Formula Drift driver Joon Maeng of the Full Tilt racing team poses with his Mazda RX-8 and the concrete barriers that he will try to avoid.

9:25am | You may not be able to hear the roar of the engines or the screech of the tires just yet, but the 2011 Long Beach Grand Prix is here and the city is bracing itself for another jam-packed weekend.

At right: Maeng and Grand Prix of Long Beach CEO Jim Michaelian.

Construction began on the 1.97-mile track through the streets of downtown on Tuesday, with crews laying down concrete barriers along the part of the track that will run through the Long Beach Arena parking lot as the cars head from Seaside Avenue to Shoreline Drive. From the popular drifting series Formula Drift, driver Joon Maeng and his Full Tilt team Mazda RX-8 were on hand to ring in the occasion.

Crews will continue building the track over the next 60 days with more than 1,400 concrete blocks forming one of the most scenic racing events in the world, and the oldest street race in North America as it enters its 37th running.

Formula Drift is just one of the several racing events that will be a part of the Grand Prix weekend from April 15-17, including the fan favorite Pro/Celebrity Race, sports car racing in the SCAA Pro World Challenge race and American Le Mans Series, with open-wheeled excitement coming from Firestone Indy Lights and the main event IndyCar Series.