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Source: indycar.com

The Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear has announced its 2012 schedule as an 18-race season over 10 weekends. Many of the races will run in conjunction with the IZOD IndyCar Series, further strengthening the partnership between the series through the Mazda Road to Indy program.

"It has been our extremely good fortune to have the two best long-term partners any racing series could have, Mazda and Goodyear,” said Gary Rodrigues, founder and president of the Star Mazda Championship. “With their help, the Star Mazda Championship has achieved great success and produced many top drivers over the last 22 years, and our growing association with INDYCAR and the Mazda Road to Indy is providing the catalyst to take our series to the next level. This is an exciting time for young racers everywhere, and we're proud to be part of it."

The Star Mazda Championship will open its season with the first official series test at Barber Motorsports Park on March 19-20. To kick off the race schedule, it will join the IZOD IndyCar Series at its season-opening Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg weekend on March 24-25. The series will then head directly to Barber Motorsports Park for the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama the following weekend.

Following the race at Barber, the Star Mazda Championship will return to action for the "Night Before the 500" at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis before the Indianapolis 500. The winner of the race will be honored in front of the crowd at Indianapolis Motor Speedway during opening ceremonies on Race Day.

Other major activities that incorporate the young drivers into the Indy 500 experience include an autograph session in Gasoline Alley and the annual Mazda Road to Indy Summit, where drivers meet with top IZOD IndyCar Series teams, drivers and series officials.

The next event will take place June 22-24 at a yet-to-be-announced location. Following that is a three-weekend stint in Canada, including the IZOD IndyCar Series' Honda Indy Toronto on July 7-8 and the Edmonton Indy on July 21-22. It will be Star Mazda’s first visit to the airport circuit in Alberta. Star Mazda also will return to the 43rd running of the GP3R in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, on Aug. 3-5.

Star Mazda will rejoin the IZOD IndyCar Series for the Baltimore Grand Prix on Sept. 1-2. Immediately following Baltimore, teams will compete at Mazda Raceway in Laguna Seca, Calif., on Sept. 8-9. The location of the Star Mazda Championship conclusion has not yet been determined.

Oval circuits on the schedule will be single races, while road/street events will be run in a two-race format. The fastest lap for each car in Race 1 will determine the starting grid for Race 2. The schedule setup is a new concept of the series, implemented to convenience the drivers in the Expert Series Championship who are typically ages 30 and older.

The Mazda Road to Indy was designed to help drivers develop the building blocks necessary to reaching the IZOD IndyCar Series. The path consists of a three-prong system: Cooper Tires presents the USF2000 National Championship powered by Mazda, the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear and Firestone Indy Lights. The champion of each series receives a scholarship from Mazda to move up to the next series. Details of a new Mazda Road to Indy television package will be announced when available.

"2012 will be the third year of the Mazda Road to Indy and the program is really taking hold among our teams, drivers and race promoters,” said Director of Business Development for Firestone Indy Lights Tony George, Jr. “This has allowed us to tailor the schedule to more closely align with the IZOD IndyCar Series and introduce our fans to the next generation of IndyCar drivers. This is what the program was designed to do, and with these rising stars sharing the stage at our biggest races, the future of IndyCar racing looks brighter every year."

2012 Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear schedule:

March 19-20 Barber Spring Training
March 24-25 Grand Prix of St. Petersburg*
March 31-April 1 Barber Motorsports Park*
May 25-26 Night Before the 500
June 22-24 TBA
July 7-8 Grand Prix of Toronto*
July 21-22 Grand Prix of Edmonton*
August 3-5 GP3R Trois-Rivières*
September 1-2 Grand Prix of Baltimore*
September 8-9 Mazda Raceway*
October TBA
* Two Star Mazda Championship races per weekend

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