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In December 2024, IndyCar legends Al Unser Jr. and Mario Andretti were named co-grand marshals for the 50th edition of the Long Beach Grand Prix, this weekend from April 11 to 13. With race week upon us, Unser Jr. revealed how his mother had taken the big news over a phone call.
Unser Jr. is known as The King of the Beach because of his record-breaking campaigns around the streets of Long Beach with six wins. Andretti trails him on the list with four wins.
In a recent interview with Press-Telegram, Al Unser Jr. spoke about earning the honor of being co-grand marshal for the iconic street race's 50th running, and how his mother, Wanda Jesperson, reacted to it. The two-time Indy 500 winner said:
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"Getting this grand marshal award, it’s awesome. It’s going to be awesome to have my mom there. As soon as I told her, she told me it just totally made her day."
Unser Jr. finished runner-up to Michael Andretti at the 1986 Long Beach GP and nursed the same fate in 1987, but it was Michael's dad, Mario, who won his fourth and final race at the iconic street circuit.
From 1988 to 1991, Unser Jr. won at Long Beach four consecutive times with Galles-Kraco Racing. He added two more wins to that list in 1994 and 1995 with Team Penske. In 2009, the two-time Champ Car winner was inducted into the Long Beach Motorsports Walk of Fame and Motorsports Hall of Fame of America.
Al Unser Jr. shares his love for the Long Beach GP after IndyCar's co-grand marshal announcement
Al Unser Jr. was overjoyed after receiving the honor of being the co-grand marshal for the 2025 Long Beach GP. The grand marshal is allowed to give the "start your engines" command to the drivers before the race.
Unser Jr. expressed his gratitude to get this honor alongside Mario Andretti, saying (via IndyCar):
"I’m extremely honored to be co-grand marshal at Long Beach with Mario Andretti. It’s always been one of my most favorite races, and certainly it’s the most popular race on the circuit next to the Indianapolis 500. I always tried hard to do well at Long Beach, and while we were often very fast there, it was also a lucky track for me – the ball ‘bounced my way’ a lot over the years. We were always so excited to win in Long Beach."
The most recent winner of the race is six-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon, who took his second victory at the circuit in 2024. As things stand in 2025, his Chip Ganassi Racing teammate Alex Palou, the defending champion, looks set to take his third consecutive victory of the year at the landmark event.
