After 18 grueling months of internal pressure, transition, and painful near-misses, Wayne Taylor Racing (WTR) returned to win in emotional fashion at the Motul SportsCar Endurance Grand Prix at Road America.
The team delivered a remarkable performance across the 4.048-mile, 14-turn natural terrain road course, claiming victory and third place. The victory marked WTR’s first GTP-class triumph since becoming a factory partner with Cadillac, and its first overall win since June 2024 at Detroit—the final victory of its era as Acura’s factory program.
The result also carries major historic weight: it is Wayne Taylor Racing’s 54th IMSA class win (sixth all-time), officially breaking a tie with sports car racing icons Brumos Racing and Champion Racing.
Drama on Track, Pride on the Podium
Winner #10: Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing, Cadillac V-Series.R, GTP: Filipe Albuquerque and Wayne Taylor, NBC TV interview during the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Motul SportsCar Endurance Grand Prix at Road America on August 2, 2026 in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.
Photo by: Photo by Michael L. Levitt/Lumen via Getty Images
WTR fielded two Cadillac V-Series.R entries: the #10 driven by Ricky Taylor and Filipe Albuquerque, and the #40 piloted by Jordan Taylor and Louis Deletraz. The two cars ran first and second before the No. 40 received a 60-second penalty for driving too quickly near safety workers.
Despite the setback, WTR persevered to put both Taylor brothers on the podium.
“For me, the racing team is like my family,” team owner Wayne Taylor told Motorsport.com. “And so when we don’t get results, I feel like I’ve let them down. And all the drivers, I feel like I’ve let them down… To have both my sons on the podium, first and third, was something special.”
Taylor didn’t hide his frustration regarding the race officiating, calling a 60-second time penalty “pretty much out of hand” when a standard drive-through would have sufficed.
“When we spend so much money here, it’s just wrong,” Taylor said. “But there’s not much I can really do about it. It is what it is.”
Conquering the Drought and Self-Doubt
#10 Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac V-Series.R: Ricky Taylor, Filipe Albuquerque, Ross Gunn
Photo by: Brandon Badraoui / Lumen via Getty Images
The victory comes after a challenging learning curve following WTR’s return to General Motors under GM leadership—including Mark Reuss (President), Eric Warren (VP, Global Motorsports Competition), and Jim Campbell (VP, Performance & Motorsports Commercial Operations). Adapting to the new platform required time, leaving drivers and management questioning themselves during the winless streak.
In post-race interviews, Jordan Taylor admitted the drought led the drivers to doubt their own abilities. Wayne Taylor revealed that a candid conversation with his son Ricky helped shift his perspective as a leader.
“Ricky said, ‘Dad, you don’t understand. We feel the pressure, too, because we’re the drivers. And we feel like we’re not performing. So the stress you have, don’t underestimate the stress that we have ourselves.’ Which really made me realize that I need to do more just to keep everybody together, keep everybody positive, and to keep the passion. This will turn around.”
#10 Cadillac Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac V-Series.R: Ricky Taylor, Filipe Albuquerque earlier this season.
Photo by: Jake Galstad / Motorsport Images via Getty Images
Even for Taylor, whose motorsport career spans 55 years—including 35 as a driver—the prolonged slump took a heavy psychological toll.
“There is no doubt at all that these last 18 months have been the toughest,” Taylor said.
“I’ve thought about it, and I learned from Dan Gurney, he told me, ‘Never look back.’ And I started looking back, and I started thinking, ‘This is wrong. I’m not supposed to look back.’ But I was trying to justify to myself that, yes, I should still be in this position because look at all these things I did. But the fact of the matter is, what has been done has been done. I’ve got to look forward and make more championships and win more.
“Teams go up and down, but this one has been so difficult. After winning the Daytona 24 Hours, between ownership and drivers six times and 10 championships, and all these things, you start thinking, ‘Maybe I should just retire.’ Maybe I’m the… I don’t know. So I can tell you, there could not be a higher than high that I feel right now.”
With WTR finally victorious for Cadillac, Taylor expressed relief and gratitude towards the manufacturer.
“Our relationship with Cadillac is what makes this all absolutely happen. And I can’t thank them enough,” Taylor said. “I can tell you, there could not be a higher than high that I feel right now. I’ve paid you now, at least. So, I’m f***ing happy.”
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