Bamber Replaces Unwell Magnussen in Ganassi Cadillac

Earl Bamber will replace Kevin Magnussen in the Chip Ganassi Racing Cadillac DPi-V.R for Motul Petit Le Mans, with the Danish driver sidelined with an undisclosed illness.

Former Porsche factory driver Bamber, who is confirmed to drive for Ganassi in IMSA’s DPi class next year, has been brought in as a late substitute on race day morning.

Bamber will share the No. 01 Cadillac with Magnussen’s full-season co-driver Renger van der Zande and Scott Dixon.

“First of all, I hope Kevin is OK, he is feeling a bit under the weather,” Bamber said ahead of his earlier-than-expected DPi debut.

“I was just saying to the guys I was about to enjoy a nice breakfast and now I am getting suited for the warm-up. This all happened in about the last hour.

“I have to say thanks to the Chip Ganassi Racing team for putting the trust in me to jump into the car.

“We had a test here a few weeks back so I am familiar with the Cadillac DPi-V.R on this track. Let’s see what the day brings. It is most important to try and get a good result and let the main drivers do the business at the end.”

Bamber, who won the 2019 GT Le Mans championship with Porsche, is set to get his first laps of the Petit Le Mans event during this morning’s warm-up.

The New Zealander was recently named in an expanded two-car Ganassi DPi setup for 2022 alongside van der Zande, Sebastien Bourdais and Alex Lynn, with Magnussen moving to Peugeot’s LMH program in the FIA World Endurance Championship next year.