IRVINE, Calif. (October 11, 2006) – If there’s one wish every racer has, it’s for a newer, faster racecar. If there’s a second wish, that new car would be free. For one talented racer, Mazda intends to make those wishes come true: winning on Sunday will mean a free car on Monday … with some assembly required.
In what is the biggest contingency award ever made at the annual SCCA National Championship Runoffs®, MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development will award a new 2007 Mazda MX-5, along with a few “optional” accessories like a roll-cage, a special racing suspension and a very large box of MAZDASPEED parts, all enabling the winner to participate in the 2007 SCCA Pro Racing SIRIUS Satellite Radio Mazda MX-5 Cup Presented by Hankook. This prize is valued at more than $35,000, and is in addition to the $4,000 the company will award to each class champion at the Runoffs.
In addition to the Mazda support, Hankook Tire America Corp. will provide up to eight sets of tires and SCCA Pro Racing will pay the entry fees for the winner at all 2007 MX-5 Cup races.
These parts and many hours of careful labor will turn a road-hugging MX-5 street car into a road-grabbing MX-5 racecar, ready to take part in the 2007 Mazda MX-5 Cup. Launched in 2006, the MX-5 Cup is a drivers’ showcase, with identically prepared third-generation Mazda MX-5s competing door-to-door on high-visibility race weekends at such famous racetracks as Lime Rock, Mid-Ohio, Road America, and of course Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. All races are televised on a tape delayed basis on SPEED Channel.
“Mazda believes that every racer with skill and determination deserves a chance to move-up. Anyone who can win at the SCCA Runoffs has talent, and we want to reward that effort with a chance to take their racing program to the next level,” said Steve Sanders, Manager, MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development.
Any racer driving a Mazda or Mazda-powered car in any of the following classes: SSB, SSC, T-3, GT-2, GT-3, GT Lite, E Production, F Production, Spec Miata, Formula Mazda, Formula Atlantic and C Sports Racer is eligible to win the new MX-5. Eligible race winners will then be invited to submit a proposal and Mazda will hold a driver shoot-out to determine the final winner.
