2011 Mazda MX-5 GT race car

2011 Mazda MX-5 GT race car - Front Side Top View

This is the fourth time that Mazda has entered Britcar and this year the Mazda MX-5 GT car will be driven by two Mazda works drivers including experienced Mazda racing driver Mark Ticehurst, 39 from Hassocks, West Sussex and Auto Express journalist and racing driver Owen Mildenhall.

Mazda MX-5 GT race car will be strong contender against the more powerful race cars in its class at the Britcar MSA British Endurance Championship 2011. Weighing in at just 850kg, Jota Sport examined every nut and bolt to reduce component weight and then match the power to the weight to give the lightest and most powerful MX-5 ever built.

Weight saving strategies such as, the removal of interior components, reducing component weight and dipping the shell in acid lost 15kg from the MX-5 race car.

The race engineering team that will run the cars in the 2011 series, called “Jota Sport”, took 400 hours to build the shell to a specification that ensured it was 17 times stronger than required by the FIA. During the development they faced a number of engineering challenges such as suspension adjustments, integrating the six speed sequential gearbox, and lowering the engine.

The Mazda MX-5 GT race car will accelerate from 0-to-60mph in just three seconds and hit a top speed of 160mph. An important aspect of the build was to ensure the Mazda MX-5 still remains true to its roots: great handling, huge fun-to-drive and the ability to challenge bigger more powerful competition, but at an affordable cost. The Mazda GT car ticks all those boxes and is now set to demonstrate its challenger spirit on the track.

2011 Mazda MX-5 GT race car - Rear Angle View

2011 Mazda MX-5 GT race car - Interior View