowds for both series outside of their crown jewels at Indianapolis and Sebring.
It was a clean sweep of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach for Chip Ganassi Racing. Saturday’s 100-minute IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship race offered the factory Cadillac Racing hybrid GTP team run by Ganassi a chance to redeem itself after a rough debut in 2023, when Sebastien Bourdai.
Vasser Sullivan Racing locked out the front row of the GTDs with its two Lexus RC F GT3s and, perhaps obviously, polesitter Parker Thompson, sharing the No. 89 with Ben Barnicoat, thinks that's a good thing. “It's probably a big advantage,” he said.
It didn't take long for Sebastien Bourdais to get comfortable on the streets of Long Beach, putting the No. 01 Cadillac Racing V-Series.R at the top of the time charts after only nine laps in the first practice for the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach, where for much of the session he was the only dri.