Mazda is celebrating its victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1991 with two special liveries at the Sahlen's Six Hours of the Glen, round six of the 2016 IMSA SportsCar Championship, at Watkins Glen International on July 3. The No. 55 Mazda prototype will feature a vivid green and orange color scheme in honor of the 25th anniversary of Mazda victory at Le Mans, while the No. 70 car will carry a similar design, but in Soul Red, Silver and Machine Grey, the brand's current corporate colors.
The only Japanese manufacturer to have won the iconic 24 Hours of Le Mans, Mazda achieved its big victory in 1991 with the rotary-powered 787B race car. The green-and-orange colored race car was motivated by a 2.6-liter, four-rotor Wankel engine and was driven to victory by Johnny Herbert, Volker Weidler, and Bertrand Gachot. The winning car completed 362 laps and defeated factory efforts from Porsche, Jaguar, Mercedes-Benz, and Peugeot. Interestingly enough, the famous green-and-orange livery was inspired by Renown, a clothing company which made argyle socks, the team's then-primary sponsor.
The tribute, No. 55 prototype will be driven by Jonathan Bomarito, Tristan Nunez, and Spencer Pigot. Both Nunez and Pigot weren't even born when Mazda won the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
“I may not have been born when they won Le Mans, but being an age where technology is key, there are a lot of videos on the internet of that car! I’ve been watching the 787B for years - even before I got picked up by Mazda. It’s one of those cars that really captures your eye - and the sound that rotary motor made! It’s going to be an honor to run that paint scheme," said Nunez.
Mazda has yet to win any races this season, but scored 150 points, enough for a third place in the manufacturers' championship. In the teams' standings, the No. 55 car is fifth, while the No. 70 car is seventh.
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Why it matters
Mazda takes great pride in its Le Mans win and that's not surprising given the two unique achievements that come with it. Not is it the only Asian company to win the race, Mazda is also the only brand to do so with an engine not driven by traditional reciprocating pistons. Tribute liveries are quite popular nowadays and we've seen them used by nearly all important race teams, including BMW and Porsche. But Mazda's is truly unique thanks to its rich colors, and the No. 55 prototype will definitely get a lot of attention during the race. Not to mention that the current race car, underpinned by the Lola B08/80 chassis, looks tremendous in the green-and-orange paint scheme.
1991 Mazda 787B
Read our full review on the 1991 Mazda 787B here.