The Porsche 963 at the Long Beach Grand Prix Story and photos

Attending a major racing event is both thrilling and exhilarating. This year’s Acura Long Beach Grand Prix, held last April, was no exception. The race takes place on the streets of Long Beach and is 100 minutes long.

As we mentioned previously in these pages, Porsche is on a quest to retain dominance at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and achieve victories in both the WEC endurance races in Europe and IMSA on our shores. Committing to develop and race the 963 was a big investment

Having the opportunity to photograph trackside this year was a privilege and only added another level of excitement to capture the all-new Porsche 963 GTP (Grand Touring Prototype) class in action. The Porsche 963 powertrain is based on the 4.6 liter V-8 of the 918 Spyder with an efficient, cutting-edge, hybrid system supplied by Bosch.

by Robert Watt

Porsche experienced a challenging start to the 2023 IMSA season at the first two events, finishing seventh and eight at the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona and third and fifth at the 12 Hours of Sebring. Porsche was not among the top finishers at the recent 24 Hours of Le Mans either.

However, the Acura Long Beach Grand Prix was different. The Porsche 963 won! The car had some issues with its tires, and it had to make an extra pit stop. However, the team was able to overcome these challenges. This is a historic victory for Porsche, as it is the first time the company has won a major race with its new hybrid prototype. The race was close throughout, but Porsche was able to pull away in the final laps to take the win. This is a big statement from Porsche, and it shows that they are serious about winning in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and more challenging endurance races elsewhere.

Long Beach was the third of eleven scheduled events in the 2023 IMSA race series. Taking first place with Mathieu Jaminet and Nick Tandy in car No. 6 and second place with Felipe Nasr and Matt Campbell in car No. 7, both for Porsche Penske Motorsport, was a great victory for Porsche and it is a sign of things to come. Porsche is a strong contender this year, and we expect to see them competing for wins all season long.

Photographing this legendary event was even more special to experience after the historic win for Porsche. The IMSA series not only establishes Porsche’s competitive status in motorsport history but also signifies their triumphant return to the highly competitive world of endurance racing in their 75th year anniversary.

Extended traveling, early mornings, long days, late nights, and non-stop hiking/walking are exhausting but part of the adventure of race photography. However, the reward of it all is the images that I get to capture. What I’ve shown here is but a very small sample.

For additional race photos visit robertwattphoto.com or on Instagram @rwattphoto, and be sure to follow all the racing action at IMSA.com.

Robert Watt has been a member of PCA since 2009. He drives a concours-winning 2008 Cayman in Speed Yellow.