The drivers of the IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship have a short turnaround from racing at one of North America’s most daunting circuits to another. One week after racing at Watkins Glen International, the Mazda Team Joest drivers will compete this weekend at the Canadian Tire Motorsport Park outside of Toronto.
Separated by a few hundred miles, the two circuits share similar high-speed, high-risk characteristics. The first two corners of the 2.2-mile CTMP circuit are among the most challenging in North America – high-speed, downhill and blind that will test not only the talent and commitment of drivers Jonathan Bomarito, Oliver Jarvis, Tristan Nunez and Harry Tincknell but also the aerodynamics and mechanical grip of the Mazda RT24-P.
With last week’s Sahlen’s Six Hours of the Glen providing its share of challenges for Mazda Team Joest, including a complete rebuild for the No. 77 Castrol/ModSpace Mazda RT24-P before the race after an incident in practice, a tenth-place finish for the No. 55 Mazda RT24-P provides the team something to build off for this weekend. Tenth place is not a satisfactory finish for the members of Mazda Team Joest, but in a race where the team’s strategy was compromised by an ill-timed full-course caution as well as a penalty, it provides optimism as the team hits the track for this morning’s first practice session.
Mazda Team Joest is made up of technical partners from around the world, including Multimatic which is based nearby in Markham, Ontario. Multimatic is responsible for the chassis development of the Mazda RT24-P, this weekend is in sense a home race for Mazda Team Joest. Their work to improve the Mazda RT24-P’s aerodynamics and chassis performance will be on display this weekend on the high-speed Canadian Tire Motorsports Park.
Quotes
John Doonan, Director, Mazda Motorsports
“We have been working very hard to refine all of the pieces of our program to do one thing and one thing only – win races for the Mazda brand and our fans. We were in the hunt at Sebring, we showed some promise with a podium at Mid-Ohio, and it is now time to deliver. Everyone in the program, to a person, wants to stand on the top step of the podium and we will never give up pursuing that goal. Hopefully, some hometown magic will be on our side as we will race just down the road from Multimatic. We look forward to the challenges of CTMP and plan to bring our very best, as always.”
No. 55 Mazda RT24-P
Jonathan Bomarito
“Canadian Tire Motorsports Park is a very fast, old-school track that will punish you for driving mistakes. This is usually a very physical, fast-paced race that is exciting for both the fans and the drivers and it should be a good circuit for our Mazda RT24-P.”
Harry Tincknell
“I’m really looking forward to the weekend, especially considering it’s a home event for everyone at Multimatic. Canadian Tire Motorsports Park is another new track for me, so I’m learning everything I can from my very experienced co-driver, Jonathan and my teammate Tristan about the track and will hopefully get up to speed as quickly as possible. Hopefully all four of us can have a strong weekend. Obviously, we’ll build on our result in Watkins Glen and hopefully have another reliable race and try to get on the podium this Sunday with our Mazda RT24-P.”
No. 77 Castrol/ModSpace Mazda RT24-P
Tristan Nunez
“CTMP is a crazy track – very high speed and high commitment. I have had some good races there in the past, so I’m even more excited this year with the new Mazda Team Joest program than in years past.”
Oliver Jarvis
“After a tough Watkins Glen, it’s great to be heading straight into Canadian Tire Motorsports Park. Again, it’s a track I’ve never been to before but from learning it on the simulator, it’s clearly a very fast, challenging circuit and I imagine traffic will play a key role. It’s definitely a track that I feel should suit our Mazda RT24-P and it would be great to get back on the podium with Tristan.”
Source. Mazda
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