Patrick Dempsey shows the Mazda2 in LA

Patrick Dempsey, a.k.a. McDreamy, was on hand with Mazda at the North American unveiling of the American bound Mazda 2.

Dempsey, as some of you may know, races for, and owns part of, Hyper Sport/Dempsey Racing. He races a Mazda Mazdaspeed RX-8 in Grand-Am Series GT Class.

While he was standing around giving dozens and dozens of interviews, I managed to snag him to talk about his love of racing, fine watches and whether he would rather be compared to Steve McQueen or Paul Newman.

“People know me as McDreamy, this fictional character that I can’t live up to. That’s not me. But, I can live up to being a racing guy and enthusiast.”

When I asked him whether He’d rather be the new Paul Newman or the new Steve McQueen, his answer was simple, “You really can’t compare me or anyone else to those two guys. They’re both legends. I would like to see what McQueen would have done had he lived longer, but he was a rebel and a great racing driver right from the start. I mean, he won the 1970 24 Hours of Le Mans in a Porsche 908 with a broken leg! It is amazing to see how Paul Newman really worked hard to become a great driver. It took him a while, but he got it and was an amazing driver. What was great about Paul, was that he wasn’t just a racing driver and actor, he actually cared about people with his philanthropy.”

I noticed that he was wearing a nice watch under his suit, and asked what types of watches he preferred, “I’m a big fan of IWC. I love the craftsmanship. They’re unique, because they offer watches for everything from swimming to racing drivers. I actually wear the IWC Top Gear whenever I’m racing, and I have a great collection of their watches.”

All-in-all, Dempsey really knows his stuff! I was impressed with his calm and cool nature, but most importantly that he loves racing and is so willing to dive right in. Just so I don’t have people going crazy, no, McQueen didn’t win the whole 24 Hours of Le Mans, he missed 1st place by 23 seconds. But he took the class win, and second place, with a BROKEN LEG!

-Josh

“Happy Motoring!”