Aitken Aims to Keep Podium Streak Going at Road America
Photo: Jake Galstad/Lumen Digital Agency/IMSA
By Dennis Krause
Jack Aitken comes into Sunday’s Motul Sports Car Endurance Grand Prix at Road America riding a streak of eight consecutive podium finishes in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. That includes victories at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta to close out the 2025 season and the last two Grand Touring Prototype (GTP) races of this season at Detroit and the Sahlen’s Six Hours at the Glen (Watkins Glen International).
His last non-podium finish in the No. 31 Cadillac Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R came at - you guessed it - Road America a year ago, when he was fourth at the checkered flag. In fact, he’s finished fourth in both of his previous appearances at Road America.
As far as keeping his consecutive podium streak alive, Aitken plans to treat Sunday’s race like any other race weekend.
“I think just treat it like a normal day, normal weekend,” Aitken said. “We'll see. We're in a pretty good groove at the moment as a team, as a crew. I think we've had some good progress this year with the EVO update on the Cadillacs as well, and there's a lot of hard work in the offseason to get that ready and shipshape and doing what we wanted it to do, and that's helped. So, a lot of things have come together.
“I don't think we are in a position where we're really desperately trying to hold onto a streak. You know, it's a great thing to have, but the reality is we're coming into every weekend, trying to do the best job we can. The streak will end at some point. I don't know if that'll be this weekend with a hat-trick of 4th places or if we can keep it going even longer, but you know, we feel good. We just want to keep enjoying it and keep working well, so why would we change anything at the moment.”
Aitken (l) and co-driver Earl Bamber celebrate their win at Detroit in June.
Photo: Michael L. Levitt/Lumen Digital Agency/IMSA
However, Sunday’s race will be six hours instead of the traditional 2-hour, 40-minute duration. What, if anything, changes for Aitken and co-driver Earl Bamber with the race essentially doubling in length?
“We have three drivers instead of two,” Aitken acknowledged, “but that's not a decision that the majority of the field usually takes. Having Fred (Vesti) back with us is nice, and he's already tested the car at Road America and done a good job of getting back up to speed with it.
“Other than that, it's a bit more interesting from a strategic point of view. We're kind of expecting it to be a very yellow-heavy race, just going on previous years, and the way that the endurance races often go. So, there's a little bit more thought on that side, but otherwise, you know, the two-hour, 40-minute races are long enough that you get multiple stops, so it doesn't affect as much as you might think. So, yeah, not a huge amount.”
As Aitken alluded to, Road America has been plagued with long, full-course caution periods over the last few years, especially a year go. According to Aitken, it’s a function of the track itself - and not something that can be easily fixed.
“I think it's a combination of, it's not a very forgiving track, so if you do go off there's a high chance that you'll either hit something or get stuck in the gravel. That’s a common feature in a lot of the IMSA tracks.
“It's not the only reason,” Aitken added. “I think the track itself does produce pretty good racing, but it's difficult to make a pass. There are a few big braking zones where you can try. And a lot of places where you can go side by side, but it needs cooperation. And we've had plenty of races, I think, over the last year, however many years, several years, where cooperation is not always given. You get body parts, debris, cars off in the gravel, and all of those things can lead to cautions.
“Whether being an endurance round now as well, you do have a lot of cars, a lot of drivers that are not full-time, full season entries, with a bit less time in the seat, and that can also contribute to yellow.
“So yeah, there's a few different things going on.”
Coming from a European racing background, the 30-year-old British and South Korean driver remembers his first time at Road America - a day he’ll likely not forget.
Photo: Jake Galstad/Lumen Digital Agency/IMSA
“The first time I went to Road America, it was quite a shock to the system because that was still my first year of IMSA. So, still recalibrating a little bit from European tracks where you generally get a lot more space, a lot more forgiveness.
“It was either just after or just before they'd done the resurfacing and it was so cold that it was actually snowing that day, so grip was not, you know, plentiful. And that added to the experience and generally I found it pretty terrifying. It's probably the only time in recent history that has taken me a long time to get up to speed. But just because I was sure that I was going to hit something and it would probably be quite hard.
“So now that I've come back and done it in the summer, it's great and I love it. The back end of the circuit, when you get through the Carousel, the Kink and Canada Corner, even the last couple corners, they've got a great flow to it. You really get a great sensation of speed with how hemmed in you are by the trees.
“It's turned into one of my favorites, but the American tracks in general, like I say, are much less forgiving, and you do bear that in mind when you're getting up to speed on them.”
Aitken comes into Road America with a 203-point lead over Laurin Heinrich in the GTP class. Given his results in the last year, or so, something has obviously clicked for Aitken, who also races for Cadillac in the World Endurance Championship.
“That's definitely helped,” Aitken noted. “More track time is never a bad thing, and I do feel like I've benefited from it.
Photo: Brandon Badraoui/Lumen Digital Agency/IMSA
“I also just feel like I'm reaching a maturity with IMSA. This is my is my third full-time season, so I know the championship much better than I did before and just more comfortable with the tracks, more in tune with the races and what generally happens on the strategy side of things.
“And in the same breath, I’m very comfortable with the team, with Action Express and Cadillac. I think I've got some great relationships that mean that I enjoy my work and I turn up, always, you know, happy to be there and things are going well, so it always helps.
“But I have to say that, you know, I think we run a fantastic streak, but part of that is down to fortune and a bit of good luck here and there. There are definitely times when we probably shouldn't have finished on the podium or been on the top step and we somehow managed it. I believe the stuff all balances out in the long run. So, I'll probably be due some bad luck at some point. I think it's going really well and I'm very happy about it.
“Like I said, I'm enjoying it, but I also think I'm the same driver I was before. You know the championship is not tied up by any means. Just going into the last few races with eyes open and try and do as good a job as I can and look forward to relying on my teammates and my crew.”
It’s worked to get Aitken on the podium in the last eight races. Sunday will determine if it’ll work for a ninth straight time.
Dennis Krause has spent decades covering all forms of motorsports, including over 40 Indianapolis 500s, with stints at WIBA Radio, PIT PASS - Radio’s Premier Motorsports Magazine and Motorsports Minute.