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The Long Beach Grand Prix circuit was the first street course ever to be raced on by the IndyCar Series.
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The original Long Beach Grand Prix course was originally 2.02 miles long, but was eventually shortened to its current 1.97 mile length in 1977.
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The Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach is the longest-running major street race in North America, having run every year since 1975.
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NASCAR has also raced on the Long Beach street circuit between 1984 and 1988.
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The circuit has undergone two major redesigns over the years, the first in 1977 and the second in 2001.
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The 2001 redesign is credited with helping to create the current “spectacular and exciting” Long Beach circuit, which was then further improved upon later with the addition of a dual-track configuration.
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Long Beach is the most expensive Grand Prix to run, with an annual budget of more than $15 million.
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There are twelve turns on the Long Beach circuit, including a chicane that was added in 1997 to slow Formula One cars down for safety reasons.
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The track is made up of a mixture of concrete, asphalt and rubberized concrete.
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The Long Beach race has become a popular venue for celebrity and star racing drivers, including Mario Andretti, who won the 1977 Long Beach Grand Prix.