2014 Mazda MX-5 Miata Gets Gumby Livery for Laguna Seca

After bringing joy to untold generations of children, Gumby is now hoping to bring home the checkered flag for Kenton Koch and his 2014 Mazda MX-5 Miata. In fact, both Gumby and Pokey will adorn Koch’s racecar for the next round of the Mazda MX-5 Cup, scheduled for this weekend at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in California, where it will support the TUDOR United SportsCar Championship—and the Glendora (Calif.) Library.

That’s because the partnership between Koch and Gumby, who each call that town their home, will work to raise money for the Glendora Library by auctioning Koch's custom Gumby driving suit from the race; it will help promote Glendora’s Gumbyfest celebration (on June 14) as well.

Confirmed Koch: “Being a native Glendora resident, I jumped at the chance to support this great community event. My plan is to take both Gumby and Pokey to the winner’s circle in Monterey.”

His confidence is well-founded. For his part, Koch has been successfully working his way up Mazda’s renowned grass-roots racing ladder, and last year won nine of 11 events on his way to claiming the 2013 Skip Barber MAZDASPEED Pro Challenge. And his choice of racecar also helps matters. 

On or off the track, the 2014 Mazda MX-5 Miata remains one of the most driver-friendly cars in the country, assisted by a wallet-friendly MSRP of $23,720 and one of the most user-friendly convertible tops ever invented. The car also is the most popular two-door roadster, with close to a million sales globally since it was first introduced in 1989.

Said Takashi Yamanouchi, chairman of the board, Mazda Motor Corporation: "The original concept behind the MX-5 was so simple: to offer the pure joy of a lightweight sports car that moves precisely as the driver intends. While responding to increasing safety and environmental requirements, in the 25 years since its launch we have had to continually reinvent the MX-5—far beyond a simple evolution—in order to stay true to that original ideal. The history of the MX-5 is one of changing everything in order to stay the same, a history of innovating in order to preserve." 

That holds true for the 2014 Mazda MX-5 Miata, of course, and particularly for the new 25th anniversary model that will be offered in (very) limited numbers in this country. Just 100 units are destined for U.S. dealerships, so folks will have to move fast to get one—but then they’ll be able move fast after, too.