the first nationally televised Star Mazda Championship race. A new title sponsor was gained in 1999, making the series the Best Western Star Mazda Championship; the same year, it became a national professional series supporting the American Le Mans Series in its inaugural year. Joey Hand won five of the season's seven races and became the first driver in series history to win four races in a row. His prize included a new Mazda Miata road car. 2000s In 2001, the series was renamed the Star Mazda North American Championship Presented by Goodyear. Scott Bradley with World Speed Motorsports claimed the championship. In 2003, the decision was made to utilize the Mazda RX-8's new 13B-MSP Renesis engine in a new Star Mazda car. The Star Mazda "Pro" car was introduced the following year, with a carbon fiber chassis built by Élan Motorsport Technologies and a power output of from said Renesis engine (up from the previous 13B's ). Michael McDowell, Raphael Matos, and Adrian Carrio won the 2004, 2005, and 2006 championships, respectively. 2007 saw the formation of the Mazdaspeed Motorsports Driver Development Ladder, created to provide funding for champions in various Mazda-powered series to move up in class. Dane Cameron became the first Star Mazda champion to move up to the Atlantic Championship via the Mazdaspeed ladder. Joel Miller, the 2007 Skip Barber Pro Series Champion, became the first driver to move up to Star Mazda via the ladder in 2008. Also in 2008, the Star Mazda Championship changed from rolling starts to standing starts to better prepare drivers for moving up to the Atlantic Championship and Champ Car World Series. Bias-ply racing slicks were abandoned in favour of radials designed specifically for the series by Goodyear (the sole tire provider for the national series since its inception). Both Goodyear and Mazda signed 5-year extensions of their title sponsorship of the series, through the end of the 2012 season. In 2009, the Star Mazda car underwent its first major mechanical upgrade since it was introduced, which included a revised aerodynamic package and engine and suspension modifications. This optional upgrade was designed to lower the cost of competition and make the car easier to maintain and tune. That year, Raphael Matos became the first Star Mazda driver to race in each Mazda-powered series (Skip Barber, Star Mazda, Atlantic) and graduate to IndyCar. Oval races also rejoined the Star Mazda schedule