IMSA: Cadillac had much success in DPi era

While five Cadillac DPi-V.R entries will contest the 10-hour Petit Le Mans at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta to close one era of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, Cadillac Racing is simultaneously preparing for the next level of competition in 2023.

The Daytona Prototype International (DPi) race cars will be replaced by a joint IMSA-Automobile Club de l’Quest (ACO) car known as Le Mans Daytona h (LMDh) for the nine-race IMSA Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) schedule. LMDh cars will also be able to compete in the top class of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC), which includes the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Starting with the 61st Rolex 24 At Daytona in late January, Cadillac Racing will enter two full-season Cadillac V-LMDh cars in the GTP class. Additionally, the Cadillac V-LMDh will compete in the WEC.

The 2023 hybrid race car and global competition are new. The passion, resolve and dedication of every Cadillac engineer, team member and driver to defining new performance standards are inherent.

A productive ride

For Cadillac Racing, which has been immersed in the DPi program since IMSA announced base regulations in 2015, it’s been an exciting and productive ride.

The Cadillac DPi-V.R has recorded 27 victories – tops among all manufacturers – and 80 podium finishes in 58 races heading into the final event of the season Oct. 1.

From chassis design in early 2015 through final testing in January 2017, hundreds of General Motors associates, GM partners and suppliers have contributed to the program that has realized on-track success and developed technology transferred to award-winning Cadillac V-Series street cars.

“The Cadillac DPi-V.R has proven itself as the most successful race car of its generation,” said Rory Harvey, Vice President Global Cadillac. “With the expansion of Cadillac Racing into the World Endurance Championship, we are excited to continue that success in North America as well as some of the most iconic tracks in the world.”

Quick out of the gate

Cadillac Racing took the inaugural season of the modern IMSA prototype era by storm in 2017, winning seven races with seven pole positions and claiming every championship trophy. NASCAR Hall of Famer Jeff Gordon teamed with Jordan Taylor, Ricky Taylor and Max Angelelli in a Cadillac DPi-V.R to win the season-opening Rolex 24 At Daytona.

In 2018, Cadillac followed with four wins, three pole positions and again earning every championship trophy. In 2019, Cadillac won its third Rolex 24 At Daytona in as many years and secured the IMSA DPi Endurance Cup and Endurance Driver Championship on the strength of four wins. In 2020, Cadillac recorded three victories and again won the Endurance Driver Championship. In 2021, Cadillac drivers posted five wins and claimed the Manufacturer Championship, Driver Championship and Team Championship.

#5 Action Express Racing Cadillac DPi, P: Joao Barbosa, Christian Fittipaldi, Filipe Albuquerque
World Copyright: Jake Galstad/LAT Images

Said seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson, who will co-drive the No. 48 Ally Cadillac DPi-V.R in the season finale: “In one of these DPi Cadillacs, the pace and effort you have to drive around that racetrack is quite impressive, especially comparing it to my days in NASCAR. Some of the braking zones, the Bus Stop and the Carousel, it’s just mind-blowing how fast these cars can travel through those tight little areas.”

Fastest prototype in the world

This season, Cadillac Racing has recorded four victories – including podium sweeps at Sebring and Long Beach — and four record-setting pole starts ahead of the Petit Le Mans.

“I think it’s been an amazing time with the Cadillac DPi. It’s one of those cars that everybody in Europe says how beautiful it is, how fast it looks and it makes me proud to show pictures of it to people who don’t know motorsports,” said Renger van der Zande, who has three victories this season as co-driver of the No. 01 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R and eight overall since 2018 in a Cadillac DPi-V.R.

“To be going into that last race is something special. Every in-lap after the race I felt I had to enjoy the last dance around the track with this car because I’ve been driving it since 2018. It’s the fastest prototype in the world at the moment and it does feel like it, especially at Road Atlanta.”

Added reigning IMSA champion Pipo Derani, co-driver of the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R who has six total wins in a Cadillac DPi-V.R since 2019: “The DPi era has been a fantastic regulation to be a part of as a driver because you get the luxury often to drive the perfect car. The cars most likely will be the ones that we’ll look back on in a few years as one of the quickest cars we’ve ever driven. For me, a fantastic time in my career when I achieved so much. Great time and looking forward to the future with Cadillac.”

Passion pushed Cadillac into motorsports in 2004 and it has continued through the DPi years. With the dawn of a new era of sports car racing, passion will continue to drive Cadillac Racing to new heights

Cadillac Racing DPi-V.R by the numbers

Wins: 27

Manufacturer Championships: 3 (2021, 2018, 2017)

Driver Championships: 3 (2021, 2018, 2017)

Team Championships: 3 (2021, 2018, 2017)

Manufacturer Endurance Championships: 4 (2020, 2019, 2018, 2017)

Endurance Driver Championships: 4 (2020, 2019, 2018, 2017)

Endurance Team Championships: 2 (2018, 2017)

Cadillac DPi-V.R victories by racetrack with winning drivers

Sebring (Twelve Hours of Sebring):

2022 (Earl Bamber, Alex Lynn, Neel Jani)

2021 (Tristan Vautier, Loic Duval, Sebastien Bourdais)

2020 (Pipo Derani, Felipe Nasr)

2019 (Pipo Derani, Felipe Nasr, Eric Curran)

2017 (Alex Lynn, Ricky Taylor, Jordan Taylor)

Long Beach:

2022 (Renger van der Zande, Sebastien Bourdais)

2021 (Pipo Derani, Felipe Nasr)

2019 (Joao Barbosa, Filipe Albuquerque)

2018 (Joao Barbosa, Filipe Albuquerque)

2017 (Jordan Taylor, Ricky Taylor)

Daytona (Rolex 24 At Daytona):

2020 (Renger van der Zande, Ryan Briscoe, Scott Dixon, Kamui Kobayashi)

2019 (Renger van der Zande, Fernando Alonso; Jordan Taylor, Kamui Kobayashi);

2018 (Christian Fittipaldi, Filipe Albuquerque, Joao Barbosa)

2017 (Jeff Gordon, Jordan Taylor, Ricky Taylor, Max Angelelli)

Belle Isle:

2022 (Renger van der Zande, Sebastien Bourdais)

2021 (Renger van der Zande, Kevin Magnussen)

2018 (Felipe Nasr, Eric Curran)

2017 (Jordan Taylor, Ricky Taylor)

Road Atlanta (Petit Le Mans):

2020 (Renger van der Zande, Ryan Briscoe, Scott Dixon)

2019 (Pipo Derani, Felipe Nasr, Eric Curran)

2018 (Renger van der Zande, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Jordan Taylor)

Canadian Tire Motorsports Park:

2022 (Renger van der Zande, Sebastien Bourdais)

2017 (Dane Cameron, Eric Curran)

Watkins Glen:

2021 (Pipo Derani, Felipe Nasr)

2017 (Joao Barbosa, Christian Fittipaldi, Filipe Albuquerque)

Road America:

2021 (Pipo Derani, Felipe Nasr)

Circuit of the Americas:

2017 (Jordan Taylor, Ricky Taylor)