---
title: "Nissan and Datsun to Be Honored at the 2018 Classic Motorsports Mitty"
description: "The event, which will take place at Road Atlanta, will pay homage to Nissan's rich racing heritage."
date: "2018-03-15"
modified: "2018-03-15"
authors:
  - name: "Jerry Perez"
    job_title: "Deputy Editor"
    link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/jerry-perez"
url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/19251/nissan-and-datsun-to-be-honored-at-the-2018-classic-motorsports-mitty"
categories:
  - "News"
tags:
  - "datsun"
  - "Le Mans"
  - "Nissan"
  - "racing"
  - "Racing News"
  - "Road Atlanta"
  - "The Mitty"
  - "Vintage Racing"
---

# Nissan and Datsun to Be Honored at the 2018 Classic Motorsports Mitty

![](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/images-by-url-td/content/2018/03/morton_510.jpg>)
*\<em\>www.thedrive.com</em>*

Nissan and its venerable brand, [Datsun](<https://www.thedrive.com/article/11829/why-are-datsun-240zs-shooting-up-in-value>), have been selected as the featured brands for the Historic Sportscar Racing Speedfest vintage races at the upcoming Classic Motorsports Mitty in Road Atlanta.

The 41st edition of "The Mitty" aims to celebrate the past, present, and future of sports car racing, and it's easy to see why Nissan is this year's featured manufacturer. The Japanese automaker has fielded cars from the [lowest to the highest forms of motorsports](<https://www.thedrive.com/watch-this/17183/watch-these-vintage-nissan-touring-cars-get-thrashed-at-fuji-speedway>) for more than 50 years, and its race cars have conquered famed venues including Sebring and Le Mans.

![message-editor%2F1521123200865-mortonontrack750px.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/message-editor/1521123200865-mortonontrack750px.jpg>)
*Nissan*

![message-editor%2F1521123206231-imsgtp\_750px.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/message-editor/1521123206231-imsgtp_750px.jpg>)
*Nissan*

Iconic and historic machinery will be in attendance at the gathering, such as the [BRE Datsun 510](<https://www.thedrive.com/article/14916/dominic-le-builds-a-datsun-240z-sema-show-car-in-his-home-garage>) that won several Sports Car Club of America titles, as well as the IMSA-dominating GTP ZX-Turbo that managed to defeat the mighty Porsche 962 factory race car. In addition, legendary Datsun/Nissan race driver John Morton will serve as the grand marshal. Morton successfully piloted those race cars to several victories during the '80s and '90s.

![message-editor%2F1521123233501-johnmorton750px.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/message-editor/1521123233501-johnmorton750px.jpg>)
*Nissan*

![message-editor%2F1521123243399-mortonautograph750px.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/message-editor/1521123243399-mortonautograph750px.jpg>)
*Nissan*

"It's a real honor to be named grand marshal," said Morton. "[Road Atlanta](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/18606/graham-rahal-and-a-honda-civic-type-r-embark-on-a-crazy-mixed-reality-race>) is right up there with the best road racing tracks in the country, so I'm pleased to be honored in this way. Nissan has a tremendous racing heritage that goes back even before BRE, but it really blossomed under BRE in 1970 and continued through the GTP era. Nissan has a tremendous amount of racing credibility. An awful lot of people still support Nissan and Datsun in racing today, and most of that enthusiasm goes back 50 years."

This year the legendary event will host several pre-Mitty events, such as a group drive on "The Tail of the Dragon" in Tennessee, a driving experience at the Porsche Center in Atlanta, and of course the vintage races at Road Atlanta. The [2018 Mitty](<https://www.themitty.com/activities-2/>) will take place the weekend of April 26 through April 29.

## Author
Jerry is responsible for upholding The Drive's ethos as an audience-first, enthusiast-driven car blog that serves up industry-leading news, reviews, culture, and motorsport coverage. Overseeing a staff of writers and editors from his home base in Indianapolis, he helps curate the site's daily rundown, as well as its medium- and long-term content strategies. Jerry joined The Drive in 2018 as a writer and worked as news editor and managing editor before becoming the deputy in 2023. As a lifelong car enthusiast and racing fan, Jerry believes that all cars are cool, but the people behind the machines are even cooler. This belief often gives The Drive a slightly different focus from most other car sites, where we explore the humanity behind the machines. When he's not obsessing over the day's biggest stories or hanging out at a race track, Jerry can be found behind the wheel of a car, most likely sharing a laugh with his teenage son or daughter.

### Author social links  
[Instagram](<https://www.instagram.com/drive_jerry/>)