After a good few years of trying, Wayne Taylor Racing have finally arrived at Le Mans and will their debut in France this weekend.
‘It got to a point where I didn’t think it was ever going to happen,’ said Wayne Taylor, the team’s owner and former racing driver.
‘Once you get that in your mind and you say guys it’s not going to happen, you live your life and you carry on racing in IMSA.
‘But then joining Cadillac, I knew that this was going to be it, there would be a shot for me to bring the team over. And that’s exactly what has happened today my partner from TWG [TWG Global] have made all this happen.’
WTR is well-established in the IMSA Sportscar Championship, having raced in the North American series for many years.
This year, as Taylor referred to, the team has returned to partnering with Cadillac after two years with Acura. This gave the team, and Wayne Taylor, the opportunity to come to Le Mans and achieve a long held dream.
All three Taylors racing together at Le Mans
What’s more, Taylor Sr has his two sons in the same car at Le Mans.
‘And on top of being my own team,’ he continued, ‘I have both my kids in the car.
‘We had that special year in 2017, the first year for Cadillac and DPi, when we won Daytona, Sebring, five races and the championship.
‘It was both of them, and me being owner, so we could never replicate that in the US, which is why we put them in separate cars.
‘But then when we had the opportunity to come here it was clear. We would have them both in the car because it’s just how it worked out and this gives us that opportunity. We had no choice, and it’s very very special.’
The two Taylor brothers, Ricky and younger brother Jordan, are experienced racing drivers, with IMSA wins and championships each under their belts. Jordan also has a class win at Le Mans, 2015 with Corvette, plus two Daytona overall wins.
Ricky Taylor on the ‘unique’ Cadillac
Ricky Taylor, meanwhile, has raced at Le Mans nine times, the majority in LMP2 and the last four in LMP2. How does that experience translate to racing the Cadillac in this race?
‘The Cadillac’s quite unique,’ he said.
‘But I think the Hypercars are all unique to any other type of race car. The hybrid, just acts very differently. It’s heavy. It’s got a lot of power. The way that you interact with the hybrid is quite unique.
‘The nice thing here in Le Mans is that it’s so so spaced out. You have a lot of time to make your changes on the steering wheel.
‘If you go to somewhere like Detroit, where we just came from, there’s no time to do anything. So here in Le Mans, it’s actually quite a pleasure to drive.’Neither Taylor brother has raced in the top class at Le Mans, with Jordan spending all of his nine starts in the French endurance classic in the GT classes, the majority with Corvette, and Ricky in the aforementioned LMP2s.
“There’s a lot more traffic to deal with because you’re passing all the classes, instead of one class in the LMP2,’ said Ricky Taylor.
“But it’s nice that the speed differential is so high that we clear them a lot in the streets,’ he finished.
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Just brilliant, honestly.