- 2008 Race Schedule
ORLANDO, Fla., Dec. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Using the largest motorsports trade
show in the world as the venue, the world's most popular sports car has joined
forces with one of the world's most popular brands, as Playboy becomes the
title sponsor for the 2008 SCCA Pro Racing Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup. The MX-5
Cup saw thirty-percent growth in 2007 and is projected to become the number
one spec professional series in the world. The series is also an integral
part of the MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development Ladder that promotes champions
of Mazda series to the next level of their career.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20071206/LATH060LOGO)
"This is a great way for us to grow the series and reach an audience of
enthusiasts who may not have had the chance to see an MX-5 Cup race in
person," noted Jim Jordan, Alternative Marketing Manager, Mazda North American
Operations.
"We are excited to be working with Mazda on this program and can't wait
for the season to begin," said Playboy Vice President and Publisher Lou Mohn.
"We look forward to putting all of Playboy's brand assets into high gear to
leverage this initiative and reach racing enthusiasts and Playboy fans alike."
SCCA Pro Racing President and CEO Robert Wildberger remarked, "We're
excited to have such an established brand associated with what is quickly
becoming one of the most exciting new series."
The most raced car in the world is the Mazda MX-5 Miata. On any given
weekend, half of the cars competing in SCCA Club Racing events are Mazda-brand
vehicles, while thousands more autocross their daily driver Mazdas.
The MX-5 can be raced in a variety of configurations within many different
clubs, with classes for every vintage of Mazda from showroom stock to all-out
racer. For those looking to try their hand in professional racing, the MX-5
Cup is the ideal place. The cars are affordable, the racing is close, the
venues are fantastic, and the races are televised.
The MX-5 Cup champion also receives a Mazda-supported ride in the
following year's SCCA SPEED World Challenge Touring Car Championship. This
prize is valued at $250,000. 2007 MX-5 Cup Champion Jason Saini will be
racing in the 2008 SPEED World Challenge in a MAZDA6.
2008 Schedule
The 2008 SCCA Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup schedule is a great balance of North
American locations. The season begins with the Houston Grand Prix and
concludes six months later at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.
April 25-27, 2008 Houston Grand Prix, Houston, Texas
(with ALMS, Champ Car, Champ Car Atlantic, Star Mazda)
May 2-4, 2008 Road Atlanta, Braselton, Georgia
(with HSR Mitty)
May 17-19, 2008 Mosport
(with Canadian Touring Cars)
June 20-22, 2008 Cleveland Grand Prix, Cleveland, Ohio
(with Champ Car, Champ Car Atlantic, Star Mazda)
July 25-27, 2008 Portland Grand Prix
(with Champ Car, Champ Car Atlantic, Star Mazda)
Sept. 19-21, 2008 Miller Motorsports Park, Tooele, Utah
(with Grand Am, Champ Car Atlantic)
Oct. 17-19, 2008 Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey, California
(with ALMS, Star Mazda, IMSA Lites)
One additional race will be added to complete an eight race series.
Improved Kumho Tire for 2008
"We're excited to be back with the Mazda MX-5 Cup series," said Rudy
Consolacion, Motorsports Manager for Kumho Tires U.S.A. "This series features
some of the closest racing in the U.S., and we've made some improvements to
the ECSTA V710 that should help make the races even tighter. We simply
tweaked the compound and construction to improve the tire's performance."
Competitors will run an improved Kumho ECSTA V710 in the dry and the Kumho
Victoracer in the wet.
The Ideal Entry-level Pro Series
The MX-5 Cup is a series where a good club racer can succeed without
having been born rich.
Drivers with no club racing experience can attend courses and advanced
lapping days at the Skip Barber Racing School in similarly equipped MX-5s to
obtain a provisional license.
Club racers with suitable licenses can contract a car on a race-by-race
basis from one of several multi-car teams, including Alara Racing, Hale
Motorsports, Hooverspeed and Motorsports Enterprises Racing (MER).
On December 12th, nine national champions from club racing will gather at
the Buttonwillow race track north of Los Angeles, Calif. They will be
competing to win a brand-new MX-5 Cup car and the MAZDASPEED parts to prepare
for the 2008 season. The 2006 SCCA Spec Miata Club Champion, Andrew Caddell,
won the previous shootout and went on to win two MX-5 Cup races in 2007,
finishing second in points.
Skip Barber Regional MX-5 Cup races
New for 2008 will be regional series for Skip Barber MX-5 Cup cars.
Successful graduates of the Skip Barber MX-5 Cup school will be able to gain
useful racecraft experience at an affordable price. Regional series will be
based out of the schools at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca and Road Atlanta.
Additional locations are under study and will be added based upon customer
demand.
Great TV this December:
While it may be too cold to race in most parts of the country, the action
is hot on the SPEED channel this month. Each of the eight races from the 2007
MX-5 Cup is being shown in an edited 30-minute format, with races shown in
pairs for four consecutive Saturdays. Six of the eight races have yet to air.
Race Broadcast time (EST)
Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca & Portland Saturday, December 8 @ 2:00 PM
Cleveland Doubleheader Saturday, December 15 @ 2:00 PM
Trois-Rivieres & Miller Motorsports Park Saturday, December 22 @ 4:00 PM
About Mazda
Mazda is the brand of choice for road-racers across North America. More
than 9,000 grassroots racers compete in various classes with the Sports Car
Club of America (SCCA) and the National Auto Sport Association (NASA). Racers
who are years away from earning a driver's license can now begin their
professional motorsports careers in the Mazda family. A driver can begin in
karts and progress through the Skip Barber series, Club Racing Formula Mazda,
professional Star Mazda and finally to Formula Atlantic, ALL with Mazda. No
other car company has ever connected the dots this way.
On any given weekend, there are more Mazdas on the road-race tracks of
America than any other brand of vehicle. At the track, you'll see MX-5 Miata,
RX-8, MAZDA3, MAZDA6, RX-7 and other vintage Mazda models competing, because
every Mazda has the Soul of a Sports Car. In fact, the largest road-racing
class in the world is Spec Miata, with more than 1,500 first- and second-
generation Miatas tearing up America's racetracks, making it the most-raced
production car in the world. Mazda's involvement in motorsports extends to
its relationship with Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, one of the world's premier
road-racing circuits, and the Skip Barber Schools for driving and racing.
Headquartered in Irvine, Calif., Mazda North American Operations oversees
the sales, marketing, parts and customer service support of Mazda vehicles in
the United States, Canada and Mexico through nearly 900 dealers. Operations
in Canada are managed by Mazda Canada, Inc., located in Ontario, Canada, and
in Mexico by Mazda Motor de Mexico in Mexico City.
About Playboy Enterprises, Inc.
Playboy Enterprises is a brand-driven, international multimedia
entertainment company that publishes editions of Playboy magazine around the
world; operates television networks and distributes programming globally; owns
Playboy.com, a leading men's lifestyle and entertainment web site; and
licenses the Playboy trademark internationally for a range of consumer
products and services.
About SCCA Pro Racing
A wholly owned subsidiary of Sports Car Club of America, Inc., SCCA Pro
Racing Inc. is a leading sanctioning body for motorsports events in the United
States. A member of the Automobile Competition Committee of the United States
(ACCUS), SCCA Pro Racing owns, operates and sanctions the SCCA SPEED World
Challenge Championships and the SCCA Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup, as well as
provides sanctioning and various operational services for other series. For
more information, please visit www.sccapro.com.
For more information on Mazda products, visit the online Mazda media
center at http://www.MazdaUSAmedia.com
For more information on MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development, visit
http://www.MAZDASPEEDMotorsports.com
For more information on the MX-5 Cup series, visit http://www.mx-5cup.com
For more information on Skip Barber Racing School, visit
http://www.skipbarber.com
For more information on Playboy, visit http://www.playboy.com
For more information on the Kumho Tire Co, visit http://www.kumhotire.com
For more information on MX-5 Cup Teams, visit
http://www.alararacing.comhttp://www.hale-motorsports.comhttp://www.hooverspeed.nethttp://www.motorsportenterprisesracing.com
SOURCE Mazda North American Operations
Dean Case of MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development, +1-310-318-4582,
dean@rwb-llc.com; or Lauren Melone of Playboy Enterprises, Inc.,
+1-212-261-4976, lmelone@playboy.com; or Eric Prill of SCCA Pro Racing,
+1-785-357-7222, eprill@scca.com
