Mazda, Joest Begin U.S. Testing Program

Joest team tests their Mazda at Daytona

Mazda Team Joest has begun its U.S. testing program with a heavily revised Mazda RT24-P this week at Daytona International Speedway, as they prepare for the program’s debut in January’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season-opener.

The two-day test, which kicked off on Tuesday, has seen Tristan Nunez, Jonathan Bomarito, Joel Miller and Spencer Pigot share driving duties of the car, which has undergone significant updates from Multimatic in recent months.

“It feels completely different now. It’s so confidence-inspiring to see the changes made to how it is on track. It’s a completely different car," Nunez told NBC Sports’ Tony DiZinno following the first day of the test.

“It seemed like the car was a lot more compliant. It’s easier to drive. It wasn’t doing anything ‘evil.’

“You knew what it’d do, and it did it every time. At times before, you didn’t know what you were getting yourself into. Now it’s a lot more confidence-inspiring."