By Yash Thadani and Krish Narsinghani
It was a fast and epic weekend for race fans as the NTT IndyCar Series returns. This prestigious race took place in the streets of Long Beach, specifically held at the Long Beach Convention Center.
Regardless if you’re a racing fanatic, this event was one to remember. Entering the convention center guests were directed towards a large room filled with concept cars that anyone would dream of driving. Automobiles from Acura, Lexus, Ferrari, etc. were flooded throughout the entire venue. Proceeding towards the back of the locale where numerous vendors were selling snacks ranging from homemade beef jerky to sugar cane candy. It was the perfect place to hang out if you wanted to change up the scenery, or if you wanted to enjoy a quick bite to eat.
Lexus, the car company recognized for their luxurious drive and classic look, would be competing in this legendary competition. The brand that was known as something your grandmother would drive is now breaking barriers by entering the racing scene. Jack Hawksworth and Ben Barnicoat piloted the Seal Master liveried No. 14 Vasser Sullivan Lexus RC F GT3 to a second place finish at this 11-turn circuit.
360 Magazine. sat down with the two British drivers to conduct a short interview. The two motorists coincidentally grew up in the same part of England, with only an hour drive from between them. Only three years apart, they had never raced together until now. The two of them have been enjoying their time together as allies and plan to build upon that chemistry for future races. To hear the full interview click here.
The Grand Prix of Long Beach was the third race of the 2022 season and first sprint race. One of the Lexus drivers, Jack Hawksworth had a few words to say “Mega day for us. It was a surprise podium today. We had a bit of a struggle yesterday. We just ran a clean race, and we didn’t make any mistakes. We got a nice overcut there in the beginning to jump ahead of the GTD leader and then after an incident on pit lane among competitors got to second. Ben (Barnicoat) did a great job on the restarts and the Vasser Sullivan team did a great job on pit lane. We just did all of the basics right and got on the podium. It was a really good day.”
Safe to say Hawksworth was happy with his performance for that day. Barnicoat followed up with “It was a great day. Amazing to finally get the first podium of the season after being so close in both Daytona and Sebring. We finally got there. I feel like the Vasser Sullivan team did a great job today — everyone involved from the ground up. We definitely didn’t have the pace, but we maximized what we had so to come out of here with a second place is beyond what we thought we were quite capable of on paper. A huge thank you to everyone at Vasser Sullivan and Lexus Racing for their effort today. Hopefully it’s the first of many this season.”
360 Magazine also had the honor of experiencing an exclusive offering called Hot Labz. It was an opportunity of a lifetime where a professional driver took a lap around the track in the brand new IS-500. The Japanese chariot has a horse power of 472 MPH, with a five-liter V8 engine. It’s apparent that Lexus will continue to move mountains and make a name for itself in the motor-sporting space.
