LEGENDARY DRIVERS

MARIO ANDRETTI HALL OF FAME DRIVER

Mario Andretti was the inaugural winner of the Long Beach Grand Prix when it switched from Formula 1 to IndyCar in

1984. He would go on to win two more races in Indy cars in 1985 and 1987. But his winning reputation in the Long Beach Grand Prix had already preceded him. He won the event's second Formula One race in 1977. It was the first victory by an American on U.S. soil. Andretti, who already had an Indianapolis 500 victory under his belt, won his lone Formula One title in 1978.

AL UNSER JR. HALL OF FAME DRIVER

Al Unser Jr. has conquered the streets of Long Beach six times, including four victories in a row from 1988-91. In his 1994 debut season with Team Penske, Al Jr. had 8 victories out of 16 races including the Indianapolis 500, cornering the 1994 PPG national IndyCar champion title and ABC Wide World of Sports

Athlete of the Year honor. In 1995, Al earned four victories out of 17 races (seven podium finishes overall), coming in second in the overall national points standing.

JOHNNY RUTHERFORD HALL OF FAME DRIVER

Johnny Rutherford: During his career, Rutherford won the National Sprint Car Champion in 1965, and the first of his Indy 500 wins in 1974. He followed that win with two more victories at Indy in 1976 and 1980. In 1980, he also won the US Auto Club Championship and was CART champion. He started in 315 Indy car races, taking pole position in 23 and winning 27. He is one of three drivers to have started in more than 300 IndyCar events.