Veteran Who Lost His Leg in Afganistan Wins First IMSA Race

Posted by Jeff Perez 

@ BOLD RIDE

Three years ago, Marine Staff Sgt. Liam Dwyer lost his leg and most of the feeling in his arm while serving in Afghanistan. This past weekend, he piloted a Mazdaspeed racing MX-5 to victory at the IMSA Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge at Lime Rock Park in Connecticut. A true story of American perseverance.

Along with his co-driver Tom Long, the No. 27 Mazda MX-5 found its way to the finish line faster than any of its competitors. It was a nearly 20 second victory over the rest of the field with Tom Long at the helm.





“Saying I’m excited is a major understatement,” Dwyer said in an interview with The Associate Press this past weekend. “I am ecstatic about this.” And we don’t blame him.

In 2007, when Dwyer received his first injury overseas, the minor setback didn’t keep him from reenlisting a second time. In 2011, while on a second tour, Dwyer received severe injuries from a roadside bomb, losing the feeling in most of his left arm, and the use of his left leg altogether.

Returning home in May of that year, Dwyer quickly took to rehabilitation, and was fitted with a prosthesis. That’s when his racing career began, taking to the track in vintage sports cars.

But his need for speed didn’t stop there, and his family and friends encouraged him to take his talents to the next level. Dwyer caught the attention of Freedom Autosport and his co-drvier Tom Long, who wanted Dwyer to run some tests at Mazda Laguna Seca raceway this past January.
From that point on, as they say, the rest is history. With his first victory this past weekend at Lime Rock, Dwyer hopes to keep up his streak at Virginia International Raceway in Alton, Virginia on August 23rd.





We’ll be rooting for you Liam!