Whenever we start waxing poetic about tracks that should host the United States Grand Prix, Laguna Seca — excuse me, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca — corkscrews its way toward the top of the list.
We all know we aren’t going to see that in our lifetimes, or at least in Bernie Eccelstone’s, but we can — and I’m here to tell you, I will — see Formula 1 cars spooling through the track’s famed corkscrew this year.
As part of this year’s Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, which runs August 12-15, 38 historic F1 cars will roar around the undulating concrete strip, the track announced this week.
“The first world championship Formula 1 race was held at Silverstone in 1950 and for this year’s Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, we wanted to celebrate the 60 years of Formula 1 history with a featured race,” said Gill Campbell, the track’s CEO/general manager and a man not to confuse with Glen Campbell. “Dan Gurney, the only American to build and win in a Formula 1 race in a car of his own construction will be on hand to help us pay tribute to the beautiful and history-laden grid of Formula 1 cars.”
Among the cars to be featured:
- 1969 Ferrari 312 driven by Chris Amon and Pedro Rodriguez
- 1970 Ferrari 312B driven by Jacky Ickx, the first F1 car from the Scuderia with the ‘boxer’ engine (flat 12 cylinders)
- 1980 Ferrari 312T5, which was driven by Jody Scheckter and Giles Villeneuve
- 1976 Tyrrell P34 ‘six-wheeler’ that used four, tiny 10-inch wheels and tires at the front and two ordinary sized wheels in the back
- 1976 Lotus 77, the John Player Special MK II, driven by Mario Andretti to victory at the Japanese Grand Prix
- 1967 Lotus 49, the first Double Four Valve powered car in F1 and driven by Jimmy Clark
For more information, you can check the track’s release here.
This might be the place for a big F1B meet-up, if I can coordinate!
* Note: Negative Camber and I are trying to work out some legal details, but when we do, look for a report of driving from Laguna Seca.
