The Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing team is happy after a good Roar test this past weekend and are excited to go racing at this year's Daytona 24 Hours, they said in pre-race media statements.
'I think generally it has been a positive week for us at the Roar', said Will Stevens, one of the drivers in the #40 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac V-Series.R.
'We got to check off a majority of what we wanted to tick off before the Rolex this weekend. Which is important so that we can narrow down what we want to have for this weekend’s race week because you want all the big changes to the car finalized.
'I think all of us have a positive feeling in the car and feel pretty comfortable, so it’s a good start to the week.'
The fastest Wayne Taylor Racing lap was completed by Filipe Albuquerque in the sister #10 car, a 1:36.731, set in session 4 of the Roar test. This was the fourth fastest time of the 7 sessions, and the fastest non-Porsche time as well.
Looking at the other car, Stevens' teammate Louis Deletraz was only slightly slower than Albuquerque, with the Swiss driver setting a 1:36.901, less than two tenths off his teammate.
Phil Oakley
'It was great testing with six sessions and every session we tried different things,' said Deletraz.
'The Cadillac V-Series.R feels great and I think we learned a lot. I feel good going into the race event. It was nice to work with all the new people we have. Now we get ready to race.'
A busy checklist to tick off
This time last year was WTR's first race with the Cadillac, meaning they had a lot to learn about the car after two years with the Acura ARX-06. This year, though, both the drivers and the mechanics behind the pitwall are more familiar with the car, which has made all the difference, says Albuquerque.
'The Roar went really well,' he said.
'We went through the checklist and got an understanding of the car during the day and the night. I think that is really important in understanding the tire degradation of the new Michelin compounds.
'Again, we will be analyzing everything for this weekend. So far, so good and it makes a big difference being in our second year of driving the Cadillac V-Series.R.'
Phil Oakley
There are many changes to this year for Wayne Taylor Racing and Cadillac. Firstly, Cadillac has introduced an evo update to the V-Series.R, an extensive aero update designed to increase downforce and reduce drag, which the team needs to fully understand before race day. Undoubtedly, these are some of the items on the 'checklist' some drivers have mentioned.
Alongside that, the new Michelin tyre compounds mean further things for the teams to test and understand, to gauge wear, thermal degradation, and warm up. A busy Roar weekend, then, as Deletraz' and Stevens' teammate in the #40 car, Jordan Taylor, alludes to.
'I think we have had a good Roar here over the last three days with no major issues and getting a lot of laps in.
'All three drivers are comfortable in the car. We made some good changes that we wanted to make after our test here in November and sim testing. Everything seems positive. We worked through a lot of things in pit lane, pit stops, driver change practice - all the little things that can add up over a 24-hour race.
'We can spend time between now and the Rolex weekend digging through data and seeing all the best options then hopefully hit the track on Thursday with the best overall setup and head into the weekend on the right foot.'
James Jackson
Wayne Taylor hoping for improvement on 2025
Last year in IMSA, their first with the Cadillac V-Series.R, WTR struggled somewhat to extract the full performance from the car. They took no race wins, with only 4 podiums from 9 races amongst two cars. The sister Cadillac factory team, Action Express Racing, won the final two races of the year, showing performance was there, if only it could be extracted on track.
This year at Daytona, though, could be a different story if the Roar test is anything to go by.
'I always tell our partners and team, you cannot guarantee a win in any sport, but especially in sportscar racing', said Wayne Taylor, team co-owner.
'However, I can guarantee we will be racing for the lead - which makes this weekend so great as we have shown in every session, always in the top five, that we are competitive.
'Based on last year, it shows that everyone at Cadillac, GM and Wayne Taylor Racing have raised the game. We have a lot of new people on board and our driver line up is absolutely fantastic.
The relationship between the drivers is special and between everyone on the team and our partners. There just seems to be a completely new excitement. You do have these up and down years and last year is completely forgotten.
'I can’t wait to get back here for the race week. I am confident that if we do all the right things and don’t make mistakes, that we have the cars and the team to be on the podium,' concluded the South African.
We'll leave the final word to Colton Herta, former Indycar star, 2026 Formula 2 driver, and Cadillac F1 test driver.
'It’s great to be back here in IMSA with Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing,' said the American.
'Another successful few days in the Cadillac V-Series.R. Very productive and everyone is working well. The car seemed to be fast and consistent, so we are very excited going into the Rolex.'
The race begins 1:40pm ET local time in Daytona, or 6:40pm in the UK.
Feature image: Wayne Taylor Racing