Cadillac Racing returns to Circuit of The Americas

WECHyperCar

Aug 28

Cadillac is currently 7th inthe FIA Hypercar World Endurance Manufacturer’s Championship ahead of Lone Star Le Mans (COTA). The GM Motorsport team has been credited 14 points so far in the Manufacturer’s Championship with a P7 at the 24 Hours of Le Mans (12 points) and a P10 at the 6 hours of Imola (2 points) which does not reflect the velocity of the #2 Cadillac V-Series.R, the only Hypercar entry to qualify in the top four in each of the past three races (second at Spa-Francorchamps and Le Mans, fourth at Brazil).

Two races with points credits

Seventh at 24 Hours of Le Mans

WEC full-season teammates Earl Bamber and Alex Lynn, complemented by two-time IndyCar champion Alex Palou, place the #2 Cadillac V-Series.R seventh after leading 61 laps out of the 311 laps total at the 92nd 24 Hours of Le Mans.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at 24 Hours of Le Mans. #2 Cadillac V-Series.R with Alex Lynn, Earl Bamber and two-time IndyCar champion Alex Palou.

Earl Bamber: “We definitely came here much more prepared than last year. We ticked all the boxes that we wanted to improve on. We led the race for long periods of time. Ultimately, didn’t swing in our favor with the weather at the end. But that’s sort of Le Mans and racing. We can be proud as a program about what we’ve achieved, how much we’ve gone forward. Now we just need a result to show for it. Other than that, I think we’ve made big leaps and bounds forward.”

Alex Palou: "It was a lot of fun till the end just because of that hope of trying to get the win but failing at the end. It was a great experience the first time doing Le Mans with Cadillac. I learned a lot and looking forward to the next one. (night stint) It was actually the first time I drove in the rain at night. It was a first time for many things this year.” Source: Cadillac Racing

First Hypercar points at Imola

📷 © Luc Warnotte at 6 Hours of Imola. #2 Cadillac V-Series.R with Alex Lynn and Earl Bamber.

The #2 Cadillac V-Series.R scored its first Hypercar point of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) season.

Top four qualifying.

Second qualifying at Le Mans and Spa

Cadillac Racing made a strong statement by qualifying second and third for the 92nd 24 Hours of Le Mans. Alex Lynn recorded a lap of 3:24.782 seconds in the #2 Cadillac V-Series.R to place second in the 30-minute Hyperpole session. Following the TotalEnergies 8 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps in May, the #2 Cadillac V-Series.R did receive a five-place penalty. Hence Alex Lynn, Earl Bamber and two-time IndyCar champion Alex Palou did start from 4th row.

Alex Lynn: “"I'm proud of the entire team and Cadillac for the work they've done to prepare for qualifying and the Hyperpole. It was a strong effort and we proved that we have fast cars. We're starting from a good spot, so we'll continue to fine-tune and get ready for the race." Source: Cadillac Racing

At Spa, the Cadillac V-Series.R #2 did start from first row as Alex Lynn was second of the session in 2:03.115. He nearly secured a pole position, coming up .008 of a second short of the #5 Porsche 963.

Alex Lynn was second of the session with the Cadillac V-Series.R #2 — 📷 © Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. Alex Lynn was second of the session with the **Cadillac V-Series.R #2**

Alex Lynn: "For those that didn’t believe, how’s that? Very happy. I think this crew deserved the good qualifying showing that we put together. Now we’re just determined to get a good race result with this No. 2 Cadillac that the team deserves. Very proud of everyone today and look forward to tomorrow. We worked day and night to improve this car since Imola and we won’t stop until it’s over. And we found a lot of stuff overnight that helped us in these sessions and should help us in the race.” Source: Cadillac Racing

Qualifying fourth at Interlagos

Second row for #2 Cadillac v-Series.R at Interlagos for the 6 Hours of Buenos Aires thanks to Alex Lynn setting the fourth fastest lap during qualifying session.

📷 © Courtesy of FIA WEC. Alex Lynn qualified Cadillac V-Series.R #2 second at Interlagos.

Alex Lynn: “It is important to start at the front and we did that. Thanks to Cadillac Racing for giving me a strong car again in qualifying. This car is such a pleasure to drive on low fuel and new tires. A long race tomorrow but we’re in a good spot. We feel confident. It’s a busy small track, tight and twisty so we need to be smart tomorrow and keep our wits about us. But I think we have a strong car to get a good result.” Source: Cadillac Racing

Cadillac Racing aims to make noise at COTA

Cadillac Racing returns to Circuit of The Americas this week, aiming to deliver a season-defining result in its FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) homecoming. Earl Bamber and Alex Lynn will pilot the #2 Cadillac V-Series.R. Bamber is a two-time winner at COTA, including co-driving to an LMP1 victory in 2017, and both drivers tested at COTA in July prior to completion of full-course resurfacing. Portions of the course that incorporates 113 feet of elevation change were repaved earlier this year..

📷 © Courtesy of Cadillac Racing. Earl Bamber and Alex Lynn with #2 Cadillac V_Series.R.

Earl Bamber: “I love the fact that we have such passionate fans in America, and I think they’ll enjoy seeing the WEC there again. The fans make the American races. You go to Sebring you see them camping for a whole week. The same at Road Atlanta and Daytona. I think we’ll get a big turnout at COTA and Austin is a fantastic city to go to as well. I think there is going to be a lot of America at the event. Fans will see titanic battles. There is action all over the place all the time. I think it’s some of the best racing in the world right now, especially in the prototype class, and I think it will be a great spectacle for the fans. The teams are upping the level and it’s feeling more and more like a Formula One paddock when you walk through the paddock. (about the circuit) The track is super challenging and it’s going to be hot, so it will be a real endurance race for the cars and the drivers behind the wheel. After the test there, we’ll be well-prepared, and we’ll be able to lean on our American colleagues as well from what they know. I think it will be one of the highlights of the program. A lot of people talk about the climb leading into the first corner, but actually I like the last sector with a really fast, long right-hand corner and the other fast corner to finish the lap. Overall, I think it is going to be grueling, a challenge for the teams for strategy and I think it’s going to race really well so looking forward to it.”

Alex Lynn: “Being back in the U.S. is really cool and important for us as GM. We want to win one of these races and stand on the podium again and that’s our goal. Because it was so hot (during July 2023 test) the grip was so low that actually it was alright. I hope it is a bit higher grip this time with the resurface, but I think that’s the thing with COTA is that when it’s so hot the grip becomes super low, so that actually wasn’t that difficult. COTA is a very technical track, very difficult to get right. There is a lot of lap time to be found with drivers exploiting the curbs. We don’t drive there a lot, so it’s a tough track to nail. But it’s a challenge we all enjoy. Sector 1 is by far my favorite. You’ve got that huge hill to Turn 1, then the big downhill sweeping into what is really a recreation of Maggots and Becketts from Silverstone. It really is amazing behind the wheel, and to watch from grandstands and viewing banks. Austin in itself is such a cool place too. Racing in the U.S. is cool, but that city just adds to it. The people there are so welcoming and for that reason I don’t know anyone who doesn’t love going there.”

(July test days) “The test in Austin went well. The circuit had not been repaved before we tested, though it has been repaved since with the new F1 tarmac. That won’t be too much of a surprise with how our car will react. I believe our car works well on European tarmac tracks like Qatar and Imola, which recently were repaved FIA-grade tracks.”Source: Cadillac Racing