Kyffin Simpson’s magical testing tour added another destination, as the 2024 NTT INDYCAR SERIES rookie with Chip Ganassi Racing turned laps Nov. 5 in a Cadillac V-Series.R sports car during the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) Rookie Test at the Bahrain International Circuit.

Simpson, who is stepping up to the powerful Ganassi team after two seasons in INDY NXT by Firestone, completed 42 laps in the prototype with a setup devised by Alex Lynn, one of the full-time WEC drivers for the factory Cadillac program.

"It was a lot of fun, honestly. I thought it was a really cool car to drive and a new experience for me,” Simpson said. “This is a very high-tech car, which was a lot of learning. But it was a great experience, and I'm thankful to GM and Chip Ganassi Racing for giving me this opportunity.

“This drives a lot more like a GT car (compared to LMP2), and I found that really interesting. They have a lot of power, so it gets up to speed quickly. I think the team is quite happy with it.”

The test continued an aggressive offseason testing program across a variety of machinery designed by CGR Managing Director Mike Hull for Simpson, 19, from the Cayman Islands. Simpson also is testing a previous-generation Formula 2 car, a World Series car and CGR’s NTT INDYCAR SERIES car.

Sports car competition is nothing new for Simpson. He drove in the European Le Mans Series in 2023 and also co-drove to LMP2 class victories in the Asian Le Mans Series’ 4 Hours of Dubai and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s Twelve Hours of Sebring. He also drove in the Rolex 24 At Daytona in January as teammates with Team Penske stars Josef Newgarden and Scott McLaughlin.

INDY NXT by Firestone driver Josh Pierson also participated in the Rookie Test at Bahrain, turning laps in the No. 7 Toyota GR010 HYBRID prototype.