Mazda had a very good weekend in the ROLEX Daytona 24 hours race in Florida. The #70 Mazda RX-8 piloted by Sylvain Tremblay, Nick Ham, David Haskell, and Raphael Matos took the checkered flag, coming in 1st place in GT Class, 9th over all. Three of the Speedsource built cars came in the top 10 in GT Class, top 20 overall!!

The #69 SpeedSource Mazda RX-8 piloted by 2007 Bob Akin Cup winner, Emil Assentato, Jeff Segal, Nick Longhi and Lonnie Pechnik came in 5th in class, 13th overall.

The #30 Racers Edge Motorsports' Mazda RX-8 achieved 10th in GT class 20th overall, and was piloted by Drew Staveley as the checkered flag fell.

Actor Patrick Dempsey crossed the finish line 24th in GT Class, 39th overall in the #40 Hyper Sport Mazda RX-8.

Congratulations to all six Mazda RX-8s that entered the 24 hour classic. Joining the #70 and #69 SpeedSource, #40 SOBE Hypersport and #30 Racer's Edge entry were two Spencer Motorsports and the Goldin Brothers entry.

Official Release

SPEEDSOURCE CASTROL SYNTEC MAZDA RX-8 WINS GT CLASS AT 2008 ROLEX 24 AT DAYTONA

January 27, 2008 (Daytona Beach, Fla). After 24 hours of close competition among 41 cars, the SpeedSource Castrol Syntec Mazda RX-8 team won the GT class at the Rolex 24 at Daytona to kick off the 2008 GrandAm season. The SpeedSource driving team of Sylvain Tremblay, David Haskell, Nick Ham, and Raphael Matos started from the pole, and led 323 of 664 laps, on their way to ninth overall and the class win.

The race was a severe strategic challenge as there were intermittent rain showers for over half of the race and a total of 24 caution periods, many the result of on track incidents. The SpeedSource team was challenged by the slippery conditions with multiple spins, one of which resulted in minor body damage to the rear of the car including a broken taillamp. Other than the taillamp however, the rotary-powered Mazda ran flawlessly throughout the day-night-day race.

The SpeedSource Mazda team beat the runner-up Porsche by over five laps. The win was the 22nd class win at the race for Mazda and a ended a lengthy winning streak by Porsche at the biggest 24 hour race in America. Along the way, the SpeedSource number 70 car beat over two dozen Porsche 911 GT-3s, a handful of Pontiacs, a pair of Ferrari 430 Challenges, a Corvette, some Mustangs and a BMW M6. There were a total of 55 lead changes among 10 cars in the class, but no one could pass the RX-8 for the final 185 laps.

“This was a great win for the entire SpeedSource team. Endurance racing in particular is a team sport and I am so proud of our collective effort. Thanks especially to our new partners at Castrol, who believed in our ability to deliver. Thanks also to Fresh from Florida for their support of our in-car camera, as well as the many rotary enthusiasts who have supported our efforts, “ remarked SpeedSource owner/engineer/driver Sylvain Tremblay.

Backing up the Castrol Syntec RX-8 were two other SpeedSource-built RX-8s in the top ten. Finishing fifth in the GT class was the SpeedSource FXDD RX-8 of Emil Assentato, Jeff Segal, Nick Longhi, and Lonnie Pechnik. The final top-ten car was the RX-8 of Racers Edge Motorsports driven by Ken Dobson, Robert Thorne, Craig Stone and Drew Staveley.

22 Mazda Rotary Powered class wins at the Rolex 24 at Daytona

1975 Ray Walle, Tom Reddy RX-2 1^st in GTU Touring (14^th overall)

1979 Yoshimi Katayama, Yojiro Terada, Takashi Yorino RX-7 1^st in GTU (5^th overall)

1982 Yoshimi Katayama, Yojiro Terada, Takashi Yorino RX-7 1^st in GTO (4^th overall)

1982 Kathy Rude*, Lee Mueller, Allan Moffett RX-7 1^st in GTU (6^th overall)

* First ever class win for a woman in IMSA history.

1983 Pete Halsmer, Bob Reed, Rick Knoop, Tom Gloy RX-7 1^st in GTO (3^rd overall)

1983 Lee Mueller, Hugh McDonough, Terry Visger RX-7 1^st in GTU (12^th overall)

1984 Ira Young, Bob Reed, Jack Baldwin, Jim Cook RX-7 1^st in GTU (12^th overall)

1985 Kelly Marsh, Ron Pawley, Don Marsh Argo-Mazda 1^st in Lights (10^th overall)

1985 Amos Johnson, Jack Dunham, Yojiro Terada RX-7 1^st in GTU (12^th overall)

1986 Frank Rubino, Ray Mummery, John Schneider Argo-Mazda 1^st in Lights (7^th overall)

1986 Amos Johnson, Dennis Shaw, Jack Dunham RX-7 1^st in GTU (8^th overall)

1987 Amos Johnson, Dennis Shaw, Bob Lazier RX-7 1^st in GTU (10^th overall)

1988 Amos Johnson, Dennis Shaw, Bob Lazier RX-7 1^st in GTU (15^th overall)

1989 Al Bacon, Bob Reed, Rod Millen RX-7 1^st in GTU (12^th overall)

1990 John Grooms, Michael Greenfield, Frank Jellinek Jr. Argo-Mazda 1^st in Lights (9^th overall)

Peter Greenfield

1990 Peter Uria, Bob Dotson, Jim Pace RX-7 1^st in GTU (12^th overall)

1991 Dick Greer, Al Bacon, Mike Mees, Peter Uria RX-7 1^st in GTU (13^th overall)

1992 Al Bacon, Dick Greer, Mike Mees, Peter Uria RX-7 1^st in GTU (7^th overall)

1993 John Grooms, Frank Jellinek Jr., Jim Downing Kudzu-Mazda 1^st in Lights (7^th overall)

Tim McAdam

1993 Dick Greer, Al Bacon, Peter Uria, Mike Mees RX-7 1^st in GTU (9^th overall)

2001 Howard Katz, Jim Downing, AJ Smith, Chris Ronson Kudzu-Mazda 1^st in SRP (11^th overall)

2008 Sylvain Tremblay, David Haskell, Nick Ham, Raphael Matos Mazda RX-8 1^st in GT (9^th overall)