Patrick Dempsey

If you’re not directly involved with the high-octane world of 24-hour endurance racing, it’s easy to forget that races like last weekend’s 24 Heures Du Mans take months -- even years -- to prepare for. On Saturday, Mazda reminded us of just that fact by announcing its intention to bring its SkyActiv-D diesel engines to next year’s event, a whole day before the winner for this year’s event had been decided. Based on the stock, 2.2-liter, 4-cylinder, twin-stage turbocharged SkyActiv-D diesel engine Mazda offers as an engine option for the 2012 CX-5 in Europe...