Making the Case - 2025 Manufacturer Winners: Cadillac, BMW or Alpine

Welcome to Part IV of our 2025 WEC Season Preview! 

Follow along with Parts I, II and III from previous and let's keep this season preview a'rollin as we cover the mid-pack teams in Hypercar that will try to shed that exact label and prove they're worthy of everyone's capital R-espect.

First up, the team that seems to be the not-so-sneaky fan favorite - 

Cadillac and Hertz Team Jota

Why They Can

Can Jota Sport be the group that brings the Cadillac V-Series.R to international glory? If there ever was a team to do it it's the boys from Britain. The partnership between these two entities is a match made in heaven for fans (of which there are many) of the thundering American V8 and there's some great early returns for the dual car effort with the No. 12 and No. 38 running at the top of the timing sheets through the Prologue and first two practice sessions. The No. 38 is loaded with the Bad Bitches of Bamber, Bourdais and Button running the show and a formidable effort of Will Stevens, Norman Nato and Alex Lynn in the No. 12. As was detailed in Part II of our preview, the car has what it takes to compete for a world title as long as it can stay on the track and avoid absolute calamity. I picked Porsche as our champion but that there is simply the sensible, smart money bet - if I'm going with my heart, then that ticket is dowsed in gold, blue, red and yellow baby. 

Why They Won't

Maybe the bad luck that infected Chip Ganassi Racing detaches itself and crawls its slimy ass over to Jota Sport and infects their program like Venom ruining Spiderman's life. You have to figure that with the talent assembled together for 2025, coupled with the racing pedigree that Jota has, it would take some truly terrible acts of Satan to keep the Caddy down in the standings. Separate from unearthly interference from Hellspawn demons, to reiterate for the hundredth time in this season preview series: the Hypercar competition is going to be *i n s a n e* this season, some true bloodbath material as these teams come loaded to bear with machines that they all feel can challenge for hardware. The margins will be so razor thin each time out on the track that one bad break here or one mistimed pitstop there right as the rain starts to fall (or doesn't - we're looking at you, Ferrari!) could be the difference between 1st place and fourth. Even if CHTJ run a near-perfect season and go into Bahrain with everything on the line, there's a good chance that someone else will be in just as good of a position to win it all. It'll take all hands on deck, truly. Regardless we just want to see at least ONE win this season - can we have that?!

BMW and M Team WRT

Why They Can

Another squad that's had a great first week to open the season, BMW and M Team WRT are looking strong to quite strong as we inch closer to the green flag Friday morning. The Prologue is the Prologue, yes we understand, but Robin Frijns put up the fastest time of the finale session for the No. 20, while the car was again quick in FP2 clocking in third overall with a 1:40.076 (behind the No. 12 Caddy and the No. 50 Ferrari). Remember - this is only Year 2 for Team WRT with the M Hybrid V8 after last year's introductory effort to the series. It was struggle bus city for both cars, but things slooowly started to turn following a P2 finish at Fuj for the No. 15 and a solid P6 finish at Bahrain, and in IMSA both BMWs from RLL were in contention for the overall race win at the Rolex 24 which was quite easily the most shocking turn of events coming out of IMSAs opening round. BMW confirmed their first Joker update was issued to the car to primarily address the braking system and it's clear that the improvement is already paying dividends. Team WRT share similar DNA to Jota Sport in the sense that they're proven winners across nearly two decades in races and series all over the world, and given enough time to tweak and develop their machine and they'll have that thing ready to go to compete with the big dogs at the front. If the BMW avoids some of the crippling hybrid issues that fried their efforts last season....Well yeah...

Why They Won't 

Starting with the M Hybrid V8 and for the rest of the brands that we'll cover in the class, this is where the technical reliability of the cars really start to come into question. Call it walking on eggshells or being cautiously timid, but the fear in the back (or at the front?) of everyone's mind when it comes to rooting for BMW in Hypercar is the fact that there's a subtle undertow beneath the surface that the car could just simply die at any point on any lap. We saw ten total finishes outside of the points, three total retirements (the No. 15 crashed out at Le Mans) and 1 DSQ last season. We can get the M Hybrid V8 running strong for a dozen laps or so and things are looking great...yet the next shot we get on camera ten minutes later is the pit crew wheeling the thing back into the garage as they get to work on finding out just what the hell is going on. We'll see how strong that Joker update will prove to be as we get deeper in the 2025 campaign - can it make all the difference in the end?

Alpine and Alpine Endurance Team

Why They Can

Can they? Well yeah sure anything is possible - but what are the realistic chances that Alpine shocks the world and comes away as champions in the class? What would need to go right besides absolutely everything? What's their path? Well it would look something like this - remain consistent with finishes inside and around the top five, score massive points at Qatar, Le Mans and Bahrain, and just let everyone else beat the bag out of each other so no one is able to gain any huge lead in the standings. Post consistent, well-placed finishes coupled with a handful of podiums and even a race win or two, and that would put Alpine in a place where they'd be standing behind the tree rubbing their hands like the meme of the dude in the yellow suit as they close in on the season finale sitting P4 and a fighter's chance of becoming champions. The end of their 2024 campaign was miles better than their start, highlighted by the A424's first-ever podium finish at Fuji, a race where top contenders in the No. 6 PPM, No. 7 TGR and No. 2 Cadillac all retired due to collision damage/crashes, creating the room that was needed for the No. 36 to sneak on up to the dance floor and finish P3. Can they carry some momentum into 2025, coupled with a Joker update of their own? It'll be fascinating to watch, yet as we said...

Why They Won't 

The reliability of the A424 will be the major focal point for the Frenchmens in the new season. Le Mans was a nightmare wrapped in a disaster when both cars died before the 100-lap mark with critical engine failures, and choosing to go with the Mecachrome V634 as the engine for operations was a decision that came with plenty of questions. If the car performs like it did in the last three races of the season, though, Alpine will make some noise. If it performs like it did to start things last season, Alpine will be mired in the basement of the standings as things progress through the year. As much praise as we're giving to the likes of Porsche, Ferrari, Cadillac, etc., someone will have to settle in the 4-6th range in the overall standings, and due to the strength of the rest of the class, it's hard to see a situation where Alpine seriously fight for a season podium finish.

Stay tuned for our final post in our season preview, coming up soon!

(photos via 24heuresdumancom, lechainerenault.com, bmwpressgroup.com)