The Petersen Automotive Museum will open its doors Saturday morning to the debut of the “People’s Champ” exhibit – a tribute to automotive icon and Long Beach native Ken Block.
Block, who died in 2023 after a snowmobile accident in Utah, sold his stake in DC Shoes to fund his shift towards full time racing in 2004.
While Block found mixed success throughout his rally racing career, he quickly gained a large following online for his daring stunts throughout his jaw-dropping “Gymkhana” video series.
First published in 2008 on YouTube, the first Gymkhana video amassed over 17 million views of Block swinging a 2005 Subaru WRX STI dressed in his now iconic black Monster Energy livery.
Block debuted his first Ford two years later in 2010 to 71 million eyes, and his most recognized car, his 1965 Ford Mustang “Hoonicorn,” in 2013 on the streets of Los Angeles.
By the final video of the series, Gymkhana had garnered hundreds of millions of viewers and counting.
The exhibit will feature nine of Block’s cars, including:
- 1965 Ford Mustang RTR “Hoonicorn,” featured in Gymkhana 7
- 1977 F-150 “Hoonitruck,” featured in Gymkhana 11
- 1986 Audi Sport Quattro Replica “Turbo Monster”
- 2022 Audi S1 E-Tron Quattro “Hoonitron,” featured in Electrikhana 1 and 2
- 1994 Ford Escort RS Cosworth “Cossie V2”
A post on the Peterson Automotive social media pages notes the Hoonipigasus, a tribute to the 1971 Porsche 917/20 “Pink Pig” race car, featured in his 2022 Pikes Peak Hill Climb will also be on display at the debut of the exhibit.
The final three cars are not posted on the Peterson website, nor listed on social media.
“Block utilized his marketing acumen, driving expertise, and automotive enthusiasm to create the enormously popular Gymkhana video series and Hoonigan, an automotive lifestyle brand and production company that has captivated audiences for over a decade,” the museum said in an online description of the exhibit.
The display will also feature memorabilia like racing suits, helmets, wheels, DC Shoes, and Hoonigan merchandise from key moments in his career.
The exhibit will close on Oct. 5.
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