Catsburg Taking the Long View Ahead of Watkins Glen Six Hours
Photo: Jake Galstad/Lumen Digital Agency/IMSA
By Dennis Krause
Nicky Catsburg is facing a bit of a dilemma. Go for a win in Sunday’s Sahlen’s Six Hours of Watkins Glen, or protect the slim lead he and co-driver Tommy Milner have in the Grand Touring Daytona (GTD) PRO class in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
The top four in the championship are separated by a mere 31 points. While he would love to get his first series win since 2022, for Catsburg the championship is the higher priority.
“I feel that last year, we were almost going for what I would call a day’s success – trying to get that win and not focus so much on the championship because the start of the season was quite rough.”
But on the strength of three top-four finishes so far this season, that strategy has changed.
Photo: Jake Galstad/LAT Images/IMSA
“Now we are in a position where we really need to keep the championship in mind because we’re currently leading, albeit with just a very small amount of points,” said Catsburg. “So that win is something that we both really want to achieve. We also want to be safe and make sure that we have good points scoring every time… so maybe not make that last-moment defending action against a Lexus that comes from behind. You need to make sure that you get the points. The victory, yes, is important. We want it, but the championship is more important.”
According to Catsburg, Milner is the perfect co-driver to have in the No. 4 Corvette Racing Pratt Miller Motorsports Corvette Z06.GT3.R with which to chase a championship.
“Tommy is a super, easygoing teammate. I feel like he never really pushes through his personal wishes. I feel like sometimes he wants the car to work in a certain way, but he would never compromise the overall result. He’s just a teammate that I would always love to have as my teammate. He is very fast, he always brings the car back in one piece, and he’s very easy to find compromises with in terms of setup and run plans.
“Over the course of the years, we get to know each other better and better. There’s nothing bad to say about Tommy Milner, and I hope I get to work with him for many more years to come.”
Although he’s been winless in IMSA since 2022, Catsburg is still riding high from a GT3 class victory at the recent 24 Hours of Le Mans, the second of his career.
Photo: Corvette Racing
“Le Mans obviously was very cool to come away with the win there. For sure there’s lots to talk about that. I just hope I can carry that momentum into Watkins Glen. I feel like in Detroit and pretty much the whole season, the No. 4 Corvette has been performing quite well. And I really hope now in Watkins we can finally get that win that I feel we deserve. (My) last IMSA victory was 2022… that’s disastrous! Hopefully we can soon add a win to that list.”
The win at Le Mans aboard the No. 33 entry by TF Sports and Corvette Racing was the first for Catsburg with the Z06 GT3.R.
“It might actually be. So I didn’t think of it like that yet. And it was obviously very, very cool to win Le Mans again. Very cool to do it with the returning Ben Keating with his elbow injury. We had a very fast car. We had Ben that executed perfectly. I think we were the only car doing the strategy that we did – getting the Bronze out before nighttime, basically having him done with his driving, which required some monster stints for him and some painkillers for sure, trying to ease the pain on his elbow.
“And then it was me and Jonny Edgar to do the rest of the race. And I must say it was so, so nice to have Jonny as a teammate because he was incredible. He was incredibly fast, consistently hitting the fuel numbers. I was so impressed with him. He did the end of the race… a big stint to finish. Honestly, having teammates like that, it’s not easy, but it felt really easy this time. We had a fast car, the team did well. So super cool to win Le Mans again.”
Instead of being on back-to-back weekends, this year’s calendar allowed for a week off between the Le Mans and The Glen. The 38-year-old Dutchman says he’s grateful for the break.
“I am happy to have that week off. Le Mans is always a very long time away from home, so it’s great to be able to recover from that. You don’t sleep a lot during the Le Mans 24 Hours, so I must be honest: I had a couple of daytime naps this week, so it was great not to go to Watkins just yet. So it’s been really nice to have that weekend break.”
Photo: Geoff Miller/Lumen Digital Agency/IMSA
Catsburg has an enviable record in GT endurance racing having won the Nurburgring 24 Hours on two occasions, as well as an overall win in the Spa 24 Hours and class wins in the Rolex 24 at Daytona and the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
From a driver’s standpoint, Catsburg admits that going to Watkins Glen following Le Mans makes for an easy transition.
“I can imagine if most of the season you’re doing sprint races and then all of a sudden you have to do a six-hour race, that would be a bit of a different approach than someone who does a lot more longer endurance races. So I do feel like I’m very lucky to be racing in both championships at the same time. I always believe that the more a driver gets to drive, the better he becomes.
“So yes, I do feel like it helps me prepare. I’ve just done a lot of long stints in Le Mans. So I’m not too worried for the physicality of doing the longer runs with just two drivers in Watkins. So I do believe it helps me prepare and gives me a little bit of an edge on the drivers that don’t have that luxury. I think it does help.”
With a winning endurance mindset, Catsburg is well suited to playing the long game for an IMSA championship.
Dennis Krause has spent decades covering all forms of motorsports, including over 40 Indianapolis 500s, with stints at WIBA Radio, PIT PASS - Radio’s Premier Motorsports Magazine and Motorsports Minute.