Few Mustang fans have not heard of or seen the Shelby GT350 -it’s a car above all others. The Shelby GT350 Mustang roared onto tracks just one year after the Ford Mustang debuted. Already very pleased with the success it was having with Carroll Shelby in the Cobra program, Ford asked him to make the new Mustang competitive. The American musclecar extraordinaire took the crown in three consecutive SCCA national championships during its maiden years.
“The immediate success of the Shelby GT350 helped catapult the entire Mustang program onto the worldwide stage through its pure performance and reliability,” said Gill Campbell, CEO/general manager of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. “We’re thrilled to honor such an iconic American racing brand at the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion. We are also adding a special 1965-1972 Shelby GT350 Mustang race group to the schedule as a way to further highlight the marque.”
The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Shelby GT350 Mustang–arguably one of the hottest road racing cars of the ‘60s–as the 2015 featured marque August 13-16, 2015 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Ford will be supporting the effort with a paddock display showcasing the history of the Shelby GT350.
“We couldn’t be more excited to be able to share one of the most iconic performance Mustang nameplates–the Shelby GT350 Mustang–with all of the Shelby enthusiasts and race fans at next year’s Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion,” said Jim Farley, Ford executive vice president of Global Marketing, Sales and Service. “The new GT350 is a true testament to its heritage and builds on Carroll Shelby’s commitment to performance and racing, and we look forward to celebrating the car’s 50th anniversary and marking it with great racing next summer.”
The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion is a centerpiece of the Monterey Classic Car Week and one of the world’s premier historic racing events. A total of 550 historically- and period-correct cars are accepted to compete in 15 different race groups.
Tickets to the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion go on sale December 3, 2014, and include a variety of options, from single-day tickets to multiple-day and hospitality packages. For more information, visit MazdaRaceway.com or call the ticket office at (800) 327-7322.