In what is a an exciting new phase for MARC Cars Australia, the Queensland-based manufacturer has shipped two of its 550Hp Mazda 3 V8 endurance racers to the United States as they prepare to compete in the inaugural running of the Mazda Raceway California 8 Hours being held at the famous Laguna Seca circuit in October.
The team will enter two MARC Mazda 3 variants of their renowned sedan-bodied vehicles in the invitational class, in which both cars have undergone a full endurance preparation program. One car is brand new and has been built as a left-hand drive car to demonstrate the flexibility of the MARC platform.
“Were so excited to finally bring our MARC V8 racers to the USA to compete,” said team boss Ryan McLeod. “We’ve had great success racing in Europe and Australia at some iconic venues. But to be honest, I’ve always wanted to take the cars to the USA. When the SRO Motorsports Group first told us about this event we signed up immediately. The entire team is very excited.”
Headlining the driver line-up will be MARC Cars foundation drivers Jake Camilleri and Keith Kassulke. The remainder of the driver roster will include five drivers from Australia, while one place remains open in the hope of securing an American driver with local track knowledge.
Camilleri is most successful driver to date of all drivers who have raced with the MARC Cars Australia program, and was the main man behind the development of the Mazda bodyshell, which first debuted at the Bathurst 12 Hour in 2014.
“Jake’s family owns Grand Prix Mazda which is Australia’s largest Mazda dealership, and also provides all of the Mazda body parts to assemble our MARC Cars,” explained McLeod. “In fact it was Jake’s idea to fit the Mazda bodies in the first place to the MARC frame and they’ve become a real crowd favourite. They look sensational, they sound great, and it’s a perfect fit to debut your program in the USA at Mazda Raceway.”
The Mazda Raceway California 8 Hours will be held from October 13-15, 2017 at Laguna Seca in California. US-Based drivers who may be interested in being part of the MARC Cars program are urged to contact the team via info@marccars.com