Mazda Australia has secured a convincing showroom win and a top ten finish at the Tasmanian Tarmac Challenge (TTC) after two intense days of racing.
Blistering through the second day's six rain-soaked stages, the Mazda3 MPS driven by 20-year-old rally star Brendan Reeves finished eighth outright, and was the quickest two-wheel drive car in the competition.
It's an achievement made even greater by the fact that only full-blown, four-wheel drive rally cars beat the Mazda3 MPS in the event's overall standings.
Impressively, the 190kW turbocharged hot-hatch was ahead of Jim Richards' Porsche 911 GT2 before he was forced out with engine problems late in today's heat.
Reeves and his co-driving sister Rhianon Smyth started today's final heat in eighth position. Unfortunately a minor electrical fault cost them 58 seconds on the first stage. But the unstoppable duo soon fought their way back into contention.
The culprit was the car's Xede - an electronic tuning tool - the only non-Mazda mechanical part on the car. A quick fix by team Mazda Motorsport and Reeves was back on the pace, clocking times up to 20 seconds faster than his times on the same stages yesterday.
In what was a dramatic dash to the finish line, the talented brother and sister combo made up an impressive two spots during the day's afternoon stages.
"The Mazda3 MPS just got quicker as the event went on. I only wish it was longer," said an elated Reeves after completing just his third tarmac event. "To get this result in a two-wheel drive in wet conditions is just amazing."
"Rhianon and I have done what we set out to achieve for Mazda; a showroom win. To be the quickest two-wheel drive on the road, and finish in the the top ten is just amazing - I couldn't be happier."
Mazda Motorsport boss Allan Horsley applauded his team's outstanding result.
"This win is attributed to the hard work of the entire Mazda Motorsport team," he said. "For this little car to be so far up the standings and win its class, is just phenomenal."
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