Cadillac at Laguna Seca: Runner-up finish

“Congratulations to Cadillac Racing and the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R on their podium in the Motul Course de Monterrey at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca,” said John Roth, Cadillac global vice president. “Every member of the team can be proud of their efforts in preparing the racecar for success. For more than a century, racing has provided a testbed for Cadillac to transfer knowledge and technology between racecars and production vehicles and is brought to life in our V-Series portfolio. Today’s second-place finish demonstrates the incredible technology and durability of the V-Series.R, and the remarkable capabilities, expertise and determination of the Cadillac Racing team.”  

The No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R driven by Sebastien Bourdais and Renger van der Zande, finished fifth. Bourdais, who reset the track lap record of 1 minute, 12.455 seconds in the dash for the pole in the 15-minute qualifying session, also owns the race lap record of 1:14.196 set on Lap 16 on the 2.238-mile, 11-turn WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca road course.

A Cadillac GTP entry has recorded the fastest race lap in three of the four races, and Cadillac has earned the pole in all four races (Derani at Daytona, Sebring and Long Beach to start the season and Bourdais earning his seventh career IMSA pole with the record lap at Laguna Seca).

Cadillac has claimed at least one podium spot in seven of the eight races at Laguna Seca since joining IMSA prototype competition in 2017. The No. 6 Porsche Penske 963 overtook the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R in Turn 3 with 11 minutes remaining and went on to the victory.

The team made an early service stop for right-side tires and fuel after Derani deftly kept the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R in second behind the sister Cadillac racecar for 24 laps while battling low tire pressure caused by a puncture on Lap 1. The Action Express Racing-run team raced to the front with 1 hour, 31 minutes left following service stops under the race's lone full-course caution.

Cadillac Racing led 98 of the 119 laps -- a field-high 56 by Aitken and Derani and 42 by Bourdais and van der Zande.

Cadillac Racing will head to Detroit for its hometown race May 31-June 1. It will be the first time IMSA’s premier class will compete on the 1.7-mile, nine-turn downtown street circuit. A Cadillac DPi won four of the five races on the Detroit Belle Isle circuit from 2017-2022 (no race in 2020), with van der Zande co-driving to victory in 2022 and ’21. USA will telecast the 100-minute race beginning at 3 p.m. ET Saturday, June 1, with Peacock providing flag-to-flag streaming.