Cadillac concludes DPi era with two podium finishes

Cadillac concludes DPi era with two podium finishes

• No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R is runner-up for second year in a row
• No. 48 Ally Cadillac DPi-V.R claims third place in final endurance race for the team

BRASELTON, Ga. (Oct. 1, 2022) – Cadillac began the Daytona Prototype international (DPi) era with two podium finishes and closed the books on the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship classification with a pair of podium finishes.

The No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R, co-driven by Pipo Derani, Olivier Pla and Mike Conway, was runner-up for the second consecutive year in the 25th edition of the Motul Petit Le Mans at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. The No. 48 Ally Cadillac DPi-V.R, co-driven by Jimmie Johnson, Kamui Kobayashi and Mike Rockenfeller, finished third.

Overall, the Cadillac DPi-V.R recorded 27 victories – tops among all manufacturers – and 84 podium finishes in 59 races since 2017. Additionally, Cadillac earned three Manufacturer Championships and three Team and Driver Championships. A Cadillac DPi-V.R claimed four wins, 18 podiums and four pole starts in 10 races this season.

Derani started the 10-hour race from the seventh position and closed out the daylight-to-darkness race 4.369 seconds behind the winning Acura. The No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R also claimed the trophy for the fourth round of the endurance championship.

“Ups and downs, but in the end we were there to fight for the win,” said Derani, the 2021 DPi champion. “Unfortunately, I got really unlucky with traffic at the last restart, so I lost a lot of time and then I was catching them back. But that’s part of multi-class racing. The Cadillac was amazing. Most of my wins and the championship have been with this car. A great era that comes to an end, but I’m glad I am here to be fighting for the win.”

The No. 48 Ally Cadillac DPi-V.R, which has competed in the eight endurance races over the past two seasons, started sixth.

“This has been great; what an awesome opportunity,” said Johnson, the seven-time NASCAR Cup champion. “I’m so thankful to Ally, Action Express and Hendrick Motorsports. I’ve been able to meet and race with a lot of great people. It’s really been a fun two years.”

The No. 02 Cadillac Accessories Cadillac DPi-V.R, which Earl Bamber drove to a front-row starting position on the 2.54-mile, 12-turn natural-terrain road course, was involved in an incident with the sister No. 01 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R in Turn 1 with 51 minutes left, essentially eliminating both cars from contention for the victory. The No. 01, co-driven by Renger van der Zande, Sebastien Bourdais and Scott Dixon, placed fourth. The No. 02 car finished fifth.

The No. 5 Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.R finished seventh in class after it was involved in an incident with a GTD car with 5 hours, 42 minutes left and did not return. Eighteen minutes earlier, race leader Richard Westbrook picked up five points to put the JDC-Miller MotorSports group in the Team/Driver Endurance Championship lead.

While five Cadillac DPi-V.R entries contested the Motul Petit Le Mans to close one chapter of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, Cadillac Racing is simultaneously preparing for the next level of competition in 2023.

The Cadillac V-LMDh race car — a collaboration between GM designers, GM’s Performance and Racing propulsion team, chassis manufacturer Dallara and suppliers for the spec hybrid energy recovery system – has successfully completed early stage on-track testing in preparation to compete in the new IMSA Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) category and FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) Hypercar class in 2023.

On-track testing will continue into the new year, with IMSA-sanctioned testing on Oct. 3-5 and Dec. 6-7. The Rolex 24 At Daytona on Jan. 28-29 opens the 2023 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season. The WEC season commences with the 1,000 Miles of Sebring on March 17.

Cadillac Racing finishing positions and driver quotes

No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R (Action Express Racing)

Pipo Derani, Olivier Pla, Mike Conway (start seventh, finish second)

Derani: “Ups and downs, but in the end we were there to fight for the win. Unfortunately, I got really unlucky with traffic at the last restart, so I lost a lot of time and then I was catching them back. But that’s part of multi-class racing. I’m glad we had a fantastic time with the DPi car. The Cadillac was amazing. Most of my wins and the championship have been with this car. A great era that comes to an end, but I’m glad I am here to be fighting for the win.”

Pla: “It’s never over (until it’s over). We had some problems on the pit stop and we lost quite a bit of time. At that time, the car was starting to come alive. It was getting colder (outside). I think we had a really good car for the end. But, as you can see, the race is never finished until the last lap. It’s a great result for the team.”

Conway: “(My stints) were quite good. Then, I went back out in the night, I just had some crap traffic for about five or six laps in a row. I thought I couldn’t do anything right out there. Then, it seemed to be OK after that. Pipo pushed really hard to the end and that was pretty cool. He brought home a good result. It was crazy with the two Cadillacs coming together somewhat and then what happened to the No. 10 Acura. It was a crazy finish.”

No. 48 Ally Cadillac DPi-V.R (Action Express Racing)

Jimmie Johnson, Kamui Kobayashi, Mike Rockenfeller (start sixth, finish third)

Johnson: “It was a very challenging day. But, at the end of the race, we finally got some breaks to come back our way and ended up on the podium. It’s really tough trying to work traffic. I was brave sometimes, but I just needed to be more brave all of the time. I was just trying to be smart and cautious with the car. Ultimately, I left some speed on the table in my stint. But, I got two full stints in the car each time I was in. This has been great, what an awesome opportunity. I’m so thankful to Ally, Action Express, and Hendrick Motorsports. I’ve been able to meet and race with a lot of great people. It’s really been a fun two years.”

Kobayashi: “For of all, that you to Cadillac, Action Express and my teammates, Jimmie and Mike. We did our best. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the pace in the beginning of the race. But, finally, something came to us and we got this podium in the last race. This is only one podium for this year, but we all worked really hard and it’s good to end the season like this. Thanks to all the guys.”

Rockenfeller: “We earned the podium in the last race of the season and of the DPis, which is satisfying. But it just wasn’t our season for the 48 and not really our race. We didn’t have the pace early and with the penalties we were always on the back foot. It was a tough day, but nice to get a podium.”

No. 01 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R (Chip Ganassi Racing)

Renger van der Zande, Sebastien Bourdais, Scott Dixon (start fifth, finish fourth)

Bourdais: “Obviously, that is not the end of the championship that anybody wanted for Cadillac Racing and the Chip Ganassi Racing team. It’s a shame; there was a race win on the line, and everybody wants to go out on the high note. We’re disappointed to finish like that with the new era ahead of us. The team worked very hard this year and we can only thank them for all their efforts. We will see what the future brings.”

van der Zande: “We came to Petit Le Mans to win and to finish the race like this is really difficult. There’s never any intention to come together out there and we’ll reflect on this and regroup as a team. We can look back on a season where we had great success with wins in Long Beach, Detroit and Mosport. Chip Ganassi Racing and Cadillac put out a really fast car all year and to do that is no easy feat. It takes a lot of really talented people to make this all work.”

No. 02 Cadillac Accessories Cadillac DPi-V.R (Chip Ganassi Racing)

Earl Bamber, Alex Lynn, Ryan Hunter-Reay (start second, finish fifth)

Bamber: “I think we had a fantastic race all day and had a really good car with the No. 02 Cadillac. We managed to lead a lot of laps and hours and that’s something to be proud of. Obviously, I’m quite disappointed with what happened and mostly for everyone at Cadillac and Chip Ganassi Racing. We come here to win as a team, whether it’s the No. 01 or the No. 02, and that is a tough scenario to be in. I think this was a season to be proud of and I believe we’ve scored the most pole positions, as well as a lot of race wins. Now, it’s on to what’s next which is testing for GTP.”

Lynn: “We had a very strong car today, so it was a disappointment to not get the result that the team deserved. I think Ryan, Earl and myself were driving really well and it’s sad that we haven’t brought home the result that we wanted.”

No. 5 Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.R (JDC-Miller MotorSports)

Tristan Vautier, Richard Westbrook, Loic Duval (start fourth, finish seventh in class after incident)

John Church, JDC-Miller MotorSports managing partner: “It’s been an awesome experience to race in the DPi category these years. Everybody at Cadillac, GM and Dallara have been wonderful to work with. It’s sad that it’s the end of an era and disappointing to end the season this way. Racing has a way of going full circle and I’m sure we’ll be back together some day and looking forward to that.”

About Cadillac

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