December 10, 2004 DTM Champion Audi Setting Course for the New Season Source: Audi Sport Having announced its driver line-up for the 2005 DTM season some two weeks ago, Audi has now allocated its eight drivers to the two teams. As in the past season when Audi clinched the drivers', teams' and manufacturers' titles, the Audi A4 DTM will be entered next year again by the two works teams, Abt Sportsline and Joest Racing. Whilst the team of Hans-Jürgen Abt will enter the new generation of the Audi A4, it will be the task of Reinhold Joest's squad to enter a quartet of this year's championship-winning car. Joest Racing will field the experienced Christian Abt as well as the trio of DTM newcomers, Rinaldo Capello, Pierre Kaffer and Frank Stippler. Team Abt Sportsline will run the cars for defending DTM champion Mattias Ekström, Tom Kristensen, Martin Tomczyk as well as former Formula 1 driver Allan McNish. "We are happy to be in a position to rely on the two powerful squads of Joest Racing and Abt Sportsline. The split of the line-up of cars reflects our aim to allow every team to fully concentrate on preparing and racing only a single generation of cars", explains Head of Audi Sport Dr Wolfgang Ullrich. "I am sure that this arrangement means we have created the best possible starting position for our title defence." The development of the new Audi A4 DTM is currently being carried out at full speed in the Audi Sport premises in Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm. The roll-out of the next generation of the championship-winning car is planned for the beginning of next year. Terms of Use Privacy Policy| Copyright © 1996-2012 by AudiWorld. All rights reserved.