Joseph Burton-Harris Announced as Finalist in the 2015 Mazda Road To 24 Shootout #MRT24

Joseph Burton-Harris, who won the Formula Mazda (FM) SCCA National Championship, has been named a finalist in the 2015 Mazda Road To 24 Shootout.

He is one of nine young talents to progress to this next level. Burton-Harris will have to chance to claim a $100,000 scholarship to drive in the 2016 SCCA Pro Racing Battery Tender Mazda MX-5 Cup Presented by BFGoodrich Tires.

“The nine finalists in this shootout are all highly competitive,” John Doonan, director of Mazda Motorsports, said. “The fact that the judges identified nine outstanding racers, from the 23 eligible, shows the tremendous depth of talent we are working with today. Mazda is so proud to offer this prize to our grassroots racers and customers; there is simply nothing like it in the world.”

The shootout will take place at Carolina Motorsports Park in Kershaw, SC, November 8-10. The racers will be tested on the track for their driving skills, and in the garage for their technical understanding of the sport.

The aspiring professional racer who wins the prize will have the best range of skills required to succeed. These skills include speed, consistency, race craft, technical feedback and off-track business, marketing and PR skills.

Additional information about the Mazda Road to 24 shootout, and 2016 MX-5 Cup race car, can be found at www.mazdamotorsports.com Mazda Motorsports will be providing live social updates from the Carolina Motorsports Park event on Twitter at @mazdaracing. Look for the hashtag hashtag #MRT24.

Photo Credit:  Brian Harris 2015 Sonoma, California

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Related Post: Joseph Burton Harris - Mazda Road to 24 Shootout 

Joseph Burton Harris Mazda Road to 24 Shootout

Winner-Take-All Competition

My friend Joseph Burton-Harris exploded upon the racing world in the USA this year. He started go-karting at eight years old, winning two world championships at the age of fifteen and sixteen.

Now at the tender age of eighteen, Joseph races in the Moses Smith prepared #132 Si Partners/Sydney Sports/GMG Formula Mazda. 

Check out Burton-Harris' 2015 stats:

• 1 National Championship
• 14 Races
• 13 Wins
• 7 Poles
• 12 Fastest Laps
• 5 Lap Records
• 0 Crashes
• 14 Top 5's
• 14 Top 10's
• 93% Win Percentage
• 88% Pole Percentage
• 100% Top 5 Percentage
• 100% Top 10 Percentage

His recent win at the ‘SCCA National Championship Runoffs presented by Garmin VIRB’ last month was exhilarating. He managed a 9.9 s victory over second place.

“This is pretty amazing,” Burton-Harris reported. “We’ve worked so hard all year. The whole winning part is great, I mean it feels amazing, but just being here and driving on this track is great. This time 10 years ago, we used to come to Orlando for my father’s business and this used to be my one trip, to do the tours. To actually go around there on the track itself is just an amazing feeling. For the SCCA to put on this event in Daytona, just the year that I was starting out in cars, I feel very fortunate.”

Equally exciting is that the win qualified Joseph to be a semi-finalist in the ‘Mazda Road to 24 Shootout.’ This event is the single largest prize in grassroots motorsports. Launched in 2006 as the Club Racer shootout, the Mazda Road to 24 Shootout has annually promoted one talented club racer into the professional ranks.

The $100,000 scholarship package supports a drive in the 2016 Battery Tender Mazda MX-5 Cup. For 2016, this will be in the all-new Global MX-5 Cup car, which officially went on sale on October 1.

Joseph fits the shootout criteria perfectly. He is an aspiring professional racer who has that great range of skills required to succeed. His skills include Speed, Consistency, Race Craft, Technical Feedback and Off-Track Business, Marketing and PR skills!

To advance to the next level, Burton-Harris will submit a business proposal and a short video presentation. It is anticipated that there will be six to eight finalists. The finalists will be announced the week of October 19, and the final shootout will be at Carolina Motorsports Park, in Kershaw, South Carolina, on November 8-10.

The racers will be tested on the track for their driving skills and in the garage for their technical understanding of the sport. This is a winner-take-all competition; there is no second place.

Additional information about the Mazda Road to 24 shootout, and 2016 MX-5 Cup race car, can be found at www.mazdamotorsports.com Mazda Motorsports will be providing live social updates from the Carolina Motorsports Park event on Twitter at @mazdaracing  and with hashtag #MRT24.

You can keep updated on Joseph Burton-Harris’
progress by following his Facebook page.