Wayne Taylor has revealed that the prospect to take his crew to the Le Mans 24 Hours performed a significant position in his change again to Cadillac for the IMSA SportsCar Championship.
He described the prospect of Wayne Taylor Racing getting into the centrepiece spherical of the World Endurance Championship for the primary time as “one of many elements” behind the transfer from Acura to Cadillac introduced final week.
“The possibility to go to Le Mans was an enormous a part of making the change, as a result of Acura has indicated that it has no plans to go and that race is central to Cadillac’s programme,” Taylor informed Motorsport.com.
“For Cadillac, that is actually a world programme: WEC and Le Mans are the primary priorities. However America is vital as a result of it’s the place they promote the vast majority of automobiles, which is why we shall be working two automobiles in IMSA.”
Taylor has by no means made any secret of his ambition to take the crew he established for the 2007 season to Le Mans to attempt to add to its wins within the marquee enduros in North America – the Daytona 24 Hours, Sebring 12 Hours and Petit Le Mans at Street Atlanta.
The change again to Cadillac, with which WTR gained the Daytona IMSA blue riband thrice in 4 years from 2017-20, offers the crew the chance to race at Le Mans as a result of the Normal Motors model additionally contests the WEC with its V-Collection.R LMDh.
#10 Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti Acura ARX-06: Ricky Taylor, Filipe Albuquerque
Picture by: Jake Galstad / Motorsport Photos
WEC guidelines enable for extra entries for the 24 Hours from a producer contesting the sequence within the Hypercar class: up to now two years Chip Ganassi Racing has fielded an additional Caddy alongside its full-season world championship entry and Motion Specific Racing has additionally joined the grid with one automotive.
Taylor defined that he was hopeful that WTR can be on the race he contested 13 occasions as a driver subsequent yr.
“I’m the everlasting optimist, so I’m anticipating to be there till somebody tells me in any other case,” stated Taylor. “Jota may have two automobiles in WEC [when it takes over the factory programme from Ganassi] and we’re hopeful that Caddy can have two extra for Le Mans.”
Ought to that occur, it’s seemingly that WTR would land one and Motion Specific the opposite, Taylor urged.
WTR having been partnered with Andretti World since final yr, Taylor described the return to Cadillac “as a homecoming”.
He has hyperlinks with Cadillac guardian firm GM courting again to 1991 when as a driver he was a race winner with Chevrolet’s Intrepid GTP IMSA programme in IMSA and subsequently did the double at Daytona and Sebring in 1996 with an Oldsmobile-powered Riley & Scott MkIII World Sports activities Automobile, earlier than happening to be one of many companions within the British-based 3GR organisation that masterminded Cadillac’s Northstar LMP programme at Le Mans and within the American Le Mans Collection in 2001-02.
“If you concentrate on it, I drove for thus lots of GM’s manufacturers: Chevrolet, Oldsmobile Aurora, Pontiac and Cadillac,” stated Taylor.
“It has been a really lengthy relationship and the way in which they’ve accepted me again in is wonderful, I actually really feel that they have their arms round me.”
Taylor revealed that he was additionally excited to once more be working with Dallara, which is Cadillac’s growth accomplice for the LMDh.
He linked up with the Italian constructor within the Grand-Am Daytona Prototype and the IMSA Daytona Prototype worldwide eras and earlier than that raced the Ferrari 333SP WSC automotive co-developed by Dallara for the Momo/Doran and Risi Competizione groups in IMSA in 1995 and ’98-’99 respectively.
“This has introduced us again with Dallara, which I see as actually vital,” stated Taylor. “They constructed us a DP again in 2008 and, after all, I do know Giampaolo [Dallara] from the 333SP days.”
Cadillac introduced final week that WTR was returning to its fold as a part of the enlargement of its IMSA programme from two to a few V-Collection.Rs: WTR will run two within the GTP division and Motion Specific one.
WTR was known as Wayne Taylor Racing with out the ‘with Andretti’ suffix it has used since final yr, although the assertion did reference its partnership with Andretti World.
Taylor defined that this was a “historic factor” ensuing from the lengthy relationship between WTR and GM and that no choice had been made on the crew identify for subsequent yr.
Drivers for WTR’s 2025 IMSA marketing campaign are anticipated to be introduced within the wake of this yr’s IMSA Petit Le Mans curtain-closer in October.
