Salinas, CA — After the item was tabled at last week’s meeting of the Monterey County Board of Supervisors, WeatherTech and the County came to terms at Tuesday’s (March 20) session on a multi-year naming rights agreement for the motorsports and entertainment facility located at the County-owned Laguna Seca Recreation Area. Beginning April 1, the iconic 11-turn, 2.238-mile road course will be known as WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca.

 The track, built in 1957 by the Sports Car Racing Association of the Monterey Peninsula (SCRAMP) on land leased by Fort Ord, was established to fill the void left by the Pebble Beach Road Races held between 1950 and 1956. Originally known as Laguna Seca Raceway, the track has held a 17-year naming rights agreement with Mazda that ends March 31. SCRAMP manages Laguna Seca Recreation Area on behalf of the County.

In the more than six decades since the opening of the track, countless prominent drivers on two wheels and four have challenged for trophies and taken on the famed Corkscrew turn, esses that descend five-and-one-half stories in a 450-foot span. The notoriety of the Corkscrew was enhanced with famous overtakes such as “The Pass” when Alex Zanardi eclipsed Bryan Herta in the 1996 CART finale.

WeatherTech, based in Bolingbrook, IL, is a leading manufacturer of vehicle accessories, such as floor and cargo liners, as well as side window deflectors. In addition to sponsoring the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and its own team, WeatherTech CEO David MacNeil and son Cooper are sports car racers themselves.