Mazda Spirit Racing: What It Is And Will It Come To PH?

Over the past few years, Mazda Motor Corporation has been undergoing a transformation that made its brand project a more premium and upmarket image whilst still retaining the sporting qualities that its cars are known for. However, this pursuit for a more mature and premium image came at the cost of Mazdaspeed, its in-house tuning and motorsports brand. In its favor is what you now call Mazda Spirit Racing, the new, in-house tuning and motorsports brand of the Japanese automaker.

Mazdaspeed has been on the back burner for years as the performance sub-brand of Mazda wasn’t anymore in line with the brand’s new, more upmarket image. A Mazda spokesperson told CNET in 2020 the reason for the discontinuation of Mazdaspeed:

“Mazda is focused on becoming more mature and upscale. It is our priority to continue to evolve the next generation of Skyactiv Technologies. As part of this evolution, we are refining and applying our turbocharged engines to more models to provide better, stronger performance with engaging driving dynamics.”

But in recent months, including our visit to the Mazda Fan Festa at Fuji Speedway, Mazda Spirit Racing has been making rounds at Mazda’s events in its home market of Japan. The brand has even participated most recently at the 2024 Tokyo Auto Salon, where more details about this performance sub-brand were revealed.

Mazda Spirit Racing currently participates in various motorsports events, most notably the Super Taikyu series in Japan. At the 2024 Tokyo Auto Salon, the brand also showcased its potential as an in-house tuning brand, wherein the company revealed two accessory lineup concepts for the Mazda MX-5 and Mazda 3.

Let’s first take a look at the Mazda Spirit Racing RS Concept. Using the facelifted 2024 Mazda MX-5 as the base car, it comes with a unique body kit, 17-inch alloy wheels, and a single exhaust. There are also subtle stripes and body graphics, which are in line with Mazda Spirit Racing’s more mature aesthetics over its predecessor, Mazdaspeed.

Moving inside, the MX-5 comes with Recaro racing seats upholstered in Ultrasuede and the same material can be seen in the lower dash, shifter, center console, and steering wheel. Those racing seats are also designed to accommodate a four-point racing harness, as seen here.

Next is the Mazda Spirit Racing 3, which, as the name obviously suggests, is based on the most recent Mazda 3. The Mazda 3 likewise gets a unique body kit with 18-inch alloy wheels that are similar in design to the ones in the MX-5. Similar body graphics adorn the Mazda 3, while the rear end comes with a large roof spoiler. Interior changes are much more subtle, though the company hasn’t fully revealed what accessories are fitted to the interior of this particular Mazda 3.

Unfortunately, these concepts only preview external accessories, as there is no formal announcement yet on performance parts availability. What is confirmed are suspension upgrades, which, when combined with the aerodynamic benefits of the body kit, are supposed to emulate the developments they’ve learned when creating the racecars for the Super Taikyu series.

Will Mazda Spirit Racing make its way into the Philippines? Only time will tell, but here’s to hoping that the motorsports and in-house tuning brand do make their way to Filipino customers.