The 2018 season of the Miata Cup took off last April as members of the Miata Club Philippines race for championship points in the five different classes of the series. The first two rounds of the season were held at the Clark International Speedway.
“The Miata Cup is our club’s way to have our members enjoy the true sports car feel of their MX-5s,” shares Gino Reyes, the current president of the Miata Club Philippines. He adds, “Our dream is to race our Miatas. This year, with the support of Mazda Philippines, Shell Lubricants and Maynilad, we can continue to live out our passion, drive our cars and compete in a friendly and safe racing environment.”
The Miata Cup is one of the longest running sports car racing events in the country after nearly two decades of circuit racing. It is currently run in conjunction with the Clubman Race Series events held at both the Clark International Speedway and the Batangas Racing Circuit.
“Mazda Philippines continues to support the Miata Cup for 2018,” says Mikko David, Press and Customer Relations Manager of Bermaz Auto Philippines, the exclusive distributor of Mazda vehicles in the country. “Our goal is to develop the driving and racing skills of MCP members,” adds David. “The series also goes hand in hand with Mazda’s Jinba Ittai philosophy as it aims to make the driver and his car operate as one on the race track. This has been in the DNA of the MX-5 ever since the open-top roadster was introduced in 1989. Every Mazda vehicle has since derived its fun to drive appeal from this philosophy.”
Open to members of the Miata Club Philippines, the Miata Cup sees drivers with varying skills and MX-5s, from daily drivers to purpose-built race cars, compete in one race. It is a gentleman racing series with drivers having five different classes to choose from as they run all four generations of the MX-5 nameplate. All classes are based on lap time brackets and once a driver picks a class to join, he must not go faster than the indicated lap time for that particular class in order to earn points throughout the season to become the class champion. At the end of the year, the class champion with the most consistent times in the final race will take home the Miata Cup.
The current rules have been in place since the 2015 season. And since its introduction, a record number of participants have joined the races not only to race hard, but also to enjoy the emotional connection they can achieve with their MX-5s on the race track.
The 2018 Miata Cup will hold its succeeding rounds at the Batangas Racing Circuit on June 24th and August 19th. It will return for the season finale at the Clark International Speedway on November 25th.