Mazda were celebrating a fantastic run in the gruelling Britcar 24 Hour race at Silverstone this weekend after recording a strong finish for the production Mazda MX-5s.
Prepared by Jota Sport the two cars were standard Mazda MX-5 2.0 litre models aside from the addition of the mandatory FIA approved safety equipment (roll cage, seats, etc…).
“This was a superb result for Mazda,” enthused Graeme Fudge, Mazda PR Director. “We demonstrated that a pair of stock MX-5s can compete with significantly more powerful bespoke racecars by relying on its outstanding handling and incomparable reliability.
“While our lead car failed to finish for factors out of our control – a devastating blow after it had been running high up the order – our second car demonstrated the strength, reliability and handling of the MX-5 by finishing the race needing nothing more than fuel and fresh tyres.”
The lead car of Mark Ticehurst, Owen Mildenhall, Jamie Corstophine and Mike Wilds looked set to take a superb second in class and sixteenth overall in a grid of 60 cars but this wasn’t to be as the team were forced to retire the car after a collision with debris on circuit. The second car was brought home by Olly Marriage, Ben Whitworth, Jim McGill, Matt Joy and 17-year-old karting sensation Jade Pavely eleventh in class and thirty-fourth having completed a total of 474 laps and a distance of 1509 miles.
