Coming off pole start, No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R looks to challenge for victory at Bahrain
DETROIT (Oct. 28, 2024) – Following its best finish and maiden pole in the past two events, Cadillac Racing aims to close out its second season of FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) Hypercar competition with a statement result in the Bapco Energies Eight Hours of Bahrain.
Sebastien Bourdais joins full-season drivers Earl Bamber and Alex Lynn for the finale in the No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R on the 5.412km, 15-turn Bahrain International Circuit on November 2. The Chip Ganassi Racing-run team has shown solid pace throughout the seven races and flat-out speed in qualifying.
Lynn garnered Cadillac Racing’s initial WEC pole at Fuji Speedway last month to extend the team’s streak of qualifying in the top four of Hyperpole to five races. The No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R has advanced to Hyperpole in every race but Imola and has a class-leading average qualifying of 4.4.
Lynn and Bourdais put in stellar performances in Hyperpole for the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June, with Lynn qualifying second. Because of a grid penalty imposed by the ACO that dropped the No. 2 Cadillac V-Series.R in the starting order, the No. 3 Cadillac V-Series.R that Bourdais drove to third in the session moved to the front row.
Fourth place at Cadillac Racing’s home race at Circuit of The Americas in early September is the team’s best finish of the season. Now the group seeks to claim its first podium of the season.
“We’ve shown in the last couple races that we’ve made some good strides forward,” said Bamber, who last week was confirmed as a full-season co-driver with Jack Aitken of the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R in the 2025 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. “We’re in a place where we can definitely challenge for podiums.”
Bourdais, who co-drove the No 01 Cadillac V-Series.R to the overall victory in the October 12 IMSA season-closing Petit Le Mans at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, shared the seat of the No. 2 hybrid Cadillac in the March opener in Qatar in addition to driving in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. He last drove at the Bahrain circuit in 2022 in LMP2 in addition to two outings in Formula One.
The Bapco Energies Eight Hours of Bahrain is scheduled for 2 p.m. (Arabian Standard Time)/7 a.m. (ET) Saturday. MotorTrend TV will air live from 6:30-8 a.m. and 2-3:30 p.m. ET in the U.S.. Full live streaming coverage of Free Practice 3, qualifying and the race will be available on the FIA WEC app and the MAX app in the U.S. Radio Le Mans also will stream audio coverage of Friday’s final practice and qualifying, plus Saturday’s race.
Driver preview quotes
Sebastien Bourdais: “It’s good to get back in the car with Alex and Earl. We started off the season really well. Eventually didn’t get the result because of the circumstances, but we certainly deserved a good finish. The car was very competitive in the race and we played the short game really well. Unfortunately, it’s been a bit of a tough season results-wise. There was always something coming in the way of a good result. If we could send it off on a high that would be pretty cool. Performance-wise, it seems like the car is in a really good window. It’s pretty light, good on power and competitive, so there is definitely something to play for. Bahrain is a really big challenge. It’s an extremely abrasive racetrack. Tire deg is very high and using the tire the right way and not hurting it but making it function without making it slide is a critical thing to do. You have to do it with setup, dampers, traction control and you name it. We’ll try to find some recipes that work and hopefully we’ll wind up in a good spot.”
Earl Bamber: “We’ve shown in the last couple races that we’ve made some good strides forward. We’re in a place where we can definitely challenge for podiums. It’s difficult in those races because you have to sort of have everything go perfectly and the last one was difficult for all manufacturers. I think the potential is there and hopefully we can execute in the last one for Cadillac and Chip Ganassi Racing.”
Alex Lynn: “I believe in terms of sheer performance this year we have not been disappointed and we’re on course to be the best qualifying car in the whole of the World Endurance Championship, which is a great accolade if we can finish that off in Bahrain. Going into Bahrain off the back of what was a strong showing in Fuji until we weren’t able to finish off with a result bodes well. The track, I believe, is one of our better ones with our car and I personally love it as a track. I think our motivation is to finish this season and the first two years of the Cadillac V-Series.R with a strong result. I’m excited to get there.”
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