Tom Blomqvist will team up with Pipo Derani and Jack Aitken to drive the No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R in IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup races next season alongside his INDYCAR campaign with Meyer Shank Racing. First up is the 62nd Rolex 24 At Daytona, where Blomqvist co-drove to the overall victory in 2023 and ’22 with Meyer Shank Racing.
“We’re thrilled that Tom is going to join our team for the IMSA endurance events,” said Gary Nelson, team manager for Action Express Racing that fields the championship-winning hybrid racecar for Cadillac Racing. “We feel that with his experience and recent successes it’s a natural fit for Jack Aitken and Pipo Derani. We’re looking forward to getting in some work this winter so we can hit the ground running when we get to Daytona.”
Derani wrapped up the inaugural IMSA Grand Touring Prototype Driver Championship on Saturday in the Motul Petit Le Mans to complement his 2021 DPi title. Blomqvist earned the 2022 DPi Driver Championship.
Derani, Aitken and Alexander Sims also secured the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup Driver and Team Championships with their sixth-place finish in the 10-hour event at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta. The No. 31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R won the Twelve Hours of Sebring, earned two other podium finishes, two pole awards and recorded the fastest race lap four times.
Blomqvist, who turns 30 on Nov. 30, has five wins in 30 IMSA starts since 2019, including three in GTP this season. In addition to the 2023 season-opening Rolex 24 triumph, Blomqvist co-drove to victory at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park and capped the year by co-driving the No. 60 entry to victory in the Motul Petit Le Mans with Meyer Shank Racing.
Blomqvist, son of 1984 World Rally Champion Stig Blomqvist, is looking forward to continuing competition in the classification with GTP Manufacturer and IMEC GTP Manufacturer champion Cadillac Racing.
"After another great season with Meyer Shank Racing in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, it is an honor to be joining Action Express Racing and Cadillac for the endurance rounds of the 2024 campaign,” said Blomqvist, who recently signed a multiyear agreement with Meyer Shank Racing to compete full time in the NTT INDYCAR Series in 2024.
“It is a series I love being a part of, and I'm delighted to be returning once again. To be able to come back to the series and to try to defend my title at Daytona is a huge motivation and I can’t thank Meyer Shank Racing and Honda Performance Development (HPD) enough for allowing me the opportunity.”
Blomqvist has also co-driven an LMP2 entry this year in the FIA World Endurance Championship and will compete in the season-concluding race Nov. 4 in Bahrain. In 2021, Blomqvist and teammates were WEC vice-champion in LPM2 and runner-up in the class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. He has also competed in Formula 3, DTM and Formula E.
North Carolina-based Action Express Racing has earned IMSA Team and Driver Championships in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2021 and 2023 as well as claiming the 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2023 endurance championship.
Cadillac earned a sweep of the IMSA GTP Manufacturer titles, securing its fourth IMSA prototype championship since 2017 and its fifth IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup Manufacturer Championship.
About Whelen Engineering: Since 1952, the Whelen Engineering Company has been a global leader in the design and manufacturing of reliable and powerful warning lights, white illumination lighting, sirens, controllers and high-powered warning systems for automotive, aviation and mass notification industries.
Image courtesy of Cadillac Racing