It’s been a while since a Mazda-powered prototype has been in victory lane at an American Le Mans Series event, and the same could be said for Dyson Racing. In fact, both outfits last tasted the champagne in 2005, and now, some four years later, Dyson and Mazda are back to their winning ways.
Mazda's last, and only win in ALMS competition up until Saturday came with B-K Motorsports at Mid-Ohio in 2005. (LAT) » More Photos
One could say it’s been a long road for for both organizations. For the Japanese automaker, success came early in its ALMS tenure when Jamie Bach and Guy Cosmo drove a Mazda rotary-powered B-K Motorsports Courage C65 to a fluke victory in only its second-ever race. But since that day at Mid-Ohio, Mazda had been winless in Series competition.
It sure wasn’t for lack of effort. After two seasons with the reliable, yet overweight Courage chassis and the underachieving 3-rotor engine, B-K and Mazda went in a new direction in 2007 with a proven Lola chassis fitted with a four-liter AER-derived turbocharged powerplant. After numerous driver lineup shuffles and a short-lived debut of Lola’s B08/86 coupe last year, B-K closed its doors at the end of the 2008 season, shuttering Mazda’s factory-supported team.
But it didn’t take long for another squad to step up to the plate. Enter Dyson Racing. After three winless seasons, two with the technically complex Porsche RS Spyders, the Poughkeepsie, N.Y.-based team joined forces with Mazda with its sights set on the LMP2 championship.
Five races into the new partnership, and both Dyson and Mazda have achieved the first target.
Marino Franchitti starred in the Dyson Lola-Mazda early on, pulling out to a commanding lead, even before the Lowe's Fernandez Acura hit trouble. (John Dagys) » More Photos
“Especially in this economic climate, a win like this is everything,” said John Doonan, Motorsports Team Manager for Mazda North America. “I can’t explain it. Our dealers are out there scrambling for every car sale right now, and I think today is an example of the team that had to scrap for a victory. No clutch uphill; car spins. My heart almost jumped out of my chest!”
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The race certainly didn’t go to plan for either of the BP-sponsored Lola-Mazdas. Marino Franchitti made an early pass on P2 pole sitter Luis Diaz to put his white and green No. 20 out in front. Chris Dyson in the sister machine had also gotten by the Lowe’s Fernandez Acura, which had been undefeated this season heading into Saturday’s two-hour and 45-minute race.
Soon, Diaz hit trouble, first handling and gearbox issues, which cost the team over 10 laps. Then, the Acura suffered a tire puncture and front-end damage with Adrian Fernandez at the wheel.
By that time, the Chris Dyson-driven No. 16 machine was already out of the race with electrical problems, and Butch Leitzinger, who had taken over the No. 20, battled clutch issues while still maintaining the lead.
In fact, Leitzinger had a few hairy moments, including stalling on track after avoiding a spinning car with only four minutes remaining. But to the delight of his crew, the veteran driver jump-started the car on its starter motor and took the checkered flag - six laps ahead of the wounded Fernandez Acura in second.
A well-deserved victory for the Dyson crew. L-R: Rob Dyson, Marino Franchitti, Butch Leitzinger, Bob Leitzinger and John Doonan. (Regis Lefebure/Dyson Racing) » More Photos
Saturday’s win marked a number of firsts, including Franchitti’s long awaited first series win and Mazda’s first triumph with its four-cylinder MZR-R turbo, after seeing over two years of competition in both the U.S. and Europe.
"That means a great deal,” Doonan said of the MZR-R’s first win. “Mike Lancaster and all the guys at AER have worked awfully hard. We’re doing this [program] with a bunch of small companies, and just a little bit of budget, so this thing puts a big feather on our pad going forward.”
Saturday’s win could very well be the first of many for the Dyson/Mazda combination.
