Mazda is partnering with Team Joest

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LMP1 Mazda when?

>Mazda has been the lovable failsquad of the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship for several years, trying so hard for years to get their top-class prototypes merely working reliably in between bursts of promising speed. If there’s anyone who can make it work, it’s the team who gave Audi years of domination at the 24 Hours of Le Mans: Team Joest.

Audi’s unbeatable force of a Le Mans Prototype team was, of course, Audi Sport Team Joest. Sadly, Audi yanked their diesel-powered LMP1 after Dieselgate broke, as the program was one huge advertisement for the diesel cars Audi and the rest of the Volkswagen Group was in deep scheiße over.

Poor Team Joest was an unfortunate casualty of Dieselgate—a competent squad with 16 Le Mans victories to its name left without anything to do. Much of Audi’s LMP1 personnel landed in other, non-diesel-powered roles across the Volkswagen Group, but the external Team Joest was left hanging—until now, Mazda Motorsports announced today.

http://sportscar365.com/imsa/iwsc/joest-to-take-over-factory-mazda-dpi-program/
http://blackflag.jalopnik.com/the-people-behind-audis-unbeatable-le-mans-effort-take-1797022526
https://www.racer.com/imsa/item/142404-mazda-team-joest-to-debut-in-2018
http://www.roadandtrack.com/motorsports/a10321885/mazda-team-joest-announcement/