By MazdaMotorsports.com - Nov 25, 2019, 4:34 AM ET

Mazda champion: Tray Ayres

There’s a somewhat established formula to competing competitively in SCCA’s Prototype 2 class: Pair a proven chassis with a motorcycle engine. But while that method will put most talented racers toward the front of any P2 grid, Tray Ayres opted to go a different route.

“I’ve been in P2 since the 2017 Runoffs,” Ayres explains of his decision to race a Mazda-powered Van Diemen RF00. “After winning the 2017 Runoffs at Indy [in Spec Racer Ford Gen 3], I decided I wanted another challenge. I wanted something I can develop, and the development on the West and Stohr [chassis] are done.

“The development on this car was brand new,” he explains of his van Diemen chassis. “Mike Davies is a good friend of mine and he said, ‘If you want something fun like that, I think this can be a competitive car.’ So I took that challenge and tried to make that happen.”