Between June 26th and 29th, the Goodwood Festival of Speed was held in the hills of Goodwood, near Chichester in Southern England and, at the Mazda MX-5 25th Anniversary stand, a large number of UK’s MX-5 owners gathered to celebrate 25 years since the birth of their favorite car.

At the venue, each past MX-5 model, including special edition models, the 10th Anniversary NB model, the 20th Anniversary NC model, along with Mazda UK’s partner, JOTA Sports’ entry into the 2012 UK GT Championship, the Mazda MX-5 GT-4, was on display. A large number of these vehicles were the beloved cars of UK owners who had polished up their machines for the benefit of the exhibition. Written on the back plate of each generation’s MX-5 was an historical background of the time in which it had been built. For 1989 there was the Walkman, for 2003 the Game Boy, and for 2010 the single-lens reflex camera. In the end, it seems that the experiences of people in the UK was not so different to that of Japan. In addition, on the special invitation date, the 26th, the Mazda MX-5 25th Anniversary Edition, to be released this summer, was to be unveiled. Painted in soul red, 1,099 units of this special edition car will be produced and sold in Europe, mainly in the UK. Mazda Roadster/MX-5 development chief, Nobuhiro Yamamoto, who rushed over for the event said, “To have everyone from all the countries of the world celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the Roadster/MX-5 is a great honor. To all those that cherish this car, I want to say thank you. It really means a lot to me.”

Goodwood is famous for its hill climb in which every generation of F1 car, prototype car, WRC rally machine, Group C vehicles and so on, all participate. Unfortunately, I was disappointed to learn that the scheduled coverage would not start on the 26th but rather from the 27th. Nevertheless, on the hill climb I was able to see the hurtling figures of cars such as the Mazda MX-5 and Mazda 3 as they carried out the test drive event for regular guests. In the Group C car paddock I discovered the Mazda 767B which participated in the Le Mans demo race two weeks ago. However, at that time its engine was having some issues and so it would apparently not be participating. That said, machines such as the first generation RX-7 group B rally cars were able to run. Still, it was a little disappointing. This year’s host manufacturer was Mercedes. A large number of Mercedes vehicles were on display such as their venerated former F1 machines, rally cars, touring cars and groups C cars. I left the venue imagining how amazing it would be if former Mazda RE racecars could race at this place. As I passed through the venue which was brilliantly adorned with gorgeous classic cars, I stumbled upon a Mazda RX500 equipped with a 10A rotary engine. Having been invited, this car was transported over from Hiroshima, Japan. As Japan’s only Mazda RX500, I realized that its elegance would not be outdone even in the company of numerous, dazzling luxury cars.

The Goodwood Festival of Speed is the meeting place of Europe’s automobile society. I came to feel that by celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the Roadster/MX-5 at this event, Mazda was able to join the ranks of this esteemed community. The love of cars crosses borders and brings people together in shared appreciation.

Photo by MZRacing