Drivers gear up for 50th Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach

LONG BEACH, Calif. (KABC) -- The roar of powerful engines filled the streets of Long Beach as race car drivers gear up for the 50th Acura Grand Prix next weekend.

"What we're doing is we're putting out on track a lot of the vehicles that will be performing here on race weekend," said Jim Michaelian, President and CEO of the Grand Prix Association of Long Beach.

Organizers are anticipating 200,000 spectators to attend this year's event. Fans can look forward to a weekend filled with speed, excitement and entertainment.

"Long Beach is always a very race-intensive weekend. We got Indy Cars, we got MC sports cars, we got Robby Gordon trucks flying through the air, drifting on Friday and Saturday night," Michaelian said. "And this year we put together a special exhibition race and it will feature the cars that have raced here over the three eras."

For race car drivers, this is a challenging course filled with sharp turns and walls with no margin for error.

"Being a street course with all the walls, I mean that makes it challenging and fun for us as drivers," said IMSA Weathertech SportsCar driver Colin Braun. "It kind of raises the intensity a bit. We're tracking out right next to the wall, apexing on a wall."

"There are a lot of tracks that have a lot of character, but I think this thing has two or three points that are very important. I think the back straight is pretty awesome, going under the tunnel and then having that fountain corner," said NTT INDYCAR SERIES driver Colton Herta.

Race weekend kicks off next week on April 11. For more information, go to gplb.com.