Joey Jordan: Groomed in Spec Miata

Joey Jordan had an impressive run in Touring Car B at the end of the 2015 Pirelli World Challenge season; he attributes much of his performance to racing in Spec Miata.

Joey Jordan grew up in racing, and in Mazda racing in particular. His father Joe and uncle Jim both worked in the automotive industry – Jim had a stint working at Mazda North America – and ran a race team that competed in SCCA Pro Racing's World Challenge Touring Car Championships with Mazda6s and elsewhere as well.

The young Jordan had shown promise in Spec Miata in NASA's Teen Mazda Challenge. But when he stepped into the CorkSport Mazda2 to race in Pirelli World Challenge Touring Car B at the end of the 2015 season, his performance was still a revelation; he started five races, scored five podium finishes and four victories.

"I definitely attribute it to how I developed in the racing world, which was in Spec Miata and the Teen Mazda Challenge," he says of his success. "It's such a great little car and the series is so competitive. It is an amateur series, but any of those top 10 guys in Spec Miata could come here and do what I'm doing. It's such a great way to learn. It's prepared me; I took a step up to the next level and I'm already being successful."