(LONG BEACH, CA.) – Will Power opened the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach weekend with authority, clocking the fastest lap of 1:07.6053 seconds to lead the 1st practice session on the iconic 1.968‑mile street circuit. The Andretti Global veteran and two-time Long Beach winner in the No.26 TWG AI Honda of Andretti Global set the benchmark early and never relinquished it, kicking off Friday’s running with a blend of precision and aggression that has long defined his street‑course prowess.
“On the reds (Firestone alternate tires), the car was very good,” Power said. “We still have things to improve but looking good.”
“As you’ve seen over the years, the Andretti cars are really good here,” Power said. “I think the one lap in qualifying will be very interesting. Hard to say that would suit us or not.”
The 90‑minute session was repeatedly interrupted, beginning with a red flag at the halfway point when Mick Schumacher in the No.47 Liquid Death Honda came to a halt at the exit of the fountain section. The rookie, still acclimating to the tight Long Beach layout, was instructed by his team to stay put, costing him valuable track time while only completing 2 timed laps and ended the session 25th, which with a lack of running puts added pressure on the Rahal Letterman Lanigan rookie heading into Practice 2. A second red flag with just over three minutes remaining—this time for debris—ultimately ended the session prematurely.
PRACTICE 1 RESULTS
Power’s pace was closely shadowed by former team-mate Scott McLaughlin, who finished 2nd with a lap of 1:07.7914 seconds in the No. 3 AAA Travel Team Penske Chevrolet just 0.1861 seconds off the top spot. McLaughlin’s speed was encouraging after a turbulent Barber weekend, signaling that Team Penske has unloaded strong on the streets of Long Beach.
Another Andretti Global driver also flexed his street‑course strength, Kyle Kirkwood in the No. 27 JM Bullion/Gold.com Honda finished 3rd with a lap of 1:07.9861 seconds. Marcus Ericsson in the No. 28 Allegra Honda added further depth to Andretti’s competitive showing, by landing inside the top 11.
Four-time and reigning series champion Alex Palou slotted into 4th with a time 1:08.0030 seconds in the No. 10 OpenAI Chip Ganassi Racing Honda continuing his trademark consistency. Rounding out the top 5 was Marcus Armstrong in the No. 66 Remax Honda of Meyer Shank Racing w/ Curb Agajanian, who delivered a strong 5th place effort in the combined results.
Up Next: 2nd Practice, 1:30 PM/ET Saturday
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