Virgil Cacdac - Certified #1 Mechanic, World Speed Motorsports

Motorsports has posted their own Mazda Testimonial page.

“Mazda provides more than the reliable racing platform that the competitors in the Star Mazda West Coast Championship and Formula Mazda Challenge use to power around the race track. For many of the series participants Mazda vehicles are our everyday cars that get us where we need to go as well as our fun cars that we drive for the joy of driving”

View the testimonials below to learn why we say “Racing is our passion, Mazda is our car.”

http://formulamazdachallenge.com/testimonials.htm

When historians look back at 2008, they may be inclined to call it the year of the woman. With roughly half the race season gone, several noteworthy accomplishments in a handful of professional series have dominated the news, illustrating that motorsports is no longer an all-boys club.

In April, Atlantic Championship graduate Danica Patrick won at Twin Ring Motegi in the Indy Japan 300, becoming the first woman to win a major auto racing event on a closed-course circuit. The accomplishment placed Patrick among the ranks of drag racer Shirley Muldowney, who won three NHRA Top Fuel Championships as a first female winner in the top tier of American motorsports.

Later in the month, Ashley Force nabbed her first-ever NHRA professional win, defeating her father John in the final round and becoming the first woman to earn victory in the Funny Car class. It occurred at the NHRA Southern Nationals, held at the Atlanta Dragway in Georgia.

Shortly after Force’s win, fellow Funny Car pilot Melanie Troxel became the NHRA’s second female driver to win a national event, doing so at the O’Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals in May. She backed up her feat in June by becoming the first female driver to top qualifying at the Route 66 NHRA Nationals in Illinois.

Also in June, Hillary Will became the only woman in Top Fuel to win a national event. She did it at the NHRA Summer Nationals in Kansas.

While high-exposure professional racing has seen its share of females in the spotlight this season, it is only a reflection of what is going on in greater numbers in other less prominent levels of motorsport. Nowhere is this more evident than the Mazda Motorsports Development Ladder.

Over the same weekend Indy superstar Patrick won her first pro event, 19-year-old Atlantic Championship Powered by Mazda ace Simona de Silvestro made her own mark by becoming only the second woman ever to win the Imperial Capital Bank Atlantic Challenge of Long Beach, and she did it with Mazda power.

De Silvestro joins Atlantic series graduate Katherine Legge as the only women ever to win the race in the series’ 35-year history (Legge earned her victory in ‘05). De Silvestro did it in the No. 34 Newman Wachs Racing Atlantic Swift 016.a chassis, powered by a 2.3-liter Mazda-Cosworth engine, a chariot that carried the race’s lone female pilot to a P2 qualifier.

It was not de Silvestro’s first taste of success, however. As a rookie in the Atlantic Championship in ‘07, the Swiss hot-shoe earned two top-10 results and scored championship points in nine of 12 races with Walker Racing. In 2006 she completed a season in the Formula BMW USA championship, collecting a victory at Lime Rock, six podiums and 11 top-10 finishes en route to a fourth-place finish in the overall point standings. She also scored two third-place finishes at the U.S. Grand Prix and made history by becoming the first woman to ever earn a podium result at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

De Silvestro currently sits fourth in points in the Atlantic Championship Powered by Mazda with 55 after three of 11 events, collecting a hard-fought tenth at the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca race in May and ninth at Circuit Mont Tremblant in June. Eight stops remain on the schedule, including double headers at the Grand Prix of Edmonton in July and Road America Grand Prix in August, and a huge up-and-coming talent show on Thunderbolt Raceway at New Jersey Motorsports Park for Mazda Formula Zoom-Zoom, a unique event set for Sept. 12-14 with the Star Mazda and Spec Miata series.

Further down the Mazda Development Ladder on the open-wheel side is the Star Mazda Championship, another series where women have made their mark. Just last year, AIM Autosport’s Natacha Gachnang became the first female driver to score back-to-back podium finishes in the series, doing so at Portland and Cleveland.

Leading the X chromosome charge is Kester Racing’s Kristy Kester, a 20-year-old Texas native who has always seemed to be driven at whatever she does in life. In high school, she graduated as class valedictorian. Currently a sophomore at Texas A&M University, she plans on majoring in biomedical studies and charging into medical school.

Behind the wheel Kester is just as ambitious. Starting in karts some eight years ago, she has collected multiple first-, second- and third-place finishes. Kester’s also placed second at the 2005 IKF Road Race Grand Nationals and won several WTKA Karting Championships — all before she turned 19. Furthermore, she set fastest race lap, scored three pole positions, and won two races in the Formula E series.

In the Mazda Renesis-motivated Star chassis of the 2008 Star Mazda Championship, Kester has struggled in qualifying only to impress on race day, making up ten grid spots to finish 13th at Watkins Glen in June and earning a top-10 result at the season opener at Sebring, where she came home eighth. Currently sitting ninth in points, and with nine rounds still to play out, Kester has ample opportunity to mount a charge for the Star Mazda crown.

Kester is joined by a duo of young journeywomen who have intermittently campaigned the ‘08 championship, Juliana Gonzalez and Michele Bumgarner.

Gonzalez hails from Mexico and began kart racing in 2002 at the tender age of 11. Until roughly 2005, she mastered karting and amassed an impressive record of wins and podium finishes. The same year she also made her open-wheel debut, competing in the Formula Renault series, where she nabbed one win, one pole position and four podiums.

In ‘06, Gonzalez transitioned into the Formula Ford 2000 Series, where she finished tenth in the national championship, and the following year went to the F2000 Championship Series, shining again by placing 15th out of 53 drivers competing.

Currently 25th in the drivers table, Gonzalez drives the No. 11 car for Andersen Racing, which she piloted to 15th in her only Star Mazda outing thus far, Sebring. She lists a short-term goal as campaigning for Rookie of the Year in the series, and a monumentally big objective for her racing career, Formula 1.

Bumgarner was born and raised in the Philippines and has been dubbed “Asia’s Finest,” getting her start in karts, too, in 2002 and earning Junior Karter of the Year, following it up with Karter of the Year in ‘03. She has continued to excel in karting throughout her career and transitioned to Asian Formula 3 open-wheel racing in ‘06, as well as Star Mazda.

Now with John Walko Racing in Star Mazda, she has had a rough start to ‘08. At Sebring in March, she was hit by an errant driver on the race’s first lap that damaged her suspension and forced her to retire early. Then at Miller, she completed her first full race and saw the checkers in 20th against a 31-driver field, and did one better in the following contest at Watkins Glen to come home 19th. Bumgarner does have one up on her female competition, though; she has a fulltime female race engineer in Kate Gunlach.

Women are blazing trails in Mazda sports car racing as well, evidenced by the five female hot shoes that were on the entry list for the Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup 2008 season opener at Road Atlanta. While we can’t say for sure where the affair fits into the records books, Mazda is pleased to have five talented women competing in a great series.

Currently 16th in points after just two events is Deborah Loth, who returns to Team MER after a season away from MX-5 Cup racing. An endodontist from Fort Worth, Texas, Loth has been racing since 2001 and finished fifth in the 2006 MX-5 Cup points with five top-five finishes.

Behind Loth on the drivers table in 17th is Alison Malkhassian, who was born in Portland, Maine, but has been a long-time California resident. She had no trouble picking which MX-5 team to join this season — her husband Ara owns Alara Racing. A successful real estate investor, Malkhassian has been SCCA Club Racing since 2000 and has more than 100 races on her resume. This will be her first full season in MX-5 Cup.

Further down the list in 25th is Laura Olson, who works as an operations manager for a healthcare company and has been racing for a decade, collecting several SCCA Divisional Championships along the way. The Californian was even selected to be in the popular SPEED reality show and racing competition “SETUP.” Racing with the Hooverspeed team, Road Atlanta was Olson’s fifth professional race.

Along with a famous racing name and background, Susan Krohn brings years of Panoz Racing experience to Team MER, as well as a second lady. The Texan made her MX-5 Cup debut in Atlanta, and currently sits 28th in points.

Right behind Krohn in championship points is 18-year-old Colbi Bradley, who’s been racing karts for a decade. When she’s not at the track, she’s a management student at Georgia Tech. Having raced previously at Road Atlanta, Bradley was selected to make a guest appearance in the ‘08 opening round of MX-5 Cup courtesy of Mazda.

Just halfway through the 2008 race season, women have shaped history and announced to the world that motorsport is no longer simply for the boys. With so many females working up through the Mazda Motorsports Development Ladder, one can only guess there will come a day when hearing of the Patrick’s, Force’s and Troxel’s of the world won’t be such a big deal. The glass ceiling they have smashed will allow countless other women to achieve great heights, and the Mazda system will be there to help them keep reaching.

www.champcaratlantic.com

www.mx-5cup.com

www.starmazda.com

August 8, 2008 (Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin).  The 2008 race season started off on a high note, both on-track and off.  An underdog win by the Castrol Syntec SpeedSource Mazda RX-8 team at the Rolex 24 at Daytona saw Mazda take its 22nd class win in the American 24-Hour classic.  Less than a month later, all eyes turned to the unification of open wheel racing.  While that was welcome news for race fans, it created a great deal of additional work for many organizations.  Mazda was hit especially hard with four Mazda-specific series directly impacted, and has spent the past six months in rebuilding schedules for 2008 and 2009.

Robert Davis, Senior Vice President, Product Development and Quality, Mazda North American Operations, reflected on the season so far.  “As racing fans, we were thrilled to see open-wheel racing come together again.  But it was not without a cost, and one of the costs was our having to rebuild race schedules and TV packages with no time to spare. I’m proud of the effort put forth by Mazda and all of our partners, ranging from series sponsors like Playboy to sanctioning bodies like IMSA, to individual race promoters, to our teams, and it was very much a collective effort.”  Davis added, “On-track, our teams have managed to stay focused and we’ve addedanother four wins in Grand-Am Rolex GT and three in SPEED World Challenge.  Both of those seasons are far from over and we hope to keep the fight going to the last races.”

The Olympics of Motorsports?

While fans of human powered sports are tuning in to Beijing for the other Olympics, motorsports road racing fans are in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin for the Road America Road Race Showcase to be held August 7-10.  Nearly 200 cars will be competing in eight different race series.  Mazda alone will have almost 100 of those drivers and cars representing over a dozen countries competing in the following classes.

• American Le Mans Series (LMP2 class)
• SPEED World Challenge Touring Cars
• Cooper Tires Atlantic Championship Powered by Mazda (Double-header)
• Star Mazda Championship Presented by Goodyear
• BFGoodrich/Skip Barber National Presented by Mazda (Double-header)
• Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup

MAZDASPEED 2008 season highlights through July include:

• Four wins in Grand-Am GT for the RX-8 including both of the “endurance” races.  SpeedSource drivers Sylvain Tremblay & Nick Ham have closed to within six points of the points lead with two races remaining.
• Three wins in SPEED World Challenge with four Mazda drivers ranked in the top ten in points.
• Strong fields in all of the Mazda Ladder Series races.The inaugural Mazda Grand Prix of Portland.
• The MAZDASPEED Motorsports Driver Development supported drivers are doing extremely well in 2008.

• Dane Cameron - Racing in the Cooper Tires Atlantic Championship Powered by Mazda — Currently seventh in points after five of 11 races.  Third among rookies. Three top-five finishes.
• Connor De Phillippi - Racing in the BFGoodrich/Skip Barber National Presented by Mazda - Currently eighth in points after eight of 14 races.  Three podium finishes.  Has led two races.
• Joel Miller - Racing in the Star Mazda Championship Presented by Goodyear — Currently first in points after five of 12 races.  One win, four podium finishes.
• Brad Rampelberg - Racing in the Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup — Currently second in points after three of eight races.  One win and two podium finishes.
• Jason Saini - Racing in the SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge Touring Car Championship — Currently fifth in points after seven of ten races.  Leading rookie in series.  One win, two podium finishes.

Open Competition Series Updates:

Series:        Grand-Am Rolex Series - GT (11 of 13 races completed)

Recap:

In the Manufacturers Championship Mazda is currently tied for second in points with Porsche just six points behind Pontiac with two races remaining.

SpeedSource #70  is currently second in team standings after 11 of 13 races.  The team has scored three wins (including Rolex 24 @ Daytona), and six podium finishes.  Drivers Sylvain Tremblay & Nick Ham are now just six points behind the leading Pontiac duo, having made up ground over the last four races.

SpeedSource #69  is currently seventh in team standings after 11 of 13 races including a breakthrough win at Watkins Glen.  Emil Assentato is currently third in the chase for the Bob Akin Award for sportsman drivers.

Both Racers Edge #30 and HyperSport # 40 have scored multiple top-ten finishes and are currently 12th and 13th in points.

Next Up:     August 29-31 @ Thunderbolt Park, New Jersey

Series:        SCCA Pro Racing SPEED World Challenge Touring Cars (7 of 10 races complete)

Recap:

Mazda is currently second in points behind Acura in the manufacturers chase.  The defending champions from Tri-Point Engineering have scored one win, and two podium finishes, while Tindol Motorsports has two wins and three podium finishes.

Next Up:     August 10 @ Road America

Series:        American Le Mans Series - LMP2 (6 of 11 races completed)

Recap:

Mazda is currently third in LMP2 manufacturers points behind Porsche and Acura.  B-K Motorsports is currently seventh in team points after six of 11 races.  The team is preparing for the race debut of an all new Lola coupe at the Petit Le Mans.

Next Up:     August 9 @ Road America.

MAZDA SPEC SERIES UPDATES:

Series:        Cooper Tires Atlantic Championship Powered by Mazda (5 of 11 races completed)

Recap:

With five of 11 races completed thus far in Atlantic Championship, the championship battle remains wide open for the top prize in the MAZDASPEED Motorsports Driver Development Ladder. The first five races have produced five different winners, including a three drivers who celebrated their first career victories.  Swiss driver Simona De Silvestro opened the 35th Anniversary season of Atlantic with her first career victory in Long Beach, becoming just the second woman in series history to earn a race victory. Round 2 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca went to popular Canadian racer James Hincliffe, who celebrated in Victory Circle for the second time in his Atlantic career but the first time since 2006. Junior Strous dominated the Mont-Tremblant weekend en route to his first career victory.  The Edmonton doubheader was split between the Jonathans; Bomarito and Summerton.  Just 23 points separate first and fifth in points as the teams prepare for the second half.

Next up:      August 9 & 10 @ Road America — The second “doubleheader” weekend for the season

Series:        Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear (5 of 12 races completed)

Recap:

Seven months through the year but only five races into a 12-event schedule thoroughly scrambled by the Champ Car/IRL unification, the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear has seen four different winners.

1. Sebring - Joel Miller
2. Miller Motorsports Park - John Edwards
3. Watkins Glen - Charles Hall
4. Portland #1 - Tom Gladdis
5. Portland #2 - John Edwards

Miller, now leads an extremely tight championship battle with just 11 points separating first from third. With four class victories, Vancouver native Chris Cumming leads the Expert Series for drivers 30 to 44 years of age, while California Chuck Hulse, with three class wins, leads the Master Series for drivers 45 and older.  Diversity among Star Mazda Championship drivers is at an all-time high, including competitors from the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Brazil, U.K., Ireland, Gibraltar, Poland and the Philippines.  There are three fast young female drivers, drivers ranging in age from 16 to 64, a father/son team and a brother/ sister team.

Next up:      August 9 @ Road America

Series:        BFGoodrich/Skip Barber National Presented by Mazda (8 of 14 races completed)

Recap:

Through round eight of 14, the 2008 BFGoodrich/Skip Barber National Presented by Mazda season has been - as usual - extremely competitive and tremendously close-fought. How close? Well, consider that these first six races have totaled 91 laps - and there have been 30 official lead changes - 10 of those in the first Mosport race alone.

1.     Sebring #1 - Gabby Chaves

2.     Sebring #2 - Fabio Orsolon

3.     VIR #1 - Gabby Chaves

4.     VIR #2 - Gabby Chaves

5.     Mosport #1 - Josef Newgarden

6.     Mosport #2 - Conor Daly

7.     Barber Motorsports Park #1 - Conor Daly

8.     Barber Motorsports Park #2 - Josef Newgarden

The points battle has become a four racer battle with Newgarden leading over Felipe Polehtto, Orsolon, and Daly all within nine points.

Next up:      August 9 & 10 @ Road America

Series:        SCCA Pro Racing Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup (3 of 8 races completed)

Recap:

Three races into the eight-race SCCA Pro Racing Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup schedule, Eric Foss, of Fort Worth, Texas, leads the Championship point standings on the strength of a perfect three-for-three podium finishes. Foss topped a record 30-car field at Road Atlanta (including five female drivers) to take his first MX-5 Cup win at the season opener.  Foss backed it up with a runner-up finish at Mosport, and third at Portland.  Robert Huffmaster, the 2007 SCCA Touring 3 National Champion won the very wet Mosport race while 2007 SCCA Spec Miata National Champion Brad Rampelberg winning at Portland and is challenging for the championship.  Thirteen points separate Foss from third place Todd Buras.  A fun highlight of the Portland round was the race within a race - the battle of the authors, Garth “The Art of Racing in The Rain” Stein vs Sam “Fast Guys, Rich Guys, and Idiots” Moses.  Sam edged Garth as the highest placed scribe.

Next up:      August 10 @ Road America

Club Racers Getting Ready:

Which club racer will be able to jump to the pros in the 2009 Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup? In 2006 the competition was open to any club racer in a Mazda or Mazda-powered who won an SCCA National Championship and four racers were eligible.  Andrew Caddell went on to win the first shootout and backed it up with a pair of wins in the MX-5 Cup.  In 2007 the competition was expanded to include NASA and the shootout included nine champions.  Brad Rampelberg won that shootout as is challenging for the championship.  For 2008, the competition will be expanded yet again to include the Skip Barber MX-5 regional champions.  The 2008 shootout will be a two stage competition.  All eligible drivers will submit a written proposal from which the driving finalists will be selected.  Those finalists will then compete in a post-season one-day winner take all shootout.

Even our non-track activities are race related

Robert Davis was recently nominated to the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America (MSHoF) Board of Trustees.  Robert will be hosting a table at the annual MSHoF induction, August 13 in Detroit.  MAZDASPEED Motorsports Business Development Manager John Doonan currently serves on the MSHoF Board of Directors, while MAZDASPEED Communications Officer Dean Case has been active with the nominating committee for many years.

At the recent Lyn St. James Women in the Winners Circle lunch, Mazda was recognized with an Opportunity Award for their support of women racers.  Mazda Marketing Manager Jim Jordan was specifically acknowledged for his contributions to the program.  Six women are racing with Mazda in Road America this weekend.

- They are all helping the Oregon Humane Society This Week -

July 21, 2008 (Portland, Oregon) - While most people might not lump race drivers, adoptable animals, Playboy Playmates and best selling authors together in one room, that is exactly what will be happening this week during the build-up to the Mazda Grand Prix of Portland.  Fans of any of the aforementioned groups are being alerted to the following:

What:        Book Signing @ Auto Town Mazda - Oregon Humane Society Fundraiser

Who:    Garth Stein, author of The Art of Racing in the Rain and Sam Moses, author of Fast Guys, Rich Guys, and Idiots will be signing books.  Thanks to Mazda, HarperCollins, and Bison Books, 100% of the book sales proceeds will benefit the non-profit Oregon Humane Society (OHS).  The OHS may even bring a few adoptable animals that night.

Where:    Auto Town Mazda, 16903 SE McLoughlin Blvd., Milwaukie, Oregon 97267.

When:    Thursday, July 24th from 6:00pm to 8:00pm

Cost:    Free to attend.  Books are being sold for $20 each.  Supplies are limited.  If you already own the books, you are welcome to bring it to be signed.  
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
What:        Book Signing & Photo Op - Each of the participating drivers/authors/Playmates has an adoptable animal named in their honor at the Oregon Humane Society Shelter this week.

Who:    Mazda Race Drivers Joel Miller, Ernesto Otero, and Laura Olson who each carry “Adopt A Shelter Animal” graphics on their racecars and authors Garth Stein and Sam Moses, plus Playboy Playmates Stephanie Glasson (July 2004), Pilar Lastra (August 2004), and Shallan Meiers (September 2002)  

Where:    Oregon Humane Society, 1067 NE Columbia Blvd., Portland, OR 97211

When:    Friday, July 25th from 3:00pm to 5:00pm

Cost:    Free to attend.  Animals are available for adoption starting at $35.

This initiative is in conjunction with the Mazda supported “Adopt-A-Shelter Animal” campaign began last season with MUTTS Comics and The Humane Society of the United States. The on-track action will take place this weekend…

What:    Rounds #4 & 5 of the 2008 Star Mazda Championship Presented by Goodyear and Round #3 of the 2008 SCCA Pro Racing Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup at the Mazda Grand Prix of Portland weekend.

Where:    Portland International Raceway, West Delta Park, 1940 North Victory Boulevard, Portland, OR 97217

When:    The races will be Saturday, July 26th & Sunday, July 27th.  Practice and qualifying will take place on July 25th and 26th. 

Cost:    Tickets are just $15/day.  More information at http://www.mazdagrandprix.com

For more information on the Oregon Humane Society, visit    www.oregonhumane.org
For directions to Auto Town Mazda visit    www.autotownmazda.com
For Mazda Grand Prix of Portland race tickets, visit    www.mazdagrandprix.com    
For more information on Garth Stein, visit    www.goenzo.com
For more information on Sam Moses, visit    www.sammoses.com        

Rounds 4 and 5 of the 12-race 2008 Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear take place July 25 - 27 at Portland International Raceway under… unique circumstances.  Not only is the series embroiled in one of the hottest championship battles in recent years with three different winners in the first three races, but, with the Champ Car/IRL unification scrambling the schedule, the Star Mazda Championship becomes the main event at this weekend’s Mazda Grand Prix of Portland.

The Star Mazda Championship race at PIR race in 2007 was a rainy affair that saw a first-lap, first-turn accident take out both top qualifiers, including Dane Cameron, who went on to win the 2007 championship.  Rookie Devin Cunningham won splashed his way to victory in the #33 AIM Autosport/Discovery Channel Mazda, followed by Natacha Gachnang and Ron White.

This year’s PIR weekend will be vastly different than any before, and presents a unique opportunity for the Star Mazda Championship to take center stage as the main event of the weekend.  The Mazda Grand Prix of Portland will showcase an extraordinarily diverse variety of racing, including a Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear double-header as well as the Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup.  Also on the schedule are the Oregon Brewers Festival, bicycles, drag racing and motocross, as well as a huge ‘cruise in,’ drifting and a ‘time attack.’

The Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear will race twice, once on Saturday July 26th and again on Sunday July 27th.  On both days the race, featuring the series’ new standing start format, will take place from 2 - 3 pm.   

Joel Miller dominated the season-opener at Sebring, winning from the pole in the #20 JDC Motorsports/Mazda/K&N Air Filter Mazda.  Round 2 at Miller Motorsports Park surprised everyone with a dominant victory, again from the pole, by last-minute entrant and ex-Red Bull/Forsythe Atlantic racer John Edwards in the #7 AIM Autosport Mazda.  And although Alex Ardoin, winner of the 2007 season-ending race at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca sat on the pole for Round 3 at Watkins Glen, it was Charles Hall - who finished 2nd at Both Sebring and Miller - who crossed the finish line first in the #77 Andersen Racing/Blimpie/ AccentBanking.com/Pardoes Solicitors/Allied Mazda… and took over the lead in the driver championship points battle with Miller in second just two points behind, 124 to 122.

Among the 30+ field of Star Mazda Championship cars drag-racing into Turn 1 is a remarkable diversity of drivers, including competitors from U.S., Canada, Mexico, Brazil, U.K., Ireland, Gibraltar and Poland — as well as drivers ranging in age from 16 to 50-something, company CEOs, a brother/sister team and three fast female racers.  

Drivers on the ‘ones to watch’ list include Irishman Peter Dempsey who has finished in the top-4 at all three previous events and is currently 3rd in the championship with 105 points driving the #21 Andersen Racing / Center Jewellers.ie / Quayside.ie / Allied Mazda.  Dempsey will debut a new sponsor at PIR, LotusWorks, a global provider of technical, construction and management services. Its customers include a range of process manufacturing industries, commercial and industrial construction companies, electric utilities, power project developers, financial institutions and installation contractors around the world.

“LotusWorks is happy and excited to support Peter Dempsey in the Star Mazda Championship,” said Steve Ostrowski, president of LotusCM, the construction management division of LotusWorks, and president of LotusGroup’s North American operations.    “We view this as an excellent opportunity to get involved with a young and talented Irish driver. It is also a great way to thank all our customers for being part of LotusWorks. We would like to wish Peter the best of luck.”

Alex Ardoin, the Louisiana native who won the 2007 Star Mazda season-ender at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca started from the pole and finished 3rd at Watkins Glen and comes to PIR 4th in the championship with 98 points.  And serving notice that he has stepped up his game with a standout 5th-place finish in Round 3 is Billy Goshen in the #82 Goshen Motorsports/Merv Griffin Entertainment/Global Tracking Mazda.  Goshen is 5th in the championship with 86 points.

Of the three female racers in the field, Kristy Kester, half of the brother/sister Kester Racing team, is setting the pace.  The 19 year-old biomedical science major at Texas A&M scored an impressive 8th-place finish at Sebring in the #48 Kester Racing/Texas World Speedway/Unifirst Mazda.  Unable to qualify at Watkins Glen due to a mechanical problem, she started dead last and raced her way to a 12th-place finish and currently sits 9th in the championship points battle.  Michelle Bumgarner, a 19-year old native of Manila, Philippines is an international karting champion and Formula BMW graduate who scored a top-20 finish in Round Two driving the #33 John Walko Racing/Specturm-OSO Asia/Oakley/Philippines Department of Tourism Mazda.  Natalia Kowalska of Biesiekeirz, Poland, is a karting champion who has raced in the European Formula Renault series.  She made her Star Mazda Championship debut in Round 3, where she finished 12th in the #43 John Walko Racing/ Natan Developments Mazda.

In the Expert Series (drivers 30-44), the current class championship leader with two class victories and one 2nd-place finish is Vancouver, B.C. native Chris Cumming, driver of the #16 World Speed Motorsports / Inviro Medical Mazda.  He finished 10h overall at Watkins Glen.  Leading the Master Series (drivers 44 and older) is Californian Chuck Hulse, driver of the #12 JDC Motorsports/Silicon Salvage Mazda, with two class victories.

For the younger drivers on their way up the Motorsports ladder, the Star Mazda Championship - now in its 18th year as one of the most prolific and successful open-wheel driver development series in auto racing today — is the college basketball, the triple-A baseball, the Junior A hockey of auto racing, a high-speed training ground for future stars of the sport, such as the most recent American Formula One driver Scott Speed, Indy Car stars Marco Andretti and Graham Rahal and prototype phenom Colin Braun as well as the newest addition to Michael Waltrip’s NASCAR Sprint Cup team, Michael McDowell, who won the 2005 Star Mazda Championship.

For more mature drivers in whom the competitive fire still burns brightly, the Star Mazda Championship provides a high-profile stage in the form of the Expert (drivers 30 to 44 years old) and Master Series (drivers 45 and older).  Expert and Master drivers compete for points and prize money right along with the young hotshoes, but are also competing among themselves for a place on the podium with the top-3 finishers as well as their own year-end championship.

The Mazda Grand Prix of Portland at Portland International Raceway, July 25 - 27, is a ‘double-header’ weekend with two qualifying sessions and two races.  On track activities begin with a Promoter test day on July 24, followed by official practice on July 25. Qualifying for the first race (Round Four) will take place 10:00 to 10:45 am Saturday, July 26, with the race scheduled to take the green flag at 2:00 pm (all times are West Coast).  Qualifying and race two (Round Five) take place at precisely the same times on Sunday, July 27.  The races will be broadcast on SPEED, on August 9, Round four at 12 noon (ET) and round 5 at 1:00 pm (TV times are Eastern Time).

For more information on the Star Mazda Championship and its drivers, as well as the Mazda Motorsports ladder system, please visit www.starmazda.com and www.mazdamotorsports.com.  For interviews, photos, etc., contact Star Mazda Championship Communications Director Peter Frey at (818) 906-6997 / StarMazdaPR@aol.com.

 
For more information on the various Mazda spec series, visit:

www.champcaratlantic.com               www.starmazda.com

www.skipbarber.com                          www.mx-5cup.com