LONG BEACH, California – Michael Andretti was one of the winningest drivers in IndyCar history with 42 victories in his CART career. He is rapidly becoming one of the most successful team owners in auto racing as he collected his 200th win in Sunday’s Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.

Alexander Rossi, who scored his first NTT IndyCar Series victory in the 100th Indianapolis 500 in 2016, was the driver who gave Andretti his 200th win as a team owner with a decisive victory in Sunday’s 45th running of North America’s greatest street race.

“Two-hundred, I like the sound of it,” Andretti told NTT INDYCAR Mobile. “That’s awesome. It’s amazing how quick we got there. I know it took Chip Ganassi longer than that to get to 200 and they are a great team.

“To do it here in Long Beach is pretty special and to do it in IndyCar is most special.

“I love Long Beach. It’s such a great event. The fans are some of the best in the world. They love this event. They come out and support it. They follow it and it’s a joy for everybody that wins this race to do it in front of these great fans.”

It was the 63rd IndyCar victory for Andretti Autosport and its fourth win at Long Beach. Andretti Autosport won in 2010 with Ryan Hunter-Reay and 2011 with Mike Conway and 2018 and 2019 with Alexander Rossi.

It is the team’s 200th victory across all series it competes in, across NTT IndyCar Series, Indy Lights presented by Cooper Tires, Indy Pro 2000 presented by Cooper Tires, Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship, Global Rallycross and ARX, American Le Mans Series and Formula E.

“I’m just so proud of everybody that has worked all of these years,” Andretti said in victory lane. “Two-hundred wins in a pretty short period of time, I’m so proud of it. Today, Alex drove fantastic. Actually, he drove great all weekend.”

Andretti became an IndyCar Series team owner in 2003 after he purchased Team Green from then-team owner Barry Green. At that time, it was known as Andretti Green Racing with partners Kim Green and Kevin Savoree.

Andretti became sole owner of the team in 2009 when it was rebranded as Andretti Autosport.

“Moments like this make it all worth it,” Andretti told NTT INDYCAR Mobile. “Sometimes, I still say, ‘What am I doing?’ But it’s been fun. It’s been a great ride. It’s a testament to the people. We have great people on this team, and they make it happen.”

Andretti has also had great drivers and his latest is Rossi, a fast California kid who scored his sixth victory in this year’s Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach. It was his second-straight win in the prestigious street race and the fourth time in his career he has won an IndyCar Series race from the pole.

“He was really happy with the car all weekend,” Andretti said. “He had a real, good flyer on his qualifying attempt on the weekend and that helped him win the pole. It’s so important to be the leader, especially in a race like today without any yellow flags.

“It really started with qualifying.”

Getting a victory before heading to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the “Month of May” is also very important to Andretti, because it creates momentum into the most important month of the NTT IndyCar Series season.

“We always talk about momentum and that’s a big thing, not only for the driver’s confidence but the whole team’s confidence,” Andretti said. “The timing is really good to get a win going into the Month of May, for sure.”