The final hour and a half of the 12-hour race at Sebring on March 16th, 2024 was riddled with yellow flags, setting the stage for a tight battle to the finish, and unfortunately, one Cadillac Racing car came out on the wrong end of the fight at the line – and earlier in the race, the other V-Series.R entry rolled after contact with a competitor.
No. 01 Cadillac V-Series.R of Renger van der Zande, Sebastien Bourdais and Scott Dixon was fast throughout the half-day endurance race, dominating the first four hours. Bourdais stepped behind the wheel for the final stint and enjoyed a healthy lead, but the No. 40 Acura ARX-06 of Louis Deletraz had a set of fresher tires and clawed through the field to challenge the gold Caddy as the clock ran down.
With just over five minutes left, Deletraz sent the No. 40 Acura past the No. 01 V-Series.R, but Bourdais didn’t surrender the position without a fight. The two drivers fought tooth and nail, bouncing off one another several times. Bourdais fell back, tailing Deletraz by 0.891 seconds at the line.
Bourdais later admitted that the No. 01 Cadillac Racing machine experienced some electrical issues that may have put it off the pace in the final stint.
“Yeah, I think the whole Cadillac and Ganassi team did a great job,” Bourdais said after finishing second. “It was maybe not as straightforward as we would have liked. We had some electronics at some point. You saw the car slowing down. I was really worried this was going to happen again and maybe that’s it… It was a good day, good points day, but it’s always disappointing to lose the race like that in the closing laps.”
Meanwhile, the No. 31 Cadillac V-Series.R wrecked from the lead after help from a Ferrari. Pipo Derani, who had control at the time, went headfirst into the tire barrier before the race car rocked onto its roof and came to a rest atop the tires.
Once the race car was set upright by track safety workers, Derani was able to exit under his own power and released from the infield care center. The No. 31 V-Series.R was towed to the garage, done for the day.
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Thanks for share !!!
Mary and Company should go to Church and light some candles. They are so lucky that car didn’t go another 10 feet further if it had it would in would’ve been in the fans! The car looks to be a poor design as soon as it turned and flew!
So Mary now is responsible for a Ferrari hitting a race car on a race track. Your need to adopt a dog, have a coat drive, light your pipe and get in your 12 year old Subaru drive to the real world.