The streets of SoCal were filled with excitement as the Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing V-Series.R duo showcased 100 minutes of sprint racing action to kick off the regular schedule of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship for the Grand Prix of Long Beach. The Cadillac WTR teams were poised for a “Shoreline Showdown” as they took to the first street course of the year.

Louis Deletraz led the charge in Qualifying for Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing to start third on the grid in the No. 40 Cadillac WTR V-Series.R GTP, his career-best GTP start in Long Beach. Two-time Long Beach winner, Filipe Albuquerque, started Saturday’s race from ninth position in the No. 10 Cadillac WTR V-Series.R. As the green flag flew, it was heads down to gain positions on track for both drivers. Other than a short yellow for debris early in the race, the first half of Saturday’s sprint ran relatively straightforward. Taking a strategy gamble, Albuquerque and the No. 10 team came to pit lane 20 minutes into the race to top off on fuel in an effort to not have to save at the end of the race. The clear track and fresh fuel allowed Albuquerque to run some of the fastest lap times on track and gain positions before their pit stop.

For both Cadillac WTR teams, the chose the overcut strategy and were aiming to stay out as long as possible in hopes of leap-frogging track positions. Right near the window in which the teams were planning to pit, an unlucky and untimely full course caution fell, halting the progress for both Cadillac WTR teams. Pitting under the caution, Jordan Taylor took over the No. 40 while Ricky Taylor stepped into the No. 10 for the under one hour remaining. Limited time and options for passing, the Taylor brothers faced a difficult challenge to advance forward. Under 30 minutes remaining, Ricky Taylor was battling with the grip in the No. 10, clipped a curb and ended up in the Turn 5 tire barrier, causing a full course yellow. Ricky Taylor came to pit lane for emergency service to change the broken bodywork and head back out on track to gain any additional positions.

At the checkered flag, Jordan Taylor brought home an eighth-place result while Ricky Taylor finished in tenth.

“Obviously a very difficult weekend for our GTP and GTD programs,” said Wayne Taylor, Team Co-Owner.  “We struggled with the 10 car, for some reason most of the weekend. The 40 was really on it early and they qualified well in P3. I think between the three Cadillacs, at that point, there was a tenths of a second. ?In the race, obviously strategy was going to play a role, but because the pit lane is so long, you had to really get it right. We pushed our time for the 10 car and the lap we were supposed to come in for fuel, a yellow comes out and that hurt us. Then that happened to the 40 car, and then it happened again to the 10 car. Finally, just when we were going to take some positions, another yellow came out. Bad luck. We have great partners in GM and Cadillac, and Dex, and everybody that's with us. We have got a good team, good cars and drivers and luckily, we only have one weekend until our next race at Laguna Seca. ?We have a big task ahead of us but we'll just come back stronger and get results.” 

The Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing GTP teams will continue a quest on the West Coast, heading north to WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca on May 1-3, 2026, for the first two-hour, 40-minute sprint race of the year.

Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing Driver Quotes

Ricky Taylor, full season co-driver, No. 10 Cadillac WTR V-Series.R: “This was a really hard weekend for us on the No. 10 car. I feel like we started Practice 1 a bit behind and struggled all weekend. Filipe actually had a great stint in the car, and the team tried to go off strategy to make something happen. I think it would have actually worked out okay, but we had a little traffic in the pits that hurt us getting out so we lost a bit of track position there. In the end, it was the incident that cost us finishing on the lead lap. It will be nice that we have a quick turnaround for Laguna.”

Filipe Albuquerque, full season co-driver, No. 10 Cadillac WTR V-Series.R: “Well, we tried a risky strategy for the race because we had nothing to lose. The funny thing was that a lot of cars tried the same strategy, and unfortunately it didn’t pay out. Unfortunately, Ricky had a moment over the curb and he lost the car. When things are not going right, you go even worse, and if we put everything together the bad things on one weekend are okay, it just means the next weekend will be better.”

Jordan Taylor, full season co-driver, No. 40 Cadillac WTR V-Series.R: “I think we had good pace all weekend, especially in the No. 40 car. It felt like one of our stronger weekends so far this year just with pace, especially in FP2 we felt really strong. Louis did a great job in Qualifying to put us on the second row. I think in the race it was just the worst timed yellow possible where we were probably going to come in on the next couple laps, and the yellow came out. It was a worst-case scenario with the yellow – just like Sebring – and it put us in the back, so no more stops after that. It’s a hard place to pass, so there was not much we could do.”

Louis Delétraz, full season co-driver, No. 40 Cadillac WTR V-Series.R: “Very tough day in Long Beach. After yesterday’s Qualifying, we were running up front in fourth, and I think the pace was decent, we just got the wrong strategy. The yellow came out and we cycled to last pretty much. We tried; we were up there. Thank you Cadillac, thank you Wayne Taylor Racing, and congrats to the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac on the podium. We will be back in Laguna Seca.”

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About Wayne Taylor Racing (WTR)

Wayne Taylor Racing, part of TWG Motorsports, is a global motorsports enterprise that boasts two IMSA driver championships (2013 and 2017), and back-to-back IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup Championships (2020, 2021) which contributed to nine IMSA manufacturer championships for Acura, Pontiac, Corvette and Cadillac. In its brief 19-year history, WTR has accumulated multiple victories in sportscar racing’s most iconic events: Rolex 24 At Daytona (4x), Twelve Hours of Sebring (2x), Petit Le Mans (3x), Mid-Ohio, Road America and the Six Hours of The Glen (2x). Since joining in 2015, WTR has earned 18 Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America Championship titles, two Lamborghini World Finals titles (2017, 2025) and in 2025 secured a milestone 100 LST wins. For more information, visit www.waynetaylorracing.com.

About TWG Motorsports (TWG)

TWG Motorsports is the motorsports entity of TWG Global, unifying a robust racing portfolio across the world's biggest stages in Formula 1®, INDYCAR, Formula E, IMSA, and NASCAR. With strategic partnerships that include General Motors on the Cadillac Formula 1® Team and ownership of Andretti Global, Wayne Taylor Racing and Spire Motorsports, TWG Motorsports combines deep technical expertise, proven competitive excellence and industry-leading business acumen. TWG Motorsports is committed to innovating, growing and winning at the highest levels of the sport. Learn more at TWGMotorsports.com.