Continental Tire Extends Partnership with Mazda Raceway

Officials with Continental Tire and Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca have reached an agreement for the Fort Mill, S.C., corporation to continue its partnership as the title sponsor of the Continental Tire Monterey Grand Prix featuring the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, April 29-May 1 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

The Continental Tire Monterey Grand Prix is the opening event of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca’s major-event season for the third consecutive year.

Continental Tire partnered first with the raceway from 2011-2013 as the title sponsor of its GRAND-AM Road Racing events and continued the relationship when GRAND-AM and the American Le Mans Series merged in 2014.

Last year’s race saw the No. 90 VisitFlorida.com Corvette Daytona Prototype (DP) with drivers Richard Westbrook and Michael Valiante take the checkered flag and overall victory by 1.351 seconds over brothers Ricky and Jordan Taylor in the No. 10 Konica Minolta Corvette DP for Wayne Taylor Racing.

“We’re proud to continue our partnership with Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca,” said Travis Roffler, director of marketing for Continental Tire.

“The Continental Tire Monterey Grand Prix continues to grow every year providing some of the closest racing in IMSA. We are pleased to continue our support of such a historic track in American sports car racing.”

In addition to a partnership with Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Continental Tire is the official tire of IMSA as well as the spec tire for the Prototype, Prototype Challenge and GT Daytona classes.

Additionally, Continental is the title sponsor for the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge and spec tire for the Grand Sport and Sport Touring classes.

“Continental Tire has been a fantastic partner whose overall program clearly demonstrates how a sponsor and promoter can successfully work together,” said Gill Campbell, CEO and general manager of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

“The Continental Tire Monterey Grand Prix has grown to become the strong foundation with which Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca kicks off its major events season every year.”

SCRAMP celebrates 59 consecutive seasons of hosting world-class motorsports events in 2016 on the 11-turn, 2.238-mile road course.

This year’s major event schedule continues the decades-long tradition of showcasing national and world championship series’ of sports car, open wheel and motorcycle racing, as well as one of the most prestigious annual historic car racing events in the world.