{
  "id": 9159063,
  "title": "Sheldon van der Linde ‘played elbows out when Cadillac couldn’t’ for breakthrough Indy win",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/22/sheldon-van-der-linde-played-elbows-out-when-cadillac-couldnt-for",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-22T16:19:07.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Motorsport.com",
    "slug": "motorsport-com",
    "url": "https://www.motorsport.com/imsa/news/sheldon-van-der-linde-played-elbows-out-when-cadillac-couldnt-for-breakthrough-indy-win/10858008/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Sheldon van der Linde secured a thrilling victory at the Battle on the Bricks at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship. With his team out of title contention, van der Linde could afford to take bold risks, capitalizing on Earl Bamber's cautious championship approach. The South African driver observed that their team could \"play elbows out\" while Bamber and Jack Aitken's Cadillac V-Series couldn't. The Cadillac led the way for much of the race, but van der Linde patiently waited until his pit wall signaled the perfect moment to strike. During the penultimate round, he closed in on Bamber and managed to slip by a slower GT car, executing a daring move under both Bamber and the slower vehicle into Turn 12. This inside move proved decisive, marking BMW's first GTP class win in over a year and delivering immense relief to the Vincent Vosse-led BMW M Team WRT operation. This victory also marked van der Linde's first overall WeatherTech Championship win, ending a season plagued by multiple near-misses at events like Laguna, Detroit, and Road America.",
  "summary": "Knowing his team was out of the title hunt gave Sheldon van der Linde the ultimate freedom to attack on Sunday afternoon. With no points lead to protect, van der Linde capitalized on Earl Bamber’s conservative championship mindset to drive the #24 BMW M Hybrid V8 to a dramatic victory alongside co-driver Dries Vanthoor in the Battle on the Bricks at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. \"I knew ... Keep…",
  "key_points": [
    "Sheldon van der Linde wins Battle on the Bricks Indy race",
    "Cadillac's cautious approach hindered his team's progress",
    "Van der Linde's daring move marks BMW's first GTP win in a year"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}