Corvette Racing “Wants to Win Badly” in Final Le Mans

Corvette Racing is highly motivated to come out on top in what will likely be its final 24 Hours of Le Mans appearance as a team as it seeks a class victory in GTE-Am according to Nicky Catsburg.

The Pratt Miller-run stable is set for its last start in the French endurance classic as the GTE ruleset will be phased out next year in favor of LMGT3, which will prohibit factory teams.

Chevrolet will instead introduce the Corvette Z06 GT3.R, a customer-focused GT3 car that will see Corvette Racing establish a dedicated customer support program as opposed to racing with its own entry.

As a factory racing team, Corvette Racing secured eight class victories at Le Mans since its debut in 2000, most recently winning in 2015 with the Corvette C7.R.

Corvette Racing factory driver Nicky Catsburg admitted that the event feels like the end of an era for the American outfit.

“It kind of feels like that,” Catsburg told Sportscar365. “There might be Corvettes coming here next year, but it’s kind of not the same feeling.

“For me it’s also a shame to see GTE go. GT3 is nice, super cool, but we have ABS on GT3 cars which I don’t think we should have and Le Mans is so difficult for braking as well.

“So it’s a shame to see the GTE class go, but it’s cool to be part of it and cool to have done it for a few years now.

“I just hope we can have a really good one for the last one in GTE.”

Additionally, this weekend’s event will also mark the last race for the Chevrolet Corvette C8.R at Le Mans. The mid-engined racer debuted at Circuit de la Sarthe with a class podium in 2021.

The combined prospects of the final event for both car and team result in a huge motivation to claim a ninth Le Mans win according to Catsburg.

“We want to win it badly every year, but probably never as badly as this year,” he said. “But I want to just approach it as another race, a normal race.

“We need to stay out of trouble, we need to keep it clean and then see where we are in the end and then really start pushing for the win of course.

“I do still believe that we have a very good line-up in the GTE-Am class and we have a very good team and a good car. You never really know where you are in terms of Balance of Performance until the race starts, but I do believe that we shouldn’t be too bad.

“The championship has done a great job so far with BoP. Ferrari has been very fast all season, but somehow we managed to win some races and get some good points.”

Catsburg Learned to “Always Be on Your Tiptoes” From 2022 Crash

Corvette’s bid for GTE-Pro class honors at last year’s event ended in double retirement. Its leading car was eliminated after contact with an LMP2 car with six hours to go.

Catsburg explained that he was able to take some lessons from Alexander Sims’ accident, noting that he will be extra careful in traffic situations.

“It’s massively random, but I feel like it keeps telling you to always be on your tiptoes,” he said. “You have to always keep an eye out for who’s around you. Should I really be taking this risk? Should I try and avoid this? Should I try and lift here?

“You cannot relax in a 24-hour race, even on the straights here. Last year it happened on the straights.

“Clearly that had nothing to do with Alex’s fault. He was a victim. But I do feel like this year I will be extra mindful of what’s going on around me.

“I feel like they were going for a win last year and it was such a shame to see this happen. We will try everything that we can to avoid that.

“We do have a spotter this year, which we didn’t have last year. It’s maybe something that helps us with that. Ben [Keating] is used to working with him.

“I’ve never had a spotter at Le Mans, so I can’t wait to see what that’s like.”