A MAD MARCH FOR MAZDA MOTORSPORTS

A MAD MARCH FOR MAZDA MOTORSPORTS

-- 15 Races in Seven Series at Three Race Tracks in Two States in One Month --

March 1, 2013 (IRVINE, Calif.)   Mazda is ramping up the 2013 professional racing season with their usual hectic month of March, starting with races on March 1st in Austin, Texas, before two busy weekends in Florida.  For Mazda, racing is not just a single series, but the majority of all sports car and open wheel road-racing classes in North America.  2013 highlights on the professional level will include:

GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series (GRAND-AM)

The GRAND-AM Championship will be the first professional series other than Formula 1 to headline at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas.  The SpeedSource Engineering team will have a pair of SKYACTIV-D Clean Diesel powered Mazda6s competing in the new for 2013 GX class on Saturday, March 2nd.

GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge (CTSCC)

Supporting GRAND-AM in Austin will be the fiercely competitive ‘Conti’ series.  At least a half dozen Mazdas from Freedom Autosport, i-Moto Racing, and CJ Wilson Racing will be challenging for the ST Class win in Austin.

American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón (ALMS)

The final ALMS season will kick-off with the 61st Mobil-1 12 Hours of Sebring on Saturday, March 16th.  Dyson Racing will be returning to the series with their Mazda MZR-R-powered Lola.  This is the same car that scored the ALMS LMP1 class win at the 2012 Sebring race.

SCCA Pro Racing Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup (MX-5 Cup)

The seventh season of MX-5 Cup competition will begin at Sebring.  Joining the MX-5 Cup Championship for the second year will be a MAZDASPEED Challenge class for racers from the Skip Barber Racing School.

Pro Mazda Championship Presented by Cooper Tires (Pro Mazda)

The Cooper Tires Pro Mazda Championship takes off where the Star Mazda Championship ended in 2012, as the linchpin in the Mazda Road to Indy (MRTI).  The rotary-powered Pro Mazda racers will complete a double-header at the new Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, on March 1st/2nd before heading to the streets of St. Petersburg on March 23rd/24th.

Cooper Tires USF2000 National Championship Powered By Mazda (USF2000)

The USF2000 Championship kicks off their season at Sebring on March 14th/15th, before joining up with the other MRTI series in St. Petersburg.  

Cooper Tires IMSA Prototype Lites Powered By Mazda (IMSA Lites)

The IMSA Lites Championship kicks off their season at Sebring on March 14th/15th with a double-header.


About Mazda, Mazda Motorsports, and MAZDASPEED

Mazda is the number-one brand for road-racers across North America.  Thousands of Mazda powered grassroots racers compete in various classes with the SCCA and NASA highlighted by Spec Miata, the world’s largest spec class with over 2,500 cars built.  In 2006 Mazda Motorsports established the MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development Ladder to assist racers in moving up through the ranks.  In 2010 this was expanded to include the Mazda Road to Indy.  Key to Mazda’s success is strategic partnerships with the Skip Barber Racing School and Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

MAZDASPEED Motorsports is managed by Mazda North American Operations (MNAO).  MNAO is headquartered in Irvine, Calif., and oversees the sales, marketing, parts and customer service support of Mazda vehicles in the United States and Mexico through nearly 700 dealers.  Operations in Mexico are managed by Mazda Motor de Mexico in Mexico City.

Dusty Brandel

President of the American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters Association, Inc. Worked with Mike Hollander since Tapsis, Compuserve, etc. and has posted to the website since the beginning. First Female photo-journalist to be given a garage and pit pass for the NASCAR garage, 1972 at Ontario Motor Speedway. One of first seven female writers, photographers given access to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway garage and pits in 1971. Past President of Greater Los Angeles Press Club, 1992-96, and first female editor of the 8-Ball publication for the Press Club

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Volume 2012, Issue 10, Posted 6:00 PM, 03.01.2013