Ep.325-RE-HEATED: Chris Pook

Ep.325-RE-HEATED: Chris Pook

From Dinner with Racers by Dinner with Racers

April 16, 2026 · 1h 57m · Episode 324

About this episode

The episode revisits Chris Pook's journey in creating the Long Beach Grand Prix.

The latest of our RE-HEATED series, where we re-issue episodes that might share something with racing stories in the news… Episode 222 featuring Chris Pook. With the Long Beach Grand Prix happening this weekend, we figured it was a good episode to re-visit. A known figure for a number of motorsport ventures, including running CART for some time, Chris’s wild idea to hold a street race in the California port city of Long Beach in 1974 was the start of tradition that continued today. Hailing from the UK and working as a long-time Long Beach resident, Chris’s path to creating the event was anything but smooth, with the detailed story in this podcast. This is of course a complimentary episode to our “Dinner with Racers” video series on MotorTrend’s YouTube and MotorTrend+ streaming, where you can see the story unfold in a two-part special. Lunch was served at 555 East Steakhouse in Long Beach, CA, with the song “I Got Me” by Jane & The Boy taking us out. Thanks again to Continental Tire and Acura for making it all happen.

People in this episode

Guest: Chris Pook

Topics covered

  • motorsport
  • Long Beach Grand Prix
  • street racing
  • CART
  • Chris Pook
  • racing history

Keywords

  • Long Beach Grand Prix
  • Chris Pook
  • CART
  • street race
  • motorsport history
  • California racing
  • Dinner with Racers

Sponsors

Continental Tire, Acura

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: CART, MotorTrend

Books & works: I Got Me

Places: Long Beach, California

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