IMSA Is Planning Its First Spec MX-5 Race on an Oval Track

MX-5 Cup, the IMSA-sanctioned spec racing category for ND-generation Mazda MX-5 Miatas, is headed to a short oval track. The series has announced plans for a 100-lap race at the half-mile Martinsville Speedway in Virginia in October.

While the announcement may seem surprising, IMSA has already tested MX-5 Cup cars at the famous "paperclip." Participants quoted after the four-car test seemed optimistic about what the cars could do on the short oval. One participant, MX-5 newcomer and NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Jr., said that an MX-5 Cup race at the track would be "fantastic."

Modern MX-5 Cup races are already known for close, pack-like racing and outrageous last-lap lead changes. An oval race is not quite a natural next step, but it is a good fit with the sort of racing the category hosts. Martinsville, a relatively flat half-mile track that has hosted NASCAR since the series began in 1948, is a natural first choice for the first-ever major Miata race on an oval.

The format will be new to most of the field, but a few members of the MX-5 Cup garage already have a surprising connection to NASCAR. Chad McCumbee, co-owner of the McCumbee McAleer Racing team, is both a long-time NASCAR veteran and the actor who played Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the ESPN original movie 3. Nine-time MX-5 race winner Connor Zilisch is not only the category's 2022 rookie of the year, he is a highly touted NASCAR development driver for Trackhouse Racing. Zilisch also won in the IMSA LMP2 class at both Daytona and Sebring this year.

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