Indianapolis, Indiana – In a dramatic and hard-fought conclusion to the six-hour TireRack.com Battle on the Bricks, the Whelen Cadillac team claimed a decisive overall and GTP class victory, marking the first win for Cadillac this season and its first triumph since March 2023. The No. 31 Cadillac V-Series.R crossed the finish line ahead of the field, with drivers Jack Aitken, Earl Bamber, and Frederik Vesti delivering a flawless performance on the challenging 14-turn, 2.439-mile Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course.
The race’s final hour offered some of the most intense moments of the weekend. With just 85 minutes remaining, Aitken was in street clothes in the pit, and the team was evaluating its strategy for the final push. In a pivotal move, pole sitter Aitken replaced Bamber in the cockpit during the last pit stop with 82 minutes left—a change that turned out to be decisive. “We’ve got a great team from A to Z, and that includes my teammates,” Aitken said. “Any one of us could have finished it off. We just thought with the length of the race and it was going, it was better to get a fresh one (driver) in. It was intense. I’m glad we did.”
The victory capped off a dominant performance for the No. 31 Cadillac, which led the GTP class at every hour of the race. Despite their commanding pace, the race was far from easy. Two full-course caution periods in the closing 75 minutes tested Aitken’s composure, forcing him to maintain focus on restarts while navigating through slower traffic. The first caution came with just over an hour to go when the hood flew off the No. 70 Inception Racing Ferrari, which would ultimately win the GTD class. Aitken managed to hold off the No. 25 BMW M Team RLL BMW M Hybrid V8 driven by Sheldon van der Linde and expanded his lead to 1.606 seconds with 30 minutes remaining.
As the final minutes unfolded, Tom Blomqvist in the No. 60 Acura Meyer Shank Racing w/ Curb Agajanian Acura ARX-06 emerged as the closest challenger. The MSR car had qualified fastest in GTP, but a post-qualifying inspection penalty relegated it to the rear of the 12-car field. Ricky Taylor in the No. 10 Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac V-Series.R then moved past Blomqvist with 13 minutes remaining, setting up a tense battle for second. A late full-course caution with nine minutes left, caused by a spin from the No. 04 Crowdstrike Racing by APR ORECA LMP2 car, created a final two-lap sprint to the checkered flag. Aitken held his composure and pulled away on the restart, securing a 1-2 finish for Cadillac with Taylor finishing second, while Blomqvist and Colin Braun in third were 1.952 seconds behind the leaders.
The victory was also a milestone for Cadillac, which fields three cars in the GTP class but had yet to claim a win this season. It was a return to form for the Whelen team, which last tasted victory at the 12 Hours of Sebring in 2023. The triumph underscores Cadillac’s competitiveness in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship and adds momentum for the remainder of the Michelin Endurance Cup schedule.
Beyond the overall win, other class victories highlighted the race’s intensity and competitive spirit. In LMP2, the No. 11 TDS Racing ORECA LMP2 07 earned its third consecutive win at the event. Drivers Mikkel Jensen, Hunter McElrea, and Steven Thomas executed a flawless strategy and careful driving, finishing .714 of a second ahead of the No. 43 Inter Europol Competition ORECA LMP2 07 driven by Jeremy Clarke, Tom Dillmann, and Bijoy Garg. Jensen closed out the race in the final stint, building on a strong season that included a previous victory in August 2023 on the IMS road course in INDY NXT by Firestone. “Very tense out there,” Jensen said. “We did the perfect race. No mistakes. Then you get a yellow at the end. Nerve-wracking finish, but you’ve got do a good restart and keep the car clean. It’s not easy to stay clear.”
The GTD PRO class produced a thrilling finish as well. The No. 64 Ford Multimatic Motorsports Ford Mustang GT3, driven by Sebastian Priaulx and Mike Rockenfeller, edged out the No. 81 DragonSpeed Ferrari 296 GT3 by just .594 of a second. Both teams demonstrated consistent pace and skillful traffic management, highlighting the close competition that defines IMSA’s GTD PRO category.
In the GTD class, the No. 70 Inception Racing Ferrari 296 GT3, piloted by Brendan Iribe, Ollie Millroy, and Frederik Schandorff, secured its first IMSA class victory despite losing its hood late in the race. Schandorff guided the car to a 2.276-second advantage over the No. 120 Wright Motorsports Porsche shared by Adam Adelson, Tom Sargent, and Elliott Skeer. The result highlighted the resilience and tactical skill of the Inception team, who overcame significant adversity to take the checkered flag.
The Battle on the Bricks, now in its annual return to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, continues to be a defining endurance event on the IMSA calendar. The combination of the iconic venue, technical road course, and endurance format presents unique challenges for drivers, teams, and engineers alike. Pit strategy, tire management, and driver stamina play crucial roles in determining the outcome, as evidenced by the last-hour drama in the GTP class.
Fans in attendance and watching remotely witnessed a thrilling spectacle that showcased both the reliability and raw speed of the Cadillac V-Series.R program. The teamwork between Aitken, Bamber, and Vesti exemplified seamless coordination and split-second decision-making under pressure. By timing the driver swap to perfection and maintaining pace through late-race cautions, the Whelen team executed a textbook endurance strategy while still providing edge-of-your-seat excitement.
Looking ahead, the TireRack.com Battle on the Bricks is scheduled to return to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway September 18–20, 2026. Teams and fans alike will have another opportunity to experience the intensity, drama, and precision that define IMSA endurance racing. With Cadillac returning to victory lane and strong showings across multiple classes, the 2026 edition promises to be another memorable chapter in the series. Tickets and renewal information are available at IMS.com for those eager to secure a spot at next year’s event.
For Cadillac and the Whelen team, the win represents more than just points in the championship standings. It is a testament to perseverance, teamwork, and adaptability under pressure—qualities that endurance racing demands. The dramatic swings, late-race cautions, and narrow margins of victory captured the essence of IMSA competition and left both teams and fans with unforgettable memories of high-speed drama and strategic brilliance.
As the sun set over Indianapolis, the No. 31 Cadillac Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R team celebrated not only a first victory of the season but a return to the top after months of hard work and preparation. For Jack Aitken, Earl Bamber, Frederik Vesti, and the entire Whelen team, it was a reminder that in endurance racing, patience, precision, and teamwork can pay off in spectacular fashion.
