The Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R will start tomorrow’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Sportscar weekend at Road America from the pole position.
Felipe Nasr had the controls of the No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R for the 15-minute qualifying session this afternoon. The Action Express Racing team had to change the No. 31 Cadillac over to a wet setup for the Brazilian for the run. A steady sprinkle of rain covered the 4-mile, 14-turn circuit making it tricky for the DPi field. Nasr posted a time of 2:07.919 that was good for pole position for tomorrow’s two-hour-and-forty-minute race that takes the green at 1:40 p.m. CT. He and teammate Pipo Derani will pace the field to the green.
“It was awesome,” Nasr said. “Rain conditions, just how I like it (laughing). I don’t think we have had a wet qualifying session for some time. This track is very tricky. We managed to put a lap together. I was able to get some clear laps and get the peak tire performance for that one lap. The 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac felt pretty good. It is always great to be up front. I couldn’t be happier for the team.”
Kevin Magnussen drove the No. 01 V Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R to a second row starting position in fourth with a time of 2:09.194. Magnussen and teammate Renger van der Zande are looking for a second win on the season.
“It’s hard to be satisfied when you qualify fourth,” Magnussen said. “The rain was pretty consistent in the session. The race is tomorrow. Usually we have good race pace compared to qualifying, so that is what we are hoping. We will try to drive a good race with good strategy tomorrow.”
The No. 5 Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.R was piloted by Tristan Vautier in the rainy qualifying session. The Frenchman posted a time of 2:10.497 that will have him starting fifth. He and teammate Loic Duval had a fast car in the morning session, ending that practice in third.
“There was something we didn’t click on for the wet,” Vautier said. “We struggled a bit in practice yesterday. We were not sure where we were at in the wet. I was trying every different driving style and lines, but I couldn’t find the speed. We have a very good car in the dry, so let’s see. If it rains for the race, we have to scratch our heads for a solution.”
Cadillac IMSA Road America Qualifying Results:
1. No. 31 Whelen Engineering Cadillac DPi-V.R, Felipe Nasr, Pipo Derani, 2:07.919
4. No. 01 V Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R, Renger van der Zande, Kevin Magnussen, 2:09.194
5. No. 5 Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.R, Tristan Vautier, Loic Duval, 2:10.497
The IMSA WeatherTech Championship Sportscar weekend at Road America will take the green flag at 2:40 p.m. ET on Sunday. Live Streaming can be viewed on TrackPass, NBC Sports Gold, NBC Sports App, and NBCSports.com. The television broadcast will air on NBCSN, Sunday, August 8, at 8 p.m. ET. IMSA Radio can be heard on IMSA.com and SiriusXM Radio (Sirius 216, XM 202, SiriusXM Online 992).
The IMSA WeatherTech Championship Sportscar weekend at Road America will take the green flag at 2:40 p.m. ET on Sunday. Live Streaming can be viewed on TrackPass, NBC Sports Gold, NBC Sports App, and NBCSports.com. The television broadcast will air on NBCSN, Sunday, August 8, at 8 p.m. ET. IMSA Radio can be heard on IMSA.com and SiriusXM Radio (Sirius 216, XM 202, SiriusXM Online 992).
Image credit: Cadillac/Richard Prince
Cadillac DPi-V.R racing history, Whelen Engineering Cadillac wins the WeatherTech 240 at The Glen. Chip Ganassi Racing won their first race with Cadillac at the Detroit Grand Prix. The Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.R won the Sebring 12 hours. In the season opener Rolex 24 At Daytona, the Ally Cadillac team placed second with NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson. In 2020 the Konica Minolta Cadillac team won the season opening Rolex 24 At Daytona and posted a win at Petit Le Mans. The Whelen Engineering team won Sebring in July. Konica Minolta Cadillac team won the IMSA Endurance Cup championship.
In 2019 Konica Minolta Cadillac took the win at the season opening Rolex 24 Hour At Daytona, the Whelen Engineering Cadillac squad followed that up by winning the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. The Mustang Sampling Cadillac team also posted a win at Long Beach on the year.
The 2018 season saw the Mustang Sampling Cadillac DPi-V.R win the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona; Cadillac won the IMSA Prototype Manufacturer Championship; Whelen Engineering Cadillac drivers Eric Curran and Felipe Nasr win IMSA Prototype Drivers' Championship; Whelen Engineering Cadillac wins the IMSA Prototype Team Championship; Cadillac wins Tequila Patron North American Endurance Cup (TPNAEC) Manufacturer Championship; Whelen Engineering Cadillac drivers Eric Curran and Felipe Nasr win TPNAEC Drivers' Championship; Whelen Engineering Cadillac wins TPNAEC team championship.
In 2017 Cadillac teams won every title in the inaugural season of the IMSA DPi formula including: Cadillac wins DPi manufacturer championship; Cadillac wins TPNAEC (Tequila Patrón North American Endurance Cup) manufacturer title; Jordan and Ricky Taylor 2017 IMSA WeatherTech DPi driver champions; Konica Minolta Cadillac team champions; Mustang Sampling Cadillac drivers Joao Barbosa, Christian Fittipaldi and Filipe Albuquerque won the TPNAEC DPi driver championship; Mustang Sampling Cadillac won the TPNAEC DPi team championship; Whelen Engineering drivers Dane Cameron and Eric Curran finish second in the driver's championship; Mustang Sampling Cadillac drivers Joao Barbosa and Christian Fittipaldi finish third in the driver's championship; Cadillac teams combine to win seven races in 2017: Rolex 24 Hours At Daytona, Twelve Hours of Sebring, Long Beach, Circuit of the Americas, Detroit, Watkins Glen, and Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.
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Cadillac Racing; IMSA SportsCar Weekend at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin; August 8, 2021; Cadillac DPi-V.R teams Whelen Engineering Racing (#31), Mustang Sampling/JDC-Miller MotorSports (#5), and Cadillac Chip Ganassi Racing (#01) (Richard Prince/Cadillac Photo).
