Al Unser Jr draws intriguing parallel between F1's Monaco GP and IndyCar's Long Beach GP
Former IndyCar driver Al Unser Jr. is the most successful driver around the Long Beach circuit, winning a total of six races. The 63-year-old recently came out and drew a parallel between the iconic Monaco Grand Prix and the Grand Prix of Long Beach.
The Monaco Grand Prix is arguably the most iconic street race of all time and part of the triple crown. It's one of the few tracks that have been on the calendar since the commencement of the F1 championship in 1950.
The Long Beach Grand Prix, on the other hand, first came into use for the 1975 Formula 5000 race, followed by F1 racing at the street circuit. It soon became a staple of the North American leg in the calendar, but rising costs of hosting the F1 race pushed the owners and promoters to sign with IndyCar.
Al Unser Jr featured on the recent episode of the Pit Pass Indy podcast. The Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach celebrated its 50th Anniversary last weekend, and Unser Jr was questioned whether the race in California will become the biggest street race in the world if the Monaco GP is removed from the F1 calendar.
“Well, you know, I've always said that because of the Monaco Grand Prix is your first city street race and it was a stand alone. If that's the father of street racing, the Long Beach Grand Prix is the mother of street racing. And so I just hope these two, Monaco and Long Beach, keep going well into the future,” said Al Unser Jr. (6:49 onwards)
Rumors suggest that F1 is deciding on whether to keep Monaco on the calendar. As the F1 cars grew wider, the races around the streets of Monte Carlo became boring as there were hardly any overtakes. While the race holds a prestigious place, the racing isn't anywhere as good as it used to be with lighter, smaller cars.
Al Unser Jr and Mario Andretti Co-Grand Marshalled the 2025 Long Beach GP
IndyCar legends Al Unser Jr and Mario Andretti co-Grand Marshalled the 50th Anniversary Long Beach GP and gave the iconic “start your engines” command to the drivers. Arguably two of the greatest drivers of their era, Mario Andretti won four times around Long Beach, once in F1, and thrice in CART.
Al Unser Jr, on the other hand, is the most successful driver around the circuit. When the host of the Pit Pass Indy podcast asked Unser Jr about his secret to winning six races at Long Beach, he replied,
“We just enjoyed Long Beach. We love Long Beach.” (4:43 onwards)
“You know, there's those racetracks that a driver goes to, that everything just kind of goes his way. And for me, Long Beach was that race,” added Unser Jr.
Out of Al Unser Jr’s six wins at Long Beach, four came consecutively between 1988-1991. The other two were back-to-back wins in 1994 and 1995.