With the relatively new additions of Porsche and Nissan to the LMP1 class of endurance racing and Le Mans, it is little surprise that other firms are considering entrances into the sport. One of those firms could be Mazda, a former Le Mans veteran.
Mazda won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1991 with the potent rotary-engined 787B. Despite being out of the sport for well over a decade, the current project manager for the Mazda MX-5, Nobuhiro Yamamoto, did reveal there is a desire within the marque to return to the world’s most famous endurance race.
“I know that the expectation for us to return to Le Mans is high. I can imagine a day when Mazda returns. I hope – as with many other Mazda fans – that we go back to Le Mans.”
A spokesman from Mazda’s North American motorsports department added to this by saying “Everyone at Mazda would love to see the only Japanese company to ever win the 24 Hours of Le Mans return to the famed twice-around-the-clock classic. Whether that’ll actually happen isn’t something we can discuss at this time, but, given our historical and current involvement in motorsports, our interest in the event should be no surprise to anyone. We agree with Yamamoto-san when he says he hopes it happens.”
[Via Autoblog]
