MAZDA: 'Joy Driving'

In Japanese it's "hashiru yorokobi," which eloquently translates as "the joy derived from driving."

Beyond the joy found in the act of driving itself, hashiru yorokobi is the sum of hundreds of moments that can transpire before, during and after the driving experience that leaves one feeling joyful.

Yet, if there's one arena where the joy derived from driving is larger than life, it's motorsport. At Mazda Motorsports, hashiru yorokobi spreads from their pinnacle prototype program in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship all the way to H Production Street class in SCCA Solo competition. In fact, a Mazda can be entered in more than 81 individual categories of racing in the United States, from among 13 different current, past and powered Mazda cars.

While many car brands elect to pour their resources into a narrow set of motor racing niches, Mazda Motorsports casts a very wide net. As Mazda Motorsports director John Doonan explains, the broad base is integral to the overall Mazda brand strategy.

"Mazda Motorsports has always been the most visible representation of Mazda's passion for performance and what we call the 'the challenger spirit,' which is one of our brand pillars," says Doonan. "When we talk about the diversity of our motorsports activities, it stems in large part from the fact that many people at Mazda, from executives on down, care not just about racing, but about racers as people.

"Fundamentally, that means we looked across the whole landscape of motorsport from the amateur to professional. The various scholarships and contingencies that we fund are part of a strategy to create a storytelling platform that connects with our customers at a human level, even if they're not motorsports fans."

Least visible, but most widely felt are Mazda Motorsports activities at the amateur level. At race meetings and autocross events across the country, a veritable armada of Mazdas is likely to be present. Here, the joy derived from driving is found in abundance. Proud racers happy to have won, finish, or even just to have made the grid flash a hashiru yorokobi-induced smile. For them, racing is an avocation that often permeates many facets of their personal and professional life, too.

"We look at Mazda Motorsports as a pyramid, and at the foundation of it is amateur racing," says Doonan. "This segment is critical, not only because we have a strong business case for it through the sale of cars and parts, but also because this group has proven over time to be tremendously loyal in ways that have a direct effect on our production vehicle sales."

Undoubtedly, Mazda is a major car company, but in a land among giants, they are definitely on the small end. Over the past few years, their share of the domestic road car market has hovered around the two percent mark, yet among active racers within the SCCA, that number quadruples to an eight percent market share. That's quite a validation from a group you would expect to be the most picky. As a result, Mazda has cultivated a strong contingent of leading peer-influencers extolling the brand's virtues among potential car-buyers.

Higher up on the pyramid are the hundreds of youngsters every year who are getting a shot at their dreams of making it as a professional racecar driver, thanks to Mazda's prodigious backing, both operationally and financially, of the Mazda Road to Indy program. Certainly the link between an open-wheel racecar and production road car is harder to find, but as Doonan noted, it's an important extension of Mazda's commitment to the human aspects of the sport.

Therein lies what differentiates Mazda from other brands. Through generous, yet well-earned scholarships, they enable the dreams of young drivers distilling the very essence of hashiru yorokobi. Namely, that the journey is as important as the destination. Many of the drivers who go through the system may end up driving for other brands during their career, yet Mazda will always be part of their story.

The Prototype class program in the WeatherTech Championship is the tip of the pyramid. Now in its third year, the project has shown signs it can compete for wins. It's here where another Japanese phrase is used – jinba ittai. That translates as "horse and rider are one" – or, in this case, "car and driver are one."

Winning races at the top level brings notoriety and acclaim that are important, but more than that, the synergy of car and driver and, to be fair, the engineers, as one becomes the rallying point for the company as whole. Indeed, the main hallway of Mazda's North American HQ is lined with photographs of Mazda Motorsports current and past exploits, proving the spirit of hashiru yorokobi is real.