The Monterey Festival of Speed is headlined by the Daytona Prototypes and GT cars of the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series. (Photo: laguna-seca.com)
The 53rd season of competition at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca officially kicks off May 15-17, with the Monterey Festival of Speed featuring the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series with the Koni Challenge, Mazda MX-5 Cup and Mustang Challenge as support events. The race will mark the fifth consecutive year for Grand-Ams Daytona Prototype and GT cars in Monterey. Tickets, camping and hospitality are on sale now.
Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca is pleased to host round five of the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series, said Gill Campbell, CEO/general manager of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. With the addition of the Koni Challenge this year, it will give the fans hours of racing action.
The No. 1 spectator sport in the U.S. is NASCAR. Their recent acquisition of the Grand-Am Sport Car Series created the unique opportunity to help a series with a highly competitive road-racing product gain broader mainstream exposure. NASCAR's ability to maximize the exposure Grand-Am receives is unprecedented, making the 2009 Grand-Am season entertaining for the fans of both stock car and sports car racing.
There has been a rise in crossover drivers and team owners between Grand-Am and NASCAR in recent years. NASCAR drivers such as Jimmie Johnson, Tony Stewart, Kyle Petty, Bobby Labonte, Juan Pablo Montoya, Kurt Busch and Jeff Gordon have raced in the Grand-Am Rolex Series. Full time driver and 2008 Grand-Am Daytona Prototype team champion Scott Pruett has driven in many NASCAR events. Chip Ganassi and Richard Childress own teams in both sports.
The Rolex Series is also home to some of the most recognized names in sports car racing: Hurley Haywood, Max Papis, Christian Fittipaldi, Patrick Carpentier, Eddie Cheever and open-wheel stars like Dan Wheldon, Paul Tracy, Sebastien Bourdais, Buddy Rice, Scott Dixon and many others who will also make spotlight appearances in the Rolex Series.
