IndyCar Series: Alexander Rossi is the new Prince of the Beach
Alexander Rossi (Andretti Autosport) has won again at the Grand Prix of Long Beach, repeating last year’s victory and putting his name on the list of just nine multiple winners of the American classic. The six-time winner Al Unser Jr. is the ‘King of the Beach’ so Alexander Rossi could be honored as the new ‘Prince of the Beach’.
The driver of the #27 Dallara-Honda dominated at the 1.968-mile street circuit, setting the best time in the qualifying and then leading all but five of 85 laps during the race, becoming the first back-to-back winner at Long Beach since Sebastien Bourdais won three in a row from 2005 to 2007. For Rossi, it’s his sixth IndyCar victory in a career.
Rossi and Newgarden on the podium
Rossi crossed the finish line with a massive advantage of 20.2359 seconds ahead of Team Penske’s Josef Newgarden, what’s the largest margin of victory at Long Beach since Unser Jr. won by more than 23 seconds in 1995.
Reigning champion Scott Dixon (Chip Ganassi Racing) finished third after a post-race penalty for Graham Rahal (RLL Racing) who initially ended the race in front of him. Rahal has been penalized for blocking Dixon on the final lap. Ryan Hunter-Reay completed the top 5. Six more drivers finished the race in the same lap as the winner: Simon Pagenaud, Will Power, Takuma Sato, James Hinchcliffe, Felix Rosenqvist and Sebastien Bourdais.
Alexander Rossi at the finish line
Alexander Rossi is the fourth different winner in four races of the 2019 IndyCar Series season. The victory at the beach moved Rossi to the second place in the championship standings after four races. Newgarden leads with 166 points, Rossi has 138, five more than third-placed Scott Dixon.
The focus of the IndyCar Series is moving now to Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The open test follows on April 24. Then, the IndyCar Grand Prix on the IMS road course is scheduled for May 10-11. The 103rd running of the Indianapolis 500 will take place on Sunday, May 26.
Long Beach podium
