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Rolex at daytona cadillac racing

IMSA WEATHERTECH SPORTSCAR CHAMPIONSHIP DAYTONA INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY ROLEX 24 AT DAYTONA CADILLAC RACING MEDIA AVAILABILITY JAN. 28, 2022
Chip Ganassi Racing principal Chip Ganassi and drivers of the No. 01 V-Performance Academy Cadillac DPi-V.R (Renger van der Zande, Sebastien Bourdais, Scott Dixon and Alex Palou) and No. 02 Cadillac Accessories Cadillac DPi-V.R (Earl Bamber, Alex Lynn, Kevin Magnussen and Marcus Ericsson) met with members of the media at Daytona International Speedway. Select quotes:
CHIP GANASSI, CHIP GANASSI RACING OWNER AND CEOWHERE DO YOU THINK IMSA IS AT RIGHT NOW? IS THERE OPTIMISM?“It would not be hard to argue that we are on the precipice of a renaissance period here with the rules coming together, the international level, and manufacturer interest. You don’t even have to read the tea leaves, just reading the press announcements that its going to be something good.”HOW HAS IT BEEN FOR YOU GUYS GETTING THE SECOND CAR TOGETHER THIS YEAR AND AS AN ORGANIZATION IN EXPANDING HERE?“We are used to running more than one car. Last year we were kind of getting up and going. A year ago, right now, I think our team was about seven days old. It was a little bit of a hurry up thing last year to get going, so we are a little more at ease running two cars I think.”
MIKE HULL, MANAGING DIRECTORIN TERMS OF THE (WEATHER) CONDITIONS YOUR TEAMS WILL FACE DURING THE RACE?“Here’s the thing about road racing, especially a 24-hour race. No matter what the conditions become as you race, you chase the racetrack more with a long-distance race than a sprint race. So, what you rely on is the race drivers we have to keep you in the loop on what’s going on on the racetrack, and these days we’re afforded with a lot of telemetry, items that help us read the racetrack. It’s all dependent upon ambient temperature, track temperature and the conditions themselves. That’s what is really neat about racing at Daytona for 24 hours, Sebring for 12 hours, if you’re lucky enough to be invited to race at Le Mans, it takes a lot of mentally strength to do it right. That’s what road racing should really be about.”IN TERMS OF THE ENTRY NAME, IT’S CADILLAC RACING. WHAT SHOULD WE READ INTO THAT?“Absolutely nothing. That’s what racing is all about. They pay us to race cars. Think about that for a minute. We just race cars on race day, not matter what the length of time. What that represents is a terrific partnership that we have with Cadillac. Last year, the skies opened up for Chip Ganassi Racing and gave us the opportunity to race with Cadillac. Today, we’re in a position to race two Cadillacs. We’re excited about that and we’ll keep working to be better at it as we go along.”
RENGER VAN DER ZANDE, NO. 01 V-PERFORMANCE ACADEMY CADILLAC DPI-V.RP1 IN TODAY’S PRACTICE IN SEMI-DRY CONDITIONS. DOES THAT ADD ANYTHING TO THE DATA ACQUISITION?“Big time. We didn’t have any dry running yet and we need to set up the car a bit, especially on the back of the car. We tried some items that I think worked out well. Even on the aero devices during that session we could tune it up a bit.”WEATHER IS AN ISSUE, ESPECIALLY FOR THE OVERNIGHT DRIVERS. AND WHAT ABOUT A TAILWIND?“We’ve had it cold here, but never as cold as being forecast. I don’t know what it does to the engines, but I know the outlap will be tricky with new tires. It is a race about survival and not making mistakes.”
SEBASTIEN BOURDAIS, NO. 01 V-PERFORMANCE ACADEMY CADILLAC DPI-V.RYOU HAVE EXPERIENCE WITH THIS TEAM, SO THAT MUST BE HELPFUL?“For the most part, most of the guys I work with in the Ford program as well so I’m kind of in a known environment, which is always great, especially when it’s quality people like here at Chip Ganassi Racing. I’m quite excited to get things going. I think we had a lot of pace at the qualifying race, we just got that pit speeding penalty, which I’m not entirely sure what happened there. We definitely took the pit speed limit down a notch and made sure it’s not going to happen again. The car felt really good this morning, so hopefully we will have a great race. It’s going to be another long one, of survival, with a lot of traffic, and really cold temperatures so night is going to be even more of a survival game than ever. We just have to be smart about it.”HOW ARE YOU GOING TO DEAL WITH THE COLD DURING YOUR STINTS?“We’ve run in the cold, so it’s not exactly unknown territory. I think the biggest thing will be the outlap at night when it gets that cold. We’ll just have to take it a little easier and ultimately once you get past that really terrifying experience on the outlap, then it’s mostly OK. For sure, restarts can be quite tricky, too. It’s the same for everybody. It’s tough to predict how it’s going to be. By the time it gets critical, temperatures will be back in the upper 40s, so I’m not too worried about it.”
SCOTT DIXON, NO. 01 V-PERFORMANCE ACADEMY CADILLAC DPI-V.RTALK ABOUT TRAFFIC.“You don’t know when there is a train of that many who is talking and who is not, we rely on the spotters a lot. The LMP2s are similar in speed, they have slowed us down on straights and they race us hard. Having a multi-car team has been great because you can talk to each other and see what is working for the other car and help to make your car better. I love this race, it’s a lot of fun and it’s become a lot more fun with the INDYCAR offseason being so long. My passion is driving race cars, that is what I love to do and it seems like his race is fun on so many different levels whether its catching up with people you only see once a year or people in different series you have raced with throughout your life. I’m looking forward to getting out there for three hours and driving. We have had some tests here that the weather was about 35 or so. Once you get the first two laps out of the way, it’s pretty normal so I am not too worried about the cold. The track temperature itself won’t be super low since cars will be constantly running.”
ALEX PALOU, NO. 01 V-PERFORMANCE ACADEMY CADILLAC DPI-V.RHOW HAS THIS EXPERIENCE BEEN FOR YOU SO FAR?“This is my very first 24 hours race, I am drinking through a firehose. I am feeling good and super excited to get the year started. I don’t like breaks. I would race every weekend if I could. It’s good to be here in Daytona and in my first prototype race at the end of the day it’s so close to a single-seater. I am really happy to be sharing the car with three other teammates and a 24-hour race. I can’t imagine the crazy things that would happen in 24 hours.”WHAT IS THE RACING LIKE?“The traffic is something I don’t think I will ever get used to. Seeing 60 other cars on the track is crazy. And seeing the speed differences between the LMP2, DPi, etc., It’s quite insane. It makes you have to work all the time when you are on the track. In INDYCAR, sometimes the race or session settles in and you can relax for a couple of laps or so, and here you can’t. You get to a car that is 20 seconds slower and you have to decide if you are going to pass him on the inside or outside. The stints go by quite quick because every corner is different. I am looking forward to being the 3 a.m. guy. I think I am going to wake up at 1 a.m. and want to be in the DPi car. I hope to do some night sessions, I am looking forward to waking up at a crazy hour to drive.”
EARL BAMBER, NO. 02 CADILLAC ACCESSORIES CADILLAC DPI-V.RHOW HAS THE PRACTICE SESSIONS WORKED OUT FOR YOU IN THE 02 CAR?“Challenging conditions. There has been a little bit of dry running and wet in the night. The car is really well-prepared and in really good condition. (Thursday) was my first wet laps in the Cadillac DPi and I really enjoyed that. We were quick. I think we’ll have a really fast car. We’re ready but the big one always comes up quicker than you expect. We’ve been working really hard since the December test to make sure everything is in line and I think we learned a lot from the qualifying race. We’re going to be learning the whole way, but I think by the time we get to the last four hours we’re going to be there for the win.” 
ALEX LYNN, NO. 02 CADILLAC ACCESSORIES CADILLAC DPI-V.RWITH WET CONDITIONS AND COLD THAT MAYBE ALTERED YOUR TEST PLANS, HOW DO YOU PREPARE FOR THIS RACE?“It’s difficult having the first round of the championship being a 24-race. It’s so unique. In other championships, you build up to a 24-hour race. Not much time for the teams to prepare, but for us mentally it’s difficult because it’s going straight from a break to a 24-hour race. The key word is endurance, just getting through the night and seeing where you are. There are a lot of points at stake, and you want to build up a momentum for the championship, but it’s obviously a race that everyone wants to win.”
KEVIN MAGNUSSEN, NO. 02 CADILLAC ACCESSORIES CADILLAC DPI-V.RTELL ME A LITTLE ABOUT YOUR ROLEX EXPERIENCE SO FAR AND WHAT YOU ARE EXPECTING FOR THE RACE.“It’s always good to be at Daytona and as you said, it’s my second year. We had a really good time last year and almost had a good result as well. Had the puncture right at the end with seven minutes to go fighting for the lead. So, that was a big bummer of course and makes it even better to be here again this year with Cadillac and with Chip Ganassi to try and make up for the disappointment last year.”SO AS TEAMS LIKE ACURA AND CADILLAC ARE EXTREMELY CLOSE, WHERE IS THE ADVANTAGE IN DRIVING THE CADILLAC AND WHERE DO YOU FIND YOURSELF MAKING UP TIME ON THE ACURAS?“The Acuras are pretty good all-around and doesn’t have any real weak point, and I would say between all the DPi cars its pretty level. Its balanced out pretty well. So, yes, the Cadillac is a nice car to drive, it’s very smooth and very drivable so far, so can’t complain.”TEMPERATURES ARE ALMOST GOING TO BE RECORD LOWS. HOW DO YOU SEE THAT CHANGING THE DYNAMIC OF THIS RACE?“The biggest worry is that the brakes cool down so much, and of course the tires. I think we are going to be OK on tires, it’s just going to be very tricky on the outlap to get the heat into the tires. After that, I think it’s going to be fine. I think this race has had freezing temperatures before and it hasn’t been such a problem. You know, it’s the same for everyone so it’s up to whoever deals with it better.”
MARCUS ERICSSON, NO. 2 CADILLAC ACCESSORIES CADILLAC DPI-V.RAFTER THE ON-TRACK TIME YOU’VE HAD, HOW COMFORTABLE IN THE CADILLAC ARE YOU ENTERING YOUR FIRST DPI RACE?“When I’ve been in the car, I’ve been really comfortable. The car drives really well and it’s well-balanced. I’ve gotten used to the car very quickly. So far, it’s been really good. I’m looking forward to see how the race plays out. It’s a new experience for me; I’ve never done an endurance race or a 24-hour race.”FOR YOUR FIRST TIME, HOW DO YOU MENTALLY PREPARE FOR AN ENDURANCE RACE?“I’ve been speaking to my experienced teammates that I can lean on, but at the end of the day you have to experience it for yourself. One of the keys will be between stints to switch off a little bit and try to get some rest. That will be important to be fully ready when you’re in the car, and that’s not something I’ve done before. My teammates have been really helpful.”