News Releases

In the fifteen-minute qualifying session for Saturday’s Petit Le Mans, Jarvis recorded a lap of 1:10.561 around the 2.54-mile, 12-turn circuit which put the No. 77 Castrol / Williams Scotsman Mazda RT24-P second on the grid for the ten-hour race. Just 0.039-second behind was Bomarito, whose lap in the No.55 Mazda RT24-P was strong enough for third on the grid.

Jarvis, who is competing for the first time at Road Atlanta, also led the final practice of the weekend on Friday morning. He will share the No. 77 Castrol / ModSpace Mazda RT24-P with Lucas Di Grassi and Tristan Nunez while Bomarito will share the No. 55 Mazda RT24-P with Marino Franchitti and Spencer Pigot.

Petit Le Mans will be broadcast live on Saturday, October 13 on FOX Sports 1 from 10:30 AM – 12:00 PM ET and on FOX Sports 2 from 12:00 PM – 9:30 PM ET.

QUOTES

John Doonan, Director, Mazda Motorsports

“Starting up front is a big boost to the entire team and all of our Mazda fans. I am super proud of the effort by all of our partners. AER, Multimatic, and Mazda Team Joest have improved this package tremendously. Now, the focus is 100% on executing the race tomorrow. We must have good pace, flawless pit stops, and some good luck. Traffic will be tough all day and in the closing stages at night. Everyone in our program came here to do one thing tomorrow, and that is to bring home a victory for the Mazda brand. We plan to do everything possible to see that through.”

No. 55 Mazda RT24-P

Jonathan Bomarito

“When you are trying to put the lap together, and are pushing really hard, there’s some really high commitment sections on this track where you can make up time. So, I was really trying to throw the car out there and have it stick. We missed it by a little bit, but I am happy with third. The Mazda RT24-P was really good, and I was really happy with the balance. I am around a teammate at the start, which is always a good thing, and I think we have good cars for the race.”

No. 77 Castrol / ModSpace Mazda RT24-P

Oliver Jarvis

“That was a really exciting qualifying. I am happy with second place, it is a great place to start the race but we definitely had a car to fight for the pole. It was just a case of putting everything together. Big thanks to the team and to Mazda for giving me such a good car, and we are in good shape for tomorrow. We’ve been working really well as a crew, and so have all three drivers, so we are definitely excited to get into the race tomorrow.”

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 (#MRT24) 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 Mazda Team Joest. In grassroots road racing, more Mazdas race on any given weekend in North America than any other manufacturer. Follow all of the latest news at MazdaMotorsports.com, @MazdaRacing on Twitter, and Mazda Motorsports on Instagram and Facebook.

Mazda North American Operations 

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 700 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.

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Contact:
Tim Olson, Mazda North American Operations, 949-727-6551
Efrain Olivares, Mazda Motorsports, 818-254-7196