| Transcript of Jack Aitken, driver of the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R |
| DETROIT (July 22, 2026) – Jack Aitken, driver of the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R, was a guest on an IMSA media teleconference to discuss the upcoming Motul SportsCar Endurance Grand Prix on August 2 from Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. Aitken will drive with Earl Bamber and Frederik Vesti. Transcript of select questions: You’ve had a lot of success recently, how do you keep it going at Road America? “I think just treat it like a normal day, normal weekend. Obviously, we’re in a pretty good groove at the moment, as a team, as a crew. I think we’ve had some good progress this year with the evo update on the Cadillacs as well, and that’s been, it was a lot of hard work in the offseason to get that ready and ship shape and doing what we wanted it to do, and that’s helped. So, a lot of things come together. I don’t think we are in a position where we’re really desperately trying to hold onto a streak. You know, it’s a great thing to have, but the reality is we’re coming into every weekend, trying to do the best job we can. The streak will end at some point, and I don’t know if that’ll be this weekend with a hat trick of 4th places, or if we can keep it going even longer, but, we feel good, and just want to keep enjoying it and we’re working well, so why would we change anything at the moment?” |
| You have a decent championship lead. Is it a confidence booster or slightly more added pressure? “I think it goes back to what I was saying at the start that there’s no reason to change the way that we’ve been racing. because it’s been working well. We’re certainly not doing the win it or bin it strategy at the moment and obviously it wouldn’t make sense to switch over. I think we’re just looking to be as quick as we can, and then make sensible decisions in the race, and that gets you, like, 99 percent of the way there, and it always will. I’ve been in a few championship fights now. It’s hard to not have some pressure come into the team. But, that’s what we keep repeating, that we’re doing things well, and we just need to stick to those guns. There will be weekends when, even if we do things right, we’re not going to get the results that we have been getting, and that’s just life. That’s racing. It’s going to happen, doesn’t mean that we’re doing the wrong things all of a sudden. So, we’re going to keep trucking, try not to worry too much about the point situation until maybe the last few hours of Petit Le Mans. It looks like a big leap, but frankly in IMSA, the point swings can be quite aggressive. So, I don’t think it’s over by any stretch.” Having the dual program between WEC and IMSA, how has that helped this year? “I think it’s been really helpful, massively helpful. Because at the end of the day, it gives me, and Earl (Bamber), who does the same thing. Something that you can’t really get these days, which is more track time. It’s very difficult to spend more laps in the car, without some kind of compromise, whether it’s, you know, you have to have less drivers at the track for tests or you’re simply not allowed to most of the time. I feel like it’s taking my driving to another level this year. I saw the same with Earl when he partnered with us for the first time last year that, I thought he was, he was driving extremely well. He brings a lot of knowledge outside of the car, that was very helpful, and helped to align a lot of the teams, because although it’s the same hardware between here and here and WEC, the teams can still run the cars in their own way, you know, whether it’s different ways of doing the car build or setup philosophies or even just running procedures there’s a lot that you can find out, improve test. So just helping everyone on the Cadillac program to centralize all of that and pick the best of the bunch. It’s really important for the progression of the program, I think.” |
| Do like going to Road America? “Yep, it’s like the other guys have said, it’s definitely a highlight in the calendar. It’s one of the tracks, I think, that can still scare you a little bit. It’s definitely a bit of a thrill because it’s very high consequence, and you’re never far away from potentially having quite a big accident. So it’s nice, but it’s also very challenging and racing wise, it’s difficult to pass, but I think with it being quite often being a fuel race or strategic there are opportunities to move up and down the field. And it’ll be even more so this year of the six hours. So yeah, definitely one of my, my favorite tracks.” How hard is it to set up the cars for Road America? “I think it’s similar in a lot of ways to Watkins Glen, fast and flowing, and requires a car that works well aerodynamically, so you’re really trying to optimize the platform, working with a car that’s quite stable. It’s a fine balance you want a car that has front to be able to place it and to be accurate, especially in the high speed stuff, like the carousel and the kink. Because the penalty for being offline is extremely high. But you need a car that you can rely on as well on the other side. So there’s no major sharks but it’s similar to Watkins Glen. I’m very lucky to have teammates that are quite flexible. We generally don’t, don’t need to argue too much about what direction we are going and that makes life very easy. So yeah, never, never a big point of discussion for us.” How has running both the WEC and IMSA programs helped this year? “I think we’re looking for the same things really. So, success on either side of the pond is appreciated and encouraged and we all take a bit of joy when we see any Cadillac team doing well. I know the Action guys were supporting all of the Le Mans crews, and watching from home quite intently, although they would have loved to have been there themselves as well. There was a lot of camaraderie and good spirit there, and the same thing JOTA watched for a lot of Daytona, even had some people on the ground with us, which was fantastic, and there’s a good team spirit there. So, yeah, it’s a nice atmosphere and at the end of the day, we all want the program to do well, even occasionally when we’re racing on the same bit of track. It’s all for the same course.” What are your thoughts on Road America? “I think it’s a combination of, it’s not a very forgiving track, so if you do go off there’s a high chance that you’ll either hit something or get stuck in the gravel. That’s a common feature in a lot of the IMSA tracks. So it’s not the only reason. I think the track itself does produce pretty good racing, but it’s difficult to make pass. There are a few big braking zones where you can try. And a lot of places where you can go side by side, but it needs cooperation. And we’ve had plenty of races, I think, over the last year, however many years, several years, where cooperation is not always given. You get body parts, debris, cars off in the gravel, and all of those things can lead to cautions. Whether being an endurance round now as well, you do have a lot of cars, a lot of drivers that are not full-time, full season entries, with a bit less time in the seat, and that can also contribute to yellow. So yeah, there’s a few different things going on.” Can you talk about the physical fitness needed to compete at this level? “Yep, made the trip to the cafe and then came back. That’s my style of exercise (laughs). And it’s going to stay that way. Joking aside we have some time to do a little bit but in the heat of the season, it is difficult to attribute time to it, in the same way that you can off season. Combined with the fact that we’re driving the cars pretty often at the moment, you’re pretty race ready and acclimated. It’s still a challenge if it’s hot. I’m particularly not a fan of the heat being from the U.K., but there’s nothing you can do about it and we’re pretty used to it at this point, so it is what it is. I’ll do the occasional run or bike ride for a bit of fun, but that’s about it.” Is there something different that you can kind of that you’re starting to notice that you’re able to extract out of yourself this year compared to the last few years? Is there just something that you’ve been able to hit on that maybe you weren’t hitting on over the last couple of seasons at the same level? “When we were talking about the double-program stuff earlier, that’s definitely helped. More tracks time is never a bad thing, and I do feel like I’ve benefited from it. I also just feel like I’m reaching a maturity with IMSA. This is my is my third full-time season, so I know the championship much better than I did before and just more comfortable with the tracks, more in tune with the races and what generally happens on the strategy side of things. And in the same breath, I’m very comfortable with the team with Action Express and Cadillac. I think I’ve got some great relationships that mean that I enjoy my work and I turn up, always, you know, happy to be there and things are going well, so it always helps. But I have to say that, you know, I think we run a fantastic streak, but part of that is down to fortune and a bit of good luck here and there. There are definitely times when we probably shouldn’t have finished on the podium or, or been on the top step and we somehow managed it. I believe in in balancing the stuff all balances out in the long run. So I’ll probably do some bad luck at some point. So you know, I think it’s going really well and I’m very happy about it. Like I said, I’m enjoying it, but I also think I’m the same driver I was before. You know the championship is not tied up by any means. Just going into the last few races with eyes open and try and do the, as good a job as I can and look forward to relying on my teammates and my crew.” How big would a championship be to you? “It would obviously be fantastic because to win any championship of that scale IMSA, is right up there in the racing world, not just in the endurance or sports car world. It’s a championship that I truly enjoy racing in, which means a lot as well. And to do it with people that I enjoy working with, that would mean a lot as well. You balance that against as, as the more championships that I do and the more races I do, the more that I measure success in a bit of a different way, because you can only do what’s in your control, what’s in your hands, so I’m taking more and more pleasure these days from doing those things well, and that means that, you know, you don’t take the DNFs or the bad results quite as hard when you, you feel like you’ve done your job. But it also means that when you win, you’re a bit more circumspect about, about it. I will be over the moon if we can do it very proud of what we’ve achieved. But I will still be very proud, even if we don’t do it. So I guess that’s what I’m trying to say.” Do you have to relearn these tracks when you come back? “I feel like once I’ve learned it, it’s good to go in the memory bank unless you haven’t been there for a long time, but the first time I went to Road America, it was quite a shock to the system because that was still my first year of IMSA. So still recalibrating a little bit from European trucks where you generally get a lot more space, a lot more forgiveness. I think it was just, it was either just after or just before they’d done the resurfacing and it was so cold that it was actually snowing that day, so grip was not you know, plentiful. And that added to the experience and generally I found it pretty terrifying. It’s probably the only time in recent history that has taken me a long time to get up to speed. But just because I was sure that I was going to hit something and it would probably be quite hard. So now that I’ve come back and done it in the summer, it’s great and I love it. The back end of the circuit, when you get through the carousel, the kink and Canada corner, even the last couple corners, they’ve got a great flow to it. You really get a great sensation of speed with how hemmed in you are by the trees. So, it’s turned into one of my favorites, but the American tracks in general, like I say, are much less forgiving, and you do bear that in mind when you’re getting up to speed on them.” |
| Transcript of Jack Aitken, driver of the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R |
| DETROIT (July 22, 2026) – Jack Aitken, driver of the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R, was a guest on an IMSA media teleconference to discuss the upcoming Motul SportsCar Endurance Grand Prix on August 2 from Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. Aitken will drive with Earl Bamber and Frederik Vesti. Transcript of select questions: You’ve had a lot of success recently, how do you keep it going at Road America? “I think just treat it like a normal day, normal weekend. Obviously, we’re in a pretty good groove at the moment, as a team, as a crew. I think we’ve had some good progress this year with the evo update on the Cadillacs as well, and that’s been, it was a lot of hard work in the offseason to get that ready and ship shape and doing what we wanted it to do, and that’s helped. So, a lot of things come together. I don’t think we are in a position where we’re really desperately trying to hold onto a streak. You know, it’s a great thing to have, but the reality is we’re coming into every weekend, trying to do the best job we can. The streak will end at some point, and I don’t know if that’ll be this weekend with a hat trick of 4th places, or if we can keep it going even longer, but, we feel good, and just want to keep enjoying it and we’re working well, so why would we change anything at the moment?” |
| You have a decent championship lead. Is it a confidence booster or slightly more added pressure? “I think it goes back to what I was saying at the start that there’s no reason to change the way that we’ve been racing. because it’s been working well. We’re certainly not doing the win it or bin it strategy at the moment and obviously it wouldn’t make sense to switch over. I think we’re just looking to be as quick as we can, and then make sensible decisions in the race, and that gets you, like, 99 percent of the way there, and it always will. I’ve been in a few championship fights now. It’s hard to not have some pressure come into the team. But, that’s what we keep repeating, that we’re doing things well, and we just need to stick to those guns. There will be weekends when, even if we do things right, we’re not going to get the results that we have been getting, and that’s just life. That’s racing. It’s going to happen, doesn’t mean that we’re doing the wrong things all of a sudden. So, we’re going to keep trucking, try not to worry too much about the point situation until maybe the last few hours of Petit Le Mans. It looks like a big leap, but frankly in IMSA, the point swings can be quite aggressive. So, I don’t think it’s over by any stretch.” Having the dual program between WEC and IMSA, how has that helped this year? “I think it’s been really helpful, massively helpful. Because at the end of the day, it gives me, and Earl (Bamber), who does the same thing. Something that you can’t really get these days, which is more track time. It’s very difficult to spend more laps in the car, without some kind of compromise, whether it’s, you know, you have to have less drivers at the track for tests or you’re simply not allowed to most of the time. I feel like it’s taking my driving to another level this year. I saw the same with Earl when he partnered with us for the first time last year that, I thought he was, he was driving extremely well. He brings a lot of knowledge outside of the car, that was very helpful, and helped to align a lot of the teams, because although it’s the same hardware between here and here and WEC, the teams can still run the cars in their own way, you know, whether it’s different ways of doing the car build or setup philosophies or even just running procedures there’s a lot that you can find out, improve test. So just helping everyone on the Cadillac program to centralize all of that and pick the best of the bunch. It’s really important for the progression of the program, I think.” |
| Do like going to Road America? “Yep, it’s like the other guys have said, it’s definitely a highlight in the calendar. It’s one of the tracks, I think, that can still scare you a little bit. It’s definitely a bit of a thrill because it’s very high consequence, and you’re never far away from potentially having quite a big accident. So it’s nice, but it’s also very challenging and racing wise, it’s difficult to pass, but I think with it being quite often being a fuel race or strategic there are opportunities to move up and down the field. And it’ll be even more so this year of the six hours. So yeah, definitely one of my, my favorite tracks.” How hard is it to set up the cars for Road America? “I think it’s similar in a lot of ways to Watkins Glen, fast and flowing, and requires a car that works well aerodynamically, so you’re really trying to optimize the platform, working with a car that’s quite stable. It’s a fine balance you want a car that has front to be able to place it and to be accurate, especially in the high speed stuff, like the carousel and the kink. Because the penalty for being offline is extremely high. But you need a car that you can rely on as well on the other side. So there’s no major sharks but it’s similar to Watkins Glen. I’m very lucky to have teammates that are quite flexible. We generally don’t, don’t need to argue too much about what direction we are going and that makes life very easy. So yeah, never, never a big point of discussion for us.” How has running both the WEC and IMSA programs helped this year? “I think we’re looking for the same things really. So, success on either side of the pond is appreciated and encouraged and we all take a bit of joy when we see any Cadillac team doing well. I know the Action guys were supporting all of the Le Mans crews, and watching from home quite intently, although they would have loved to have been there themselves as well. There was a lot of camaraderie and good spirit there, and the same thing JOTA watched for a lot of Daytona, even had some people on the ground with us, which was fantastic, and there’s a good team spirit there. So, yeah, it’s a nice atmosphere and at the end of the day, we all want the program to do well, even occasionally when we’re racing on the same bit of track. It’s all for the same course.” What are your thoughts on Road America? “I think it’s a combination of, it’s not a very forgiving track, so if you do go off there’s a high chance that you’ll either hit something or get stuck in the gravel. That’s a common feature in a lot of the IMSA tracks. So it’s not the only reason. I think the track itself does produce pretty good racing, but it’s difficult to make pass. There are a few big braking zones where you can try. And a lot of places where you can go side by side, but it needs cooperation. And we’ve had plenty of races, I think, over the last year, however many years, several years, where cooperation is not always given. You get body parts, debris, cars off in the gravel, and all of those things can lead to cautions. Whether being an endurance round now as well, you do have a lot of cars, a lot of drivers that are not full-time, full season entries, with a bit less time in the seat, and that can also contribute to yellow. So yeah, there’s a few different things going on.” Can you talk about the physical fitness needed to compete at this level? “Yep, made the trip to the cafe and then came back. That’s my style of exercise (laughs). And it’s going to stay that way. Joking aside we have some time to do a little bit but in the heat of the season, it is difficult to attribute time to it, in the same way that you can off season. Combined with the fact that we’re driving the cars pretty often at the moment, you’re pretty race ready and acclimated. It’s still a challenge if it’s hot. I’m particularly not a fan of the heat being from the U.K., but there’s nothing you can do about it and we’re pretty used to it at this point, so it is what it is. I’ll do the occasional run or bike ride for a bit of fun, but that’s about it.” Is there something different that you can kind of that you’re starting to notice that you’re able to extract out of yourself this year compared to the last few years? Is there just something that you’ve been able to hit on that maybe you weren’t hitting on over the last couple of seasons at the same level? “When we were talking about the double-program stuff earlier, that’s definitely helped. More tracks time is never a bad thing, and I do feel like I’ve benefited from it. I also just feel like I’m reaching a maturity with IMSA. This is my is my third full-time season, so I know the championship much better than I did before and just more comfortable with the tracks, more in tune with the races and what generally happens on the strategy side of things. And in the same breath, I’m very comfortable with the team with Action Express and Cadillac. I think I’ve got some great relationships that mean that I enjoy my work and I turn up, always, you know, happy to be there and things are going well, so it always helps. But I have to say that, you know, I think we run a fantastic streak, but part of that is down to fortune and a bit of good luck here and there. There are definitely times when we probably shouldn’t have finished on the podium or, or been on the top step and we somehow managed it. I believe in in balancing the stuff all balances out in the long run. So I’ll probably do some bad luck at some point. So you know, I think it’s going really well and I’m very happy about it. Like I said, I’m enjoying it, but I also think I’m the same driver I was before. You know the championship is not tied up by any means. Just going into the last few races with eyes open and try and do the, as good a job as I can and look forward to relying on my teammates and my crew.” How big would a championship be to you? “It would obviously be fantastic because to win any championship of that scale IMSA, is right up there in the racing world, not just in the endurance or sports car world. It’s a championship that I truly enjoy racing in, which means a lot as well. And to do it with people that I enjoy working with, that would mean a lot as well. You balance that against as, as the more championships that I do and the more races I do, the more that I measure success in a bit of a different way, because you can only do what’s in your control, what’s in your hands, so I’m taking more and more pleasure these days from doing those things well, and that means that, you know, you don’t take the DNFs or the bad results quite as hard when you, you feel like you’ve done your job. But it also means that when you win, you’re a bit more circumspect about, about it. I will be over the moon if we can do it very proud of what we’ve achieved. But I will still be very proud, even if we don’t do it. So I guess that’s what I’m trying to say.” Do you have to relearn these tracks when you come back? “I feel like once I’ve learned it, it’s good to go in the memory bank unless you haven’t been there for a long time, but the first time I went to Road America, it was quite a shock to the system because that was still my first year of IMSA. So still recalibrating a little bit from European trucks where you generally get a lot more space, a lot more forgiveness. I think it was just, it was either just after or just before they’d done the resurfacing and it was so cold that it was actually snowing that day, so grip was not you know, plentiful. And that added to the experience and generally I found it pretty terrifying. It’s probably the only time in recent history that has taken me a long time to get up to speed. But just because I was sure that I was going to hit something and it would probably be quite hard. So now that I’ve come back and done it in the summer, it’s great and I love it. The back end of the circuit, when you get through the carousel, the kink and Canada corner, even the last couple corners, they’ve got a great flow to it. You really get a great sensation of speed with how hemmed in you are by the trees. So, it’s turned into one of my favorites, but the American tracks in general, like I say, are much less forgiving, and you do bear that in mind when you’re getting up to speed on them.” |
LARSON’S HOOSIER STATE HISTORY Kyle Larson ranks second among the NASCAR Cup Series’ active drivers with three career crown jewel wins, one of which came in the 2024 Brickyard 400 when the event made its return to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval. While the series’ stint on the oval configuration has been short in the Next Gen era, Larson’s 2024 victory, along with a runner-up finish one year ago, undoubtedly puts him at the top of the leaderboard with an average finish of 1.5. Overall, throughout his eight starts on the Indiana-based oval, his win has been accompanied by three top-fives and five top-nines to boast a career average finish of 12.4 (fourth-best), as well as series-leading numbers with an average running position of 10.012 and 1,104 laps completed in the top-15. 
VAN GISBERGEN CONTINUES TO CLOSE IN ON A CHASE BIDShane van Gisbergen and the Stephen Doran-led No. 97 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet team put together yet another exceptionally executed race in the NASCAR Cup Series return to North Wilkesboro Speedway. With an eighth-place starting position courtesy of the metric, the New Zealander remained a steady fixture in the top-10 throughout the entirety of the evening – collecting top-five points in each stage en route to his career-best short-track finish of fifth. The effort ended with an accumulation of 47 points – the third-highest of the field – to add a double-digit increase in his cushion to sit 54 points above the cutline with just five races remaining in the regular season. Points aside, it was statistically one of his strongest overall oval performances. He was second-best of the field with 49 laps led, which was also a career-best feat on an oval. Among the 450 laps completed, he ran 355 laps in the top-five and 442 laps in the top-10 – both of which beat his previous records in a single event. 
AVERAGES IN THE SUMMER STRETCHThe summer stretch has played a pivotal role in the NASCAR Cup Series points standings, and with the introduction of the new Chase format, consistency is more important than ever. Over the past six races, William Byron’s average finish of 13.2 has ranked him fifth-best of the field. Among that timeframe includes a pair of top-four finishes that came at Pocono Raceway and Chicagoland Speedway. Entering the crown jewel affair, Byron sits with an 84-point cushion over the cutline and on the horizon of a strong set of tracks for the No. 24 team. The Rudy Fugle-led team has earned victories in two of the five tracks that conclude the regular season, including one win at Iowa Speedway and three wins at Daytona International Speedway. 
ALLGAIER’S CAREER SEASON CONTINUESTeam Chevy veteran driver, Justin Allgaier, continues to add onto an already career season in his quest for a second NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series championship title. In the series’ last event at EchoPark Speedway, the Illinois native made an impressive charge from seventh to first on an overtime restart to claim his sixth victory of 2026, making it the winningest season of his career. Reaching a 240-point lead over the series’ reigning champion, Jesse Love, Allgaier was able to make an early clinch of the regular season title with three races still remaining. Indianapolis Motor Speedway sets up for the opportunity for yet another strong points day for the No. 7 JR Motorsports Chevrolet team. In his past four starts on the Indiana-based oval, Allgaier has scored one win (2018) and three top-nine finishes, along with points no worse than sixth in every stage. 
Despite a challenging run at North Wilkesboro Speedway last weekend, Grant Enfinger and the No. 9 CR7 Motorsports Chevrolet team maintained their ninth-place position in the rankings heading into the Indianapolis race weekend. The Team Chevy veteran driver has one Truck Series win at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, which came in his first career start at the track (2022). Since then, he has amassed three top-four finishes, qualifying efforts no worse than eighth and top-seven points in all but one stage. 
What They’re Saying – Race – Borchetta Bourbon Music City Grand Prix 
Chevrolet’s season statistics with 21 NASCAR Cup Series races complete: