24h Le Mans
Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA has had to replace one of its drivers less than a month before the 94th 24 Hours of Le Mans, the third round of the 2026 FIA WEC season. Louis Delétraz has been drafted into the #12 Cadillac V-Series.R line-up.
In the run-up to the 24 Hours of Le Mans, even the best-laid plans can go awry. Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA driver Alex Lynn has been forced to postpone surgery originally scheduled earlier in the season and must now observe a period of convalescence instead of hurtling around the Circuit des 24 Heures in June. Missing out on the French endurance classic is obviously a painful experience for the British racer who knows that the 24 Hours of Le Mans is not just any old race. It can mark an entire career.
His wise words however masked a feeling of frustration that only endurance drivers learn to tame with time. “Getting this procedure completed and fully recovering has to be the priority,” Lynn said. “The timing hasn’t worked out as originally planned due to scheduling difficulties around the surgery, but we now have a clear path forward. I’ll be supporting the team from home and I wish Louis, the #12 crew and everyone at Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA the very best for Le Mans.”
Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA’s call to Louis Delétraz is anything but an improvised gamble. The Swiss racer belongs to a generation of drivers capable of switching between championships with surprising ease, like a musician swapping instruments without losing rhythm.
European Le Mans Series (ELMS) champion Delétraz knows all about the emotion of a Le Mans win, having triumphed in the LMP2 Pro-Am class with AO by TF, and is well aware that pure speed alone is rarely enough for victory. Here, it is all about survival, mastering the traffic, understanding the car’s silences and keeping your cool when the circuit seems to breathe quicker than you.
Given that Delétraz competed in the TotalEnergies 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps at the wheel of the American hypercar (ninth overall), his rapid integration appears all the more natural. He also took part in the team’s preparations, including testing at Silverstone.
“Our priority is ensuring Alex can complete his surgery, make a full recovery and return to full fitness as soon as possible,” declared Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA director and co-founder Sam Hignett. “Naturally, it’s disappointing that he won’t be with us for Le Mans, but we fully support him in taking the time needed to complete his surgery and rehabilitation properly. We’re pleased to have Louis stepping into the car for the test and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. He already knows the team well and has been part of our preparations, so we’re confident he’ll do a great job alongside the rest of the crew.”
As the 94th 24 Hours of Le Mans edges ever closer, this announcement serves as a reminder of a simple truth of endurance. Behind all the hypercars and complex tactics, it is still all about women and men who may stumble and fall, make a comeback, or occasionally stand in for another… but who all share the same objective when heading towards the Mulsanne Straight: writing, in their own words, a fragment of endurance history.
