WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca will officially dedicate and name the Corkscrew the Zanardi Corkscrew on Friday, September 4, 2026, in a 9:15 a.m. ceremony that puts Alex Zanardi’s name on one of motorsports’ most famous turns. The unveiling will include a commemorative marker and special guests from across his racing career.
The date is not accidental. The tribute lands on the 30th anniversary of The Pass, the daring move Zanardi made on Bryan Herta entering the Corkscrew on the final lap of the CART season finale at Laguna Seca on September 8, 1996, when he was driving the No. 4 Target Chip Ganassi Honda Reynard and raced away with the win. For fans of open-wheel racing, that moment became shorthand for nerve, precision and timing under pressure.
The Corkscrew earns that kind of attention because it is unlike almost any other corner in racing. Drivers crest the blind Turn 8, then plunge downhill through Turn 8A as the track falls away beneath them, making the section one of the sport’s most recognizable and technically demanding turns. Tying Zanardi’s name to it gives the corner a permanent marker in the history of Laguna Seca and American open-wheel racing.
Zanardi’s career gives the tribute its weight. He was a two-time CART champion and won 15 CART races before the devastating 2001 accident at the Lausitzring cost him both legs. He later returned to racing, then went on to become a champion handcyclist and Paralympic gold medalist, building a second career that made his comeback story part of the same legacy the track is now choosing to honor.
That history also explains why the ceremony carries a note of contrast. The day will celebrate a driver remembered for a fearless move and a career of resilience, even as it marks the injury that changed the course of his life. Bruce Canepa, who said he met Zanardi in his rookie INDYCAR year with Chip, has described him as fearless in the car, determined off it and unforgettable for the smile that made him beloved throughout the motorsports community.
With the 2026 NTT INDYCAR SERIES Championship Finale at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca set for Labor Day weekend, the dedication gives the track another reason to draw attention to the Corkscrew before the season’s biggest weekend arrives. The ceremony will answer one question in full: what, exactly, will sit at the corner after September 4. It will be the place where the Zanardi Corkscrew officially becomes part of the track’s identity.
