Story and Photos by Hugues Vanhoolandt
This year was a very special year for Laguna Seca as it celebrated the 60th anniversary of its creation. The ‘Racing Through the Decades’ display provided a walk down memory lane of some of the most famous cars that have raced here since 1957, including the first and the last cars to win professionally at the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.
On track, more than 550 cars were to be seen in a series of fifteen race events. Among them, the Formula Juniors were celebrating their Diamond Jubilee World Tour, but the entire field of cars spread from 1911 to 1991.
For those who were too busy with the various other events during the main weekend, a strong field of cars during the Pre-Reunion meeting held one week before the Reunion itself allowed them to enjoy both racing and the multitude of other events.
Here is a short selection from both events.
Racing through the Decades
Sixty years ago, Pete Lovely won the very first race at Laguna Seca with this 1956 Ferrari 500 Mondial although big-name drivers like Carroll Shelby, Richie Ginther, Jim Hall and John von Neumann were driving more powerful machines.
This Shelby King Cobra driven by Dave McDonald was the 1963 Monterey Pacific Grand Prix overall winner.
Ford Mustang Boss 302, raced in 1971 and 1972. It was the classic Trans-Am car.
Entered by the Penske team, the Porsche 917/30 won the Monterey Grand Prix in 1973 with Mark Donohue and clinched the Can-Am title that same year.
In 1983, Teo Fabi won the first Indycar race staged at Laguna Seca on board this March Cosworth.
This Porsche 962 represented the IMSA GTP races organized here on a 300 kilometers distance in the 1980s.
1990 US Grand Prix Laguna Seca winner, 3-time 500cc World Champion Wayne Rainey lives not far from the circuit. Here is his 1990 Yamaha YZR500.
Built by Dan Gurney’s All American Racers, the AAR Toyota Eagle won the 1993 IMSA Camel GT Race with P.J. Jones.
In 1999, Lehto and Soper won the Sportscar race with a BMW V12 LMR. A sister car also won the 24 Hours of Le Mans that same year.
Audi R8 LMP, 2nd in the 2005 Monterey Sportscar Championship race.
At the end of 2016, this McLaren 650S GT3, with Portuguese Alvaro Parente at the wheel, clinched the title at the very last race of the Pirelli World Challenge, on the challenging circuit of Laguna Seca.
Paddock and Track
The Lancia racing stable of Peter Giddings with no less than a D50 and a D24.
Alfa Romeo stable with an ex-works Giulia Sprint GTA 1600 Corsa and a Tipo 33/2 Daytona.
Joe Nastasi is a Monterey Motorsports Reunion regular with his 1967 Tipo 33 Periscopio.
Alfa Romeo Giulia Tubolare Zagato.
The field of the 1955-1962 GT race.
A pair of Giuliettas.
1965 Alfa Romeo GTA at the top of the famous Corskcrew.
Driven by Frank Zucchi, this car was listed as a 1967 Alfa Romeo GTV…
… and this one as a 1969 Spider Veloce.
Entered by the Revs Institute, this 1964 Abarth 2000 Corsa is powered by a 2 Liter Simca engine with an output of 204 hp.
Joe Colasacco and the Stanguellini Formula Junior.
Chaparral, Dolphin, Scarab, Listers were vying for the top spots in the Sports Racing over 2000cc race.
1960 Maserati Tipo 61 of Jonathan Feiber.
1958 Scarab MkI of David Swig.
A pair of Echidnas.
Ferraris in historic racing are very rare these days. Thanks to Tom Price, this 250 Testa Rossa was the sole Maranello’s representative in grid 3A for Sports Racing over 2000 cc.
It seems that Porsche owners are less afraid of risking their treasures on race tracks. Here the 1970 Porsche 908/3 of Cameron Healy.
Porsche 935s were dominant in the IMSA races of the late 70s and early 80s. Here a 1980 example with famous Interscope livery.
The 935 of Bruce Canepa leads the 934.5 of David MacNeil.
Double world champion Mika Häkkinen drove the Emerson Fittipaldi 1974 World Championship winning McLaren M23 for some demonstration laps.
The oldest car of the meeting was without doubt this 1911 National Speedway Roadster.
Laguna Seca on Saturday, Pebble Beach on Sunday: This Tatum GMC was entered in the ‘1947-1955 Sports Racing and GT cars’ on Saturday and in the ‘California Specials that raced at Pebble Beach’ class at Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance on Sunday…
…as was the Parkinson Jaguar Special, raced by Don Parkinson and Chuck Daigh at the Pebble Beach Road Races, before Laguna Seca Raceway was even born.
Ford was celebrating its Le Mans successes in the paddock with the 1967 Le Mans overall winner, the 2016 GTE-PRO class winner and the launch of a new Ford GT ’67 Heritage Edition.
Hugues, For an interesting perspective, photograph turn 6 from drivers left; i.e., looking over the fence and down at at 45* angle at the candy stripe. Regards, Steve Snyder, PhotoMedia