Someone has painted a giant Mazda 787B at Laguna Seca

As the only Japanese winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans race to date, Mazda has some major kudos in the endurance-racing world. The winning machine, a No. 55 Mazda 787B with iconic orange and green argyle-sock-inspired livery, took the title back in 1991, cementing its place in the endurance hall of fame.

So it only seems right that the Laguna Seca circuit, which shares its name with the trophy-winning brand ('Mazda Raceway'), has chosen to highlight its successes with a giant ten-metre mural of the famous No. 55. Because what says love like a giant self-portrait erected on a hill for the rest of time?

Standing at three metres tall and in the original underwear styling, the dedication to the 787B was created by John Cerney from Salinas, California, to accompany the mural of Wayne Rainey that appeared at the circuit in July.

“The colourful race car can be seen from the highway and will let people know that this is an incredible racing facility,” said Cerney. “The car is huge. I strived to get all the little details right from the logos to the bodylines.”

The wining Mazda is perhaps best known for the incredible noise generated from the rotary engine that easily revved to 9,000rpm during endurance racing events, and was the last Wankel rotary-powered racing car to compete in the World and Japanese championships, using Mazda's R26B engine.

“The artwork really demonstrates who we are and what we do,” said Gill Campbell, general manager of Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. “In addition to being the naming rights sponsor since 2001, our track has served as the spiritual home for Mazda. The artwork cements the relationship between Mazda’s tremendous racing legacy and our world-class motorsports facility.”

Does the 787B deserve the monument? Can you think of any other legendary machines worthy of some watercolour attention? Give us your ideas in the comments...