Aitken leads Cadillac Whelen to 2026 GTP titles

A strong start to the campaign

The review traces the team’s momentum to the closing races of 2025. Aitken, Earl Bamber and Frederik Vesti won the TireRack.com Battle on the Bricks at Indianapolis and Motul Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta in the No. 31 Cadillac.

For 2026, the team used an upgraded “Evo” version of the V-Series.R. Aitken set the fastest qualifying lap for the Rolex 24 At Daytona, but the No. 31 was moved to the back of the GTP grid for a skid block wear ride height infraction. The car went on to finish second after a late-race duel involving Aitken and Felipe Nasr.

Key results and championship outcomes

At Sebring, the No. 31 started on pole and finished fourth on the road. It was elevated to third after the No. 10 car received a penalty for a technical infraction, according to IMSA’s review.

At Long Beach, Aitken qualified fourth and finished second alongside Vesti, who filled in for Bamber because of a schedule conflict. Nick Yelloly and Renger van der Zande won the race for Acura Meyer Shank Racing with Curb Agajanian in the No. 93 Acura ARX-06.

IMSA reports that Aitken finished ahead of Laurin Heinrich in the GTP drivers’ championship. Cadillac earned its fifth top-class manufacturer championship, while Action Express Racing, which administers the Cadillac Whelen program, secured its seventh team championship.

Heinrich’s challenge

Heinrich, who began the season in Porsche Penske Motorsport’s No. 7 Porsche 963, moved to the No. 5 JDC-Miller MotorSports Porsche 963 for Long Beach, where he finished sixth. He and Nasr had led Aitken in the standings at that stage, according to the season review.

At WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, Heinrich and Tijmen van der Helm won for JDC-Miller MotorSports. IMSA described the result as a victory over Bamber’s Cadillac. The supplied review excerpt ends during its account of the subsequent standings, so no further points or final positions are stated here.