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Monterey Historic Automobile Races


The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion is an annual event held at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California. Its purpose is to provide an event in which historic racecars can compete. It takes place over the course of one weekend every mid-August. It was first established by Steve Earle in 1974 as the Monterey Historic Automobile Races. Earle organized the meeting for his friends to race their cars at Laguna Seca. The event acts as a part of Monterey Car Week, which includes the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance and other events.

Approximately 550 cars participate in the event. The 2017 event will take place August 17–20.

The first company to sponsor the event was the Chrysler Corporation. Later, the event added a sponsorship from Rolex. The Chrysler sponsorship was replaced with one from Toyota, who sponsored the event from 2006 to 2008.

Although celebrities and professional drivers do attend, the Reunion is not a professional event, and has no awards or prizes for finishing position. Each Saturday and Sunday afternoon race has a Rolex Award winner voted by committee. Two of the morning races each day honor a Bonham's Cup winner similarly chosen. There are special Awards for best paddock display, best Ford-powered car, outstanding craftsmanship, etc. The highest honor is the Rolex Spirit of Monterey Award, A Rolex watch and original Bill Patterson painting, presented to the entrant who best embodies the spirit of the event in his presentation and competition drive.

The Reunion has been featured in Autoweek magazine. It was featured in an online article in early August 2008 and in the September 2008 issue. The 2003 event was featured in an issue of Popular Mechanics. Popular Mechanics also documented the 2000 event. The 2009 event was also featured.

The 2010 event was featured in an issue of Road & Track. The 2004 event was also featured in an article on the R&T website.

For many years television network Speed Channel provided coverage of the event. For a few years the coverage consisted of several different episodes featuring the major groups (IMSA, Trans Am, F1, and Can Am). In later years the event was abridged to one episode combining behind-the-scenes coverage with coverage of select races. The races covered have been a mix of the major groups and some of the GT groups for better interest. If the event is featuring a one-time race group, that race may be covered. The Reunion is now covered by Fox Sports 1, which replaced Speed in August 2013.


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