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Mazda Motorsports SCCA Runoffs Recap
Mazda Racers Take Home Five Championships at 54th Annual Event

IRVINE, Calif. (October 1, 2017) – The 2017 SCCA Runoffs will be remembered for years to come as the time when the world’s largest club racing event went to one of the most famous racetracks in the world.  Mazda racers were once again in the thick of the battle, and earned five championships.  The 2017 Mazda-powered Runoffs champions were as follows:

  • Eric Prill, from Topeka, Kansas, led a Mazda podium-sweep in F-Production. Prill was racing a 1990 Mazda MX-5 Miata.  It was the first Mazda win in F-Production since 2008.
  • Keith Grant, from Germantown, Tennessee, won the Formula Atlantic race in his Swift 016.a Mazda-MZR. It was a Swift-Mazda 1-2-3. It was also the third win in four years for Mazda-powered cars in Formula Atlantic.
  • Preston Pardus, from New Smyrna Beach, Florida, won the Spec Miata race. It was the largest Spec Miata field in SCCA Runoffs history with 88 entries and the starting grid limited to the top 72.  The race ran under the green flag for the entire 19 laps. The margin from first to fourth position was 1.381 seconds.
  • Mel Kemper from Toledo, Washington, won the Formula Mazda race.
  • Elliot Finlayson from Yorkville, Illinois, won the Formula Enterprise Mazda race.

“Our amazing Mazda racers showed why we are still the car of choice for road racing,” said David Cook, business development manager, Mazda Motorsports. “While it’s an urban myth among racers that the Miata competes in every SCCA class, we did have Mazda-powered cars in 18 of the 28 classes, more than any other car company.  Away from the track, our Wednesday night team dinner was standing-room-only, with over 800 attendees; it‘s always a very special evening for the Mazda Motorsports family.  We’re already looking forward to the 2018 Runoffs coming to California, and chasing that 100th championship.”

Other Mazda facts from the week include:

  • Mazda racers scored a total of 20 podium finishers, more than any other car company.
  • Mazda racers earned $56,500 in contingency prize money from Mazda Motorsports.
  • Mazda had 287 racers competing, more than any other car company. This was 29.6% of all entries. Mazda was among 34 makes of engines powering the 971 racers.
  • Mazda has three exclusive classes: Spec Miata, Formula Mazda, and Formula Enterprise Mazda. The combined entries for these three classes was 139.
  • Including this weekend’s wins, Mazda has now scored 96 SCCA championships since 1977, when Stu Fisher drove a Mazda RX-3 to the SCCA B Sedan Championship at Road Atlanta.
  • A select group of the competing racers will advance to the Mazda Road to 24 and Mazda Road to Indy shootouts, seeking to earn a Mazda Scholarship for the 2018 race season.

About Mazda Motorsports:

Mazda Motorsports boasts the most comprehensive auto racing development ladder system of any auto manufacturer in the world. The Mazda Road to 24 program offers a number of scholarships to advance drivers up the sports car racing ladder, beginning with the Global MX-5 Cup series and culminating with the Mazda Prototype team. The Mazda Road to Indy is a similar program that includes Mazda-powered categories of USF2000, Pro Mazda and Indy Lights. In grassroots road racing, more Mazdas race on any given weekend in North America than any other manufacturer. Mazda is also the title sponsor of the renowned Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in Monterey, California. Follow all of the latest news at MazdaMotorsports.com, @MazdaRacing on Twitter, and MazdaMotorsports on Instagram and Facebook.

Mazda North American Operations is headquartered in Irvine, California, and oversees the sales, marketing, parts and customer service support of Mazda vehicles in the United States and Mexico through nearly 600 dealers. Operations in Mexico are managed by Mazda Motor de Mexico in Mexico City. For more information on Mazda vehicles, including photography and B-roll, please visit the online Mazda media center at InsideMazda.MazdaUSA.com/Newsroom.

Follow MNAO’s social media channels through Twitter and Instagram at @MazdaUSA and Facebook at Facebook.com/Mazda

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Contact:
Dean Case, Mazda Motorsports (310) 318-4582, mazdaspeed@MazdaUSA.com
Jade Gurss, Mazda Motorsports (317) 517-4121, MazdaMotorsports@icloud.com