Rolex clocks at the Monterey Classic Car Week events. Photo: Rolex/Tom O’Neal
From August 15 until this past Sunday, the Monterey Classic Car Week took place in the scenic Pacific coastal town of Monterey. The week consists of a host of events, including racing of vintage cars at the Rolex Monterey Motor Sports Reunion, the Pebble Beach Tour d’ Elegance presented by Rolex, the famed Pebble Beach Concours d’ Elegance, among other events. You may be sensing a pattern here: Rolex.
Since 1997, Rolex has been deeply committed to the Monterey Classic Car Week, and during the multi-day event gives away a host of timepieces. Those watches go to the winners of certain events. In fact, the winner of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance not only receives the Best of Show engraved trophy, but also an engraved steel-and-gold Rolex Oster Perpetual DateJust 41. Rolex is one of the most coveted brands by racecar drivers.
PEBBLE BEACH CONCOURS D’ELEGANCE® BEST OF SHOW TROPHY AND ENGRAVED OYSTER PERPETUAL DATEJUST 41 PRESENTED TO THE WINNER (Rolex:Tom O’Neal)
Mark Webber, Rolex Testimonee and multiple Formula 1® race winner, who was present at the event festivities, says “It has been staggering to see the passion, the patience and the painstaking love that the owners put into getting these cars to this extraordinary level. Both Rolex and classic car events reflect the meticulous precision it takes to make something elegant and robust – something that is timeless and forever.”
Mark Webber, racer and Rolex brand ambassador at Monterey Classic Car week.
Earlier in the year, in an interview with me, racecar driver (and Rolex brand Testimonee) Scott Pruett said that for race car drivers, the win is all about the Rolex. “If you talk to any driver they will say that if you come to Daytona it’s all about the watch. That is not made up or untrue, because if you win that watch, you wear it proudly. If you win a trophy, it sits on a shelf. Money goes into the bank. But if you win a Rolex with ‘winner’ engraved on the back, wear that sucker ever day.”
Of course this may not be the case for the Pebble Beach Concours d’ Elegance winner, Sir Michael Kadoorie, who owns the 1931 Bentley 8 Liter Gurney Notting Sports Tourer that took Best of Show. I get the feeling that Sir Kadoorie was incredibly proud of his fine fully restored British automobile. But he will most likely also cherish the engraved Rolex watch. Here we bring you a more detailed look at Rolex’s involvement in Monterey Classic Car Week.
1931 BENTLEY 8 LITRE GURNEY NUTTING SPORTS TOURER Photo by Rolex:Tom O’Neal
Oh, and one other thing about the week– an event that is NOT related to Rolex — that blew some minds: Sotheby’s auto auction, where this year a technical glitch undermined the sale of an approximately $20 million Porsche. Too bad.
