What exactly is the Del Monte Trophy Race Group? What cars are eligible for the register?
The Pebble Beach Road Races were first held on November 5, 1950. The Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance was first held on the same weekend. The Monterey Peninsula has since that time been an internationally recognized destination for motorsports fans. Today’s annual August Monterey Car Week and the Laguna Seca Raceway owe their existence to those two seminal events. The Del Monte Trophy Race Group is a group of racing Sports Cars that represent the early Post-World War Two era in the United States that is fundamental to the history of motor racing in the world. This is the period when European-style road racing was introduced to the West Coast and in particular the Californian cameo niche which is The Pebble Beach Road Races. These were held on the twisty, narrow and pine-tree-lined roads in the residential development of Pebble Beach, California from 1950 through 1956. The “Del Monte Trophy” was not just the trophy for the winner but the name given to the Sunday Main Race itself in the later years.
| Del Monte Trophy Race Group cars are those, primarily front-engined, drum-brake Sports Cars which would have raced at Pebble Beach 1950-1956 |
So you would consider any 1947-1955 correct-in-period Jaguar XK 120 and C and D-Type, Ferrari 750, 857 and 860, Allard K2 and J2, Austin-Healy 100, MG TC, Triumph TR2, Aston Martin DB3, Frazer-Nash, Siata, or Morgan as a Del Monte Trophy car. The California Road Race Specials are a particularly attractive and unique part of this group.
The original silver Del Monte Trophy itself is still with us and is presented to the winner of our race group at the Rolex Monterey Motorsport Reunion every year, with a replica retained by the recipient. The Del Monte Trophy is a perpetual trophy. The winners of each of the Sunday Main Race and of the 1500cc Final are listed for each of the original 7 years. The current honorees are similarly listed.The following are additional details of the Del Monte Trophy Race Group.1) Not all cars that raced in 1956, the last year of the Del Monte Race at the Pebble Beach Road Races, are automatically considered part of the Del Monte Trophy Race Group. This is because the introduction and rapid race development of the small block Chevrolet V8 engine skewed competitors in its favor as did the introduction of disc brakes. Therefore the Del Monte Trophy Race Group generally consists of the cars that raced up to 1955.2) The smaller engine class today is below 2 liter, not below the 1500 cc of the original Pebble Beach classification. This is because engines over time get bored out, simply to keep them going and 2 liter is now considered the correct cut-off point for the smaller engine cars.3) Each year, the Rolex Monterey Motorsport Reunion, makes its own judgement of the make-up of the Race Group of the cars of this period. For example in 2023, the organizers added front engine 1956 to 1960 Sports Racers and GT cars to the Class, in practice, a bevy of Lotus 11s. This is intended to make for good racing and a different selection of cars and drivers each year.
The Del Monte Trophy Race Group is administered informally by Rob Manson of Carmel Valley, owner of several of the California Road Race Specials and publishes its register at www.dmtrg,com, this website.