Cadillac adds Taylor brothers for SprintX

Cadillac Racing will return for another run at the Pirelli World Challenge GT championship with Johnny O'Connell and Michael Cooper, and has announced the addition of Cadillac Daytona Prototype international drivers Ricky and Jordan Taylor to pursue the Sprint X GT title.

A motivated O'Connell came close to earning his fifth PWC championship last year in a battle that went down to the season finale, and will look to restore his place atop the series in the "Velocity Red No. 3 ATS-V.R (below). Michael Cooper, his young teammate in the sister No. 8 Cadillac, will pursue the same objective in a new "Vector Blue" livery (pictured).

Chasing the GT championship will be nothing new for the popular ATS-V.Rs; the big change in the factory-led program comes in its full-scale attack on the secondary Sprint X "endurance" events held at five of the 11 rounds on the 2017 calendar. To assist its Sprint X initiative, the Taylor Bros., hot off their first overall victory at the Rolex 24 at Daytona in their Cadillac DPi-V.R, will help with the campaign.

"I'm very much looking forward to the 2017 PWC season," O'Connell said. "We had one bad weekend last year, that really cost us, and I've been training hard all winter looking for some redemption. Ricky and Jordan are doing a great job proving themselves on the world stage, especially with that great win at Daytona two weeks ago. I am very much looking forward to working with them this season in the SprintX races. Amazing strides have been made the last several years in PWC that have made it a destination for top drivers. I plan to keep an open mind heading into the first SprintX round at VIR in April."

Cooper shared in O'Connell's enthusiasm for the season ahead and the added challenge of earning the Sprint X championship for Cadillac.

"I've been counting down the days to the start of the season, so it's nice that it is almost here," Cooper said. "Being back with Cadillac Racing is still very exciting to me and I can't wait to get my sophomore season in the GT class started. I've already heard of some other high-caliber efforts being launched for this year, which is great news. I think we are going to see the competition take another step up in PWC, which means it will be that much more exciting to watch.

"All of the Cadillac fans should be as excited as I am to have Jordan and Ricky with us for the SprintX races this year. Jordan has tested with us numerous times the last few years, so I'm sure they'll slot right in and make their presence known. For anybody that has been living under a rock, they bring a wealth of endurance experience, having won the Rolex 24 and competing at Le Mans. They are a perfect fit for Cadillac Racing's SprintX program.

The No. 8's new color – giving Cadillac its first PWC program without a black car since it was formed in 2004 – has clearly pleased Cooper.

"The new Vector Blue livery on my No. 8 Cadillac ATS-V.R Coupe really makes a statement," he said. "It screams performance! I fell in love with the color when I saw it for the first time on the ATS-V street car. I've seen some teaser pictures of the racecar and when I saw it in person it looked even better."

The one-hour SprintX races are much shorter than the average 2h40m IMSA events the Taylors prepare for in the WeatherTech Championship, and the elder brother is looking forward to the change.

"I haven't done a real sprint race in quite a few years now, so it is very exciting," Ricky Taylor said. "It will be more like a qualifying session than what I am used to, where tire wear is not a factor and the race is flat out from start to finish. I think it will be a different mindset than I am used to. While we have to be aggressive and track position is important, we still have to give the car off to our teammate in good condition to go win the race.

"Three of the five tracks where we race this year in PWC are places that I really miss going to. Lime Rock is an extra special one for me as I have won there 3 times and it was my first professional win while driving with Max Angelelli. But they are all great circuits and all present very different challenges."

The screaming twin-turbo V6 ATS-V.R engines, along with the exhaust notes generated by the rest of PWC's diverse field, will be heard on the streets of St. Petersburg for its shared season opener with IndyCar on March 10-12.