Mazda Motorsports is presenting overviews of the pathways to their Mazda Road To Indy driver development program. As part of that coverage, they recently highlighted the growth of the Spec MX-5 Challenge Series:
Series for NC MX-5s successfully launched in 2018 and prepares to grow in the coming season
When the Battery Tender MX-5 Cup switched from the third-generation MX-5 (NC) to the fourth generation (ND), it meant there were a lot of the old MX-5 Cup cars on the market. Some of the MX-5 Cup teams took their cars to World Challenge, either upgrading the engine and aero to run Touring Car – Patrick Gallagher won the championship in 2016 – or leaving them nearly as is and racing in TCA, as 2016 champ Elivan Goulart did. Others were sold to find a home in SCCA or NASA club racing, where they have raced in Touring 4, Super Touring Lite (SCCA) or Performance Touring (NASA). Others, meanwhile, sat idle.
Tom Martin of Winding Road Racing and Todd Lamb of Atlanta Speedworks saw an opportunity. They had raced and run teams in MX-5 Cup and knew the potential of the cars. They had an idea, and then came the final piece of the puzzle…