WEC 24 Hours of Le Mans
Cadillac fails to convert Le Mans pole into podium: “We all knew it would be hard”
After claiming a commanding 1-2 in Hyperpole for its factory cars, Cadillac missed out on the podium at Le Mans after struggling for pace in the early stages of the race
Ben Vinel
Edited: Jun 18, 2025, 10:13 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Photo by: Emanuele Clivati | AG Photo
Sebastien Bourdais says Cadillac still needs to improve after its factory cars started the 2025 Le Mans 24 Hours from first and second but dropped out of the podium positions.
The #12 and #38 Jota entries lacked pace in the early stages of the contest, getting overtaken by the #5 Porsche in the very first minute of racing and plummeting out of the top 10 by the end of the third hour.
They subsequently gained competitiveness, and the #12 car driven by Alex Lynn, Norman Nato and Will Stevens took fifth under the chequered flag – fourth following the #50 Ferrari’s disqualification.
The sister #38 car, meanwhile, suffered from a front-left puncture, penalties for crossing the white line at pit entry and cutting a corner, and a trip through the gravel by Bourdais – but was still classified in seventh, just one lap down.
Asked by Motorsport.com if that was a better race than he feared, the Le Mans native replied: “No. I was hoping we’d be, lap-time-wise, more competitive, but we all knew it would actually be hard.
“We need to keep improving. We’re not where we should be. We’re very fast when the track is very rubbered-in, when we have little fuel, when there’s mega grip on new tyres, but on long runs we degrade tyres too much. We’re not where you need to be to win a WEC race, basically.”
#38 Cadillac Hertz Team Jota Cadillac V-Series.R: Sebastien Bourdais
Photo by: Marc Fleury
Bourdais was at the wheel during the pit entry incident, which he strongly disagreed with race control about.
“When they close the pitlane to our face and then say ‘well, you cut the white line’… If you go to the pitlane, you have to do an emergency stop that costs an extra stop. When you see the cross [at pit entry], your instinct is to back out of pitting,” the veteran insisted.
“This is anecdotal, but it’s like the yellow flags that are waved in the middle of the night, which you can’t see. I don’t know how many guys got penalties because they didn’t slow down. On the straight, there’s no one. The [stricken] car wasn’t even on the track.
“The problem is, [stewards] don’t quite understand what we do, and that’s costly.”
Bourdais still set the fastest lap of the race by some margin, with a 3m26.063s that was 0.499s clear of anyone else – seemingly confirming what the Cadillac V-Series.R could do when it was able to exploit its potential in high-speed corners.
“It was perfect timing – the end of a stint on new tyres”, the Frenchman pointed out. “The tyres were in their best possible condition, I had no fuel and not a car to overtake. It doesn’t happen often, but on that lap, ‘here we go, let’s have some fun!’. It’s a little bit of a consolation prize.”
“A really solid start to a long-term project” – Jota
#12 Cadillac Hertz Team Jota Cadillac V-Series.R: Will Stevens, Norman Nato, Alex Lynn
Photo by: Emanuele Clivati | AG Photo
While the factory Cadillacs were run by Chip Ganassi Racing last year, this time around the American brand turned to British outfit Jota, which entered two Porsches as a privateer in 2024.
Team principal Sam Hignett hailed “a really solid start to a long-term project”, with potential updates to be tested in the next few months, as “there’s a lot more to find in the car”.
The way the Cadillacs picked up pace after dropping down the order in the first few hours of the Le Mans contest was intriguing, but as Hignett explained: “I think we hadn't optimised a few bits and pieces in the longer race runs. The practice sessions were so disjointed with all the red flags, we really were learning on the hoof a bit.
“It wasn't until that third stint that we unlocked a couple of things, discovered a couple of things, and then could build some pace into the cars. It didn't help that it was all so disjointed through the practice sessions.”
Read Also:
Le MansThe winners and losers from the 2025 Le Mans 24 Hours
Le MansCadillac has pole, but no chance to win Le Mans 24h – here’s why
Asked, if someone had offered a top-five finish a week before the race, if he would have signed for it, Hignett acknowledged: “Yeah, I think so. I think you'd take top five. It's crazy competitiveness, isn’t it? It's unbelievable what's happening out there. The level of the drivers and the teams, it's really something very special.”
Photos from 24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
24 Hours of Le Mans – Race
WEC
85
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article F1 paddock buoyed by Robert Kubica's Le Mans 24 Hours win
Next article Ferrari contests reasons why #50 car was disqualified from Le Mans 24h
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Ben Vinel
What would you like to ask Jack Miller?
MotoGP
Malaysian GP
What would you like to ask Jack Miller?
Lewis Hamilton: Kimi Antonelli “deserves to be the champion”
Formula 1
Formula 1
United States GP
14 h
Lewis Hamilton: Kimi Antonelli “deserves to be the champion”
More from
Sébastien Bourdais
Bourdais, Moss headline second batch of Sebring's 75 all-time greatest drivers
IMSA
IMSA
Bourdais, Moss headline second batch of Sebring's 75 all-time greatest drivers
The unselfish anchor behind Jack Aitken’s first IMSA GTP title, Earl Bamber reflects on 2026 campaign
IMSA
IMSA
Petit Le Mans
The unselfish anchor behind Jack Aitken’s first IMSA GTP title, Earl Bamber reflects on 2026 campaign
Title battles and bittersweet farewells headline packed 54-car Petit Le Mans grid
IMSA
IMSA
Petit Le Mans
Title battles and bittersweet farewells headline packed 54-car Petit Le Mans grid
More from
Cadillac Hertz Team Jota
Le Mans race-ending Cadillac failure is a “dagger in the heart” – Sebastien Bourdais
WEC
WEC
24 Hours of Le Mans
Le Mans race-ending Cadillac failure is a “dagger in the heart” – Sebastien Bourdais
Why Cadillac lost pole position for 2026 Le Mans 24 Hours
WEC
WEC
24 Hours of Le Mans
Why Cadillac lost pole position for 2026 Le Mans 24 Hours
Why Cadillac has a better chance of winning Le Mans this year
WEC
WEC
24 Hours of Le Mans
Why Cadillac has a better chance of winning Le Mans this year
Latest news
Kimi Antonelli hails "step forward" at United States GP as Mercedes chips away at upgrades
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
United States GP
5 min
Kimi Antonelli hails "step forward" at United States GP as Mercedes chips away at upgrades
What would you like to ask Jack Miller?
MotoGP
Malaysian GP
What would you like to ask Jack Miller?
Jorge Martin declared unfit for Australian GP after suffering fracture in sprint
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Australian GP
24 min
Jorge Martin declared unfit for Australian GP after suffering fracture in sprint
MotoGP Australian GP: Marc Marquez wins sprint to seize points lead, Jorge Martin crashes
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Australian GP
1 h
MotoGP Australian GP: Marc Marquez wins sprint to seize points lead, Jorge Martin crashes
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe