There's been a change of plans for the Cadillac CTS-V challenge scheduled for Thursday. Jaguar originally said it would wage a XFR for journalists to drive, but has now backed out. That leaves a field of just two challengers for now — an Audi RS4 and a BMW M5.

In response to the sudden departure of the XFR, Bob Lutz told a GM fan site the following:

"I think it means that the European high-performance sedans are excellent, even superb cars, but quite possibly not ready for racing laps right out of the show-room. The CTS-V is not only quicker, but will, in totally untweaked, stock form, run hot laps at any race track until it runs out of fuel. Transmission oil and diff oil temps are stable, engine oil temp doesn't go up, brakes get a bit more pedal travel, but don't fade. The street tires get a shade greasy, but handling and control remain excellent. "May the best car win"! (It wins automatically if the competitors won't show up!)"

The GMSource