Beyond the Racing at the Long Beach Grand Prix

The only time the entire weekend there was a pause was when they asked, “What’s your favorite part?” Long pause. Pensive expression. Furrowed brow.  Then the reply: “Yes.”

All of it?  Yes, all of Long Beach Grand Prix weekend. Ok, maybe the $18 curly fries were a bit on the high side, but everything else about it? I’m already excited to run it back in 2027.

The WRT Racing BMW GTP M Hybrid cars wait patiently for their turn during a busy weekend.

If you’re hearing, “Grand Prix” and thinking this Long Beach Grand Prix is just “a race,” that’s all the more reason to check it out.  At many “races,” you spectate. At the Long Beach Grand Prix, you experience. The actual “Grand Prix” is the IndyCar race. If you’re here as a BMW fan, you might take it or leave it, especially after the first two days of the weekend. But that’s a live-televised Fox Sports IndyCar race right there with some of the best national and global racecar drivers on the planet. And chances are they might walk right by you and nod hello.

BMW and IMSA fans sometimes forget Sunday’s Indy race is the feature race.

You might not be able to recite all the other races, but BMW fans got their fill with the IMSA races and even Super Drift by Formula D.  The actual 100 minute IMSA race (with the GTP and GTD classes represented) was for most, the main event Saturday afternoon. Friday included two IMSA practice sessions and a late afternoon qualifying session.  That’s four “races” for fans to watch the WRT team’s two BMW M-hybrid LMDh GTP cars and the Turner Motorsport M4 GT3 Evo car in the GTD class.

Tom Sargent with GMG Racing won the Pro Class of both Race 1 and 2 of the Porsche Carrera Cup North America, leading from pole to finish.

Last year, SRO joined in the fun and brought with it a number of other BMW M4 GT4s. This year, IMSA-sanctioned Porsche Carrera Cup North America caught plenty of attention with the brand new 911 Cup cars. But for your BMW appetite, Formula Drift Super Drift Challenge wrapped up the racing Friday and Saturday nights, running from just before turn nine through the hairpin at 11 and into pit lane.  Of the eight cars participating, five were BMWs.  It was a brilliant move to schedule this right after IMSA qualifying. Many IMSA fans stayed for Super Drift and were exclaiming the entire evening and weekend how much they liked it.

They said that was different, but so are the Stadium Super Truck Speed Energy races. Three times throughout the extended weekend, the race course is disrupted by large ramps being dragged out onto the streets of Long Beach. Moments later, you hear the roar of these purpose-built trucks and then see them launch off the ramps, landing perhaps 40 yards down the track and continuing on through the race. Robby Gordon’s race series continues to thrill fans every year.

Stadium Super Trucks were a fan favorite, even when they weren’t launching off ramps on the course.

Another race series at the Grand Prix weekend without many (any!) BMWs is the Historic Sports Car Challenge. This series starts with practices on Friday and the two 20 minute races over the weekend. Sports car icons from the 1970s through 1991 hit the track evoking memories of these classic American muscle cars. It’s good stuff even if you just wanted to be reminded what a Pontiac, Oldsmobile, or AMC looked like.

With GTD and GTP cars running practices and the main race together, BMW fans sometimes caught a lot of kidney grilles running together…briefly.

The eight BMWs spending time on the track represented something for new and old BMW fans (yes, their ages, but we’re talking about the models).  The GTP cars—the prototype cars—are by definition some of the most modern cars anywhere, let alone racing. And while the GT3 M4 Evo has taken some evolutionary liberties from the stock M4, you know exactly what that is blitzing down the track.

You also might know exactly what they are because of the amazing access this race—and the race teams—provide. It is truly fantastic that these mostly million-dollar machines are just sitting among hundreds of fans. Not only fans that got “that special ticket,” but fans milling around in the paddock, often being shooed out of the way as a race car rolls past them.

The BMW CCA Meet and Greets get members extremely close to the action and info. The San Diego chapter always makes the approximate two hour drive with great representation.

Turner Motorsport and now WRT Racing often host Meet and Greet sessions for the BMW CCA chapters. Team principals and drivers take the time sometimes minutes before a heat to engage with the fans, show off the cars, and even talk strategy.  A little strategy.

When you hear, “watch your feet!” you know that you’re up close!

In addition to the BMW CCA engagement, there was a special group tour, demonstrating that motorsport passion is alive and well in younger fans, too.  Through Samantha Tan’s IMSA scholarship and BMW M Motorsport support, the nearby UC Irvine student group, Rev @ UCI, received 20 passes to come to the race, meet race teams, see the cars, hot laps in the BMW Performance Center M3, and get a tour by BMW M Motorsport Head, Adam McGregor.

The command center, so to speak, for the race teams is not just for cheering on their cars. Not everyone gets to see behind the scenes like the Rev @ UCI group enjoyed.

“This was so interesting for us to meet these drivers and team owners!” Rev @ UCI co-president Daphne Leung says. “I don’t come from a huge racing background, so it was a really great way for me to see first hand and learn things. For the Rev members who like racing, you could see they really enjoyed everything about it.  My favorite part was when we got to go into Adam’s office and see the screens and watch as it’s happening right then. But the hot laps were so much fun, too!  I knew they could drive fast, but I had no idea how hard they would brake! But for the whole event, I didn’t expect there would be so many things going on at once! Super Drift was really cool. It felt like the car scene of modding cars. It was really great to see that other side of it.  They are so much louder than you think!”

Robby Foley and Patrick Gallagher may or may not have said here before the race, “See you on the podium!”

It wasn’t just fans that had that perspective.  “This is one of my favorites in the race calendar,” Turner Motorsport and BMW Factory driver Robby Foley confirms. “There are so many fans, you can’t help but feel their passion about racing. It has to be one of the most packed events we see. It really seems unique to Long Beach. The fans really enjoy the access—I think was I stopped for 200 photos and autographs just on my walk back from the podium to the truck.”

Fans from all over enjoy meeting the teams and drivers. Here participants in women’s motorsport program get a fun photo with Robby Foley after the race.

That’s correct, Turner Motorsport finished P2 after qualifying P6 (and starting P5). Foley and fellow driver Patrick Gallagher are always fan-favorites, but coming in second and walking through the paddock with a mini-Stanley Cup definitely gets people’s attention.

Good energy before the race led to good energy after the race, especially moving from P5 to P2! Patrick Gallagher focused ahead of the fun.

Gallagher experienced the same energy on the walk back from the podium. “The fans that are there in Long Beach are really great,” he says. “I can’t even count the number of hats and stuff I signed on the way back. It was great to see lots of young fans, too, and fans in general. I saw the IMSA President, John Doonan, and we agreed it was hard to get around, but we weren’t complaining –it’s a great thing when it’s packed with fans like this. It’s great for the sport, too!”

The Turner team appreciates how sponsors have their back.

Among the different types of fans are the sponsors and at Long Beach, many of them come out to support. “It was great to have LIQUI MOLY, Bell Haven, Go Rentals, and BMW CCA there for the event,” Gallagher continues. “It’s always great with their support, but it’s nice to sort of pay it back and get on that podium for them while they’re here watching.”

The eponymous head of the Turner team with the most BMW races has likely also signed the most hats.

You can tell the partnership with the Turner sponsors is just that—a partnership.  Will Turner echoed that, too. “The LIQUI MOLY partnership came about maybe 10 or 11 years ago while we were already using their products.” Turner states. “We couldn’t be happier. They’re big supporters of us of course, but also BMW CCA and passionate about racing.  They always support these races with team members from the local offices or dealer network. Big thumbs up for them!”

Maria Lopez and David Gomez with LIQUI MOLY help Robby Foley and Patrick Gallagher celebrate their podium finish.

He wasn’t kidding about the passion from LIQUI MOLY. “It’s crazy to think that I’ve been coming to the long Beach Grand Prix since I was a kid and now I get to come here to work and be a part of it,” says David Gomez, Regional Manager with LIQUI MOLY.  “Being there with Turner Motorsport and the LIQUI MOLY car is truly a dream come true.It’s really a great experience to work alongside the team and we certainly appreciate the mutual support. Every race weekend is a great one but being here at the race to see the team perform at such a high level and get to the podium is special.”

The Long Beach Grand Prix remains one of the more fan-focused events in the sport. There is something for everyone and for many, by the time the patriarchal actual Indy race arrives on Sunday, they’ve had their fill. With eight BMWs to watch the previous days, that could be true for BMW fans!