Reigning IMSA DPi Driver Champion Pipo Derani will be paired with Alexander Sims in the Cadillac V-LMDh prepared by Action Express Racing for the 2023 IMSA Weathertech Sportscar Championship.
Additional drivers for the long-distance races on the 2023 IMSA schedule, which begins with the 61st Rolex 24 At Daytona on Jan. 28-29, will be announced later.
“The new GTP class is set to create some of the most exciting competition in decades,” said Rory Harvey, Vice President Global Cadillac. “We look forward to seeing our world-class driver lineup in the Cadillac V-LMDh and we welcome Alexander Sims to Cadillac.”
Sims will make his IMSA prototype racing debut at Daytona International Speedway in the Cadillac V-LMDh but already is a member of the GM family.
Sims was the third driver in a Chevrolet Corvette C8.R entry in 2021 for the Rolex 24 At Daytona, finishing second in the GTLM class to the sister Corvette, the Twelve Hours of Sebring, the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the season-ending Petit Le Mans. He recorded the fastest race laps in class at Le Mans and the Petit Le Mans.
He rejoined the #64 Corvette team in June at Le Mans, where the entry earned the pole in the GTE Pro class. Sims recorded five victories and nine podium finishes in 25 IMSA GTLM races in 2017-18.
“I’m excited to be racing back in IMSA full time and to be driving the Cadillac V-LMDh. It’s an impressive piece of kit. I had a good couple of years with Corvette doing some GT racing, which brought me back to the IMSA paddock,” said Sims, who competed against Derani in Formula 3. “It’s racing that I absolutely adore. The format of the racing, the competitiveness, the tracks that we go to are brilliant.
“To be stepping across within the GM family to Cadillac in the top tier of racing with Action Express, which is a championship-winning team, is exciting for me.”
Derani, who clinched the 2021 driver title on the final laps of the Petit Le Mans, has posted six wins in the Cadillac DPi-V.R since joining Action Express Racing for the 2019 season. Overall, Derani has made 59 starts in IMSA prototype competition since 2016.
“As a driver, it’s a fantastic opportunity to be a part of a program of the future of endurance racing. To join Cadillac as a factory driver is a dream come true,” Derani said.
Sims and Derani recently participated in development sessions of the Cadillac V-LMDh at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta and Watkins Glen International.
