Auto Channel

The 2010 Mazda3 made its motorsports debut this past weekend on its home track, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca at the final race of the 2009 SPEED World Challenge season. The car was developed and built by Tri-Point Motorsports, which has been running Mazdas in the series since 2001. The team has raced a trio of Mazda6s for the past few season, even capturing the Touring Car title in 2007 with Jeff Altenburg behind the wheel.


Mazda hasn't released any official details on the car quite yet, but a company representative told us that the race was less about going fast and was more of a "public test" to give the car some much needed track time. In fact, the car was completed just before the race and didn't even get its sponsor decals until the second practice day. Even so, rookie driver Eric Foss managed to qualify in 12th and zoom-zoomed his way to a respectable 11th place in Sunday's race.


More Photos