Jota is set to lead Cadillac’s enhanced factory campaign in the World Endurance Championship for the upcoming season.
The British team will deploy two Cadillac V-Series.R LMDhs in the Hypercar class starting in 2025, adhering to new regulations that stipulate manufacturer teams must operate two vehicles.
This transition marks a handover of the factory program from Chip Ganassi Racing, which has participated with a single car in the entire series since 2023.
The V-Series.R entries will race under the banner of Cadillac Hertz Team Jota, as the ten-time podium finisher in LMP2 at the Le Mans 24 Hours maintains its collaboration with the car rental giant, which played a pivotal role in its ascension to Hypercar racing as a privateer with the Porsche 963 LMDh last season.
Cadillac’s affiliation with Jota, announced on Tuesday, was largely anticipated and follows more than four months after Ganassi revealed it would not extend its partnership with the General Motors brand across the WEC and IMSA SportsCar Championship in 2025.
While the specific timeline of the agreement between Cadillac and Jota remains undisclosed, it is believed to have taken shape following Jota’s second-place finish in the 2024 WEC season opener in Qatar in March and their victory at the Spa round in May.
John Roth, Cadillac’s vice-president, remarked: “Cadillac takes pride in racing among the elite in the world through the WEC, which includes Hertz Team Jota.
“We’re excited to welcome Jota next year, combining decades of technical racing expertise to achieve ongoing success on the track.”
Race winner #12 Hertz Team Jota Porsche 963: Will Stevens, Callum Ilott
Photo by: Emanuele Clivati | AG Photo
Sam Hignett, director and founder of Jota, described the collaboration with Cadillac as “the fruition of the goal to be a manufacturer team.”
“Having raced against the Cadillac V-Series.R in the last two seasons, we’ve witnessed its competitiveness firsthand, and we are genuinely honored to be tasked with operating the cars from 2025 onwards,” he said.
“When considering manufacturers to partner with for sports car racing, Cadillac and GM are top choices on that shortlist.
“They, alongside Porsche and Ferrari, are names that resonate profoundly with endurance racing.”
No drivers have yet been confirmed for the two Jota Cadillacs, with Hignett indicating that announcements will likely not occur until after the conclusion of the current season in Bahrain in November.
When asked about the possibility of a lineup featuring a mix of current Cadillac and Jota drivers, he responded: “That would be a reasonable assumption and is likely the direction we’ll take, but there could certainly be some new faces as well.”
Earl Bamber and Alex Lynn, who have been part of Cadillac’s WEC team since the start of last year, are expected to transition from Ganassi to Jota.
Callum Ilott and Will Stevens, the victorious duo at Spa, along with Norman Nato, Jenson Button, Phil Hanson, and Oliver Rasmussen make up Jota’s current roster in their two Porsches this season.
#2 Cadillac Racing Cadillac V-SeriesR: Earl Bamber, Alex Lynn
Photo by: Alexander Trienitz
Jota plans to delay testing with the V-Series.R until after the eight-hour WEC event in Bahrain.
“We are committed to everyone involved in our existing program and will focus on concluding this season; then we’ll move forward with the new program once the season wraps up,” said Hignett.
“It’s going to be a challenging off-season.”
Tuesday’s announcement also disclosed that Knighthead Capital Management, the private equity firm that rescued Hertz from Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2021, has now become a stakeholder in Jota.
Cadillac has yet to share its plans for IMSA, which, according to the statement, will be announced “at a later date.”
Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti is expected to rejoin Cadillac’s lineup after four years with Acura, planning to operate two cars in the North American series next year.
Acura has already confirmed that Meyer Shank Racing will take charge of the ARX-06 LMDhs for the upcoming year, with one vehicle to be engineered by Honda Racing Corporation USA, the organization responsible for developing the car.
