Corvette shows entry in WEC GTE Am 2023 for Catsburg, Keating

The American manufacturer will field a lone C8.R in what will be the only remaining GT WEC class for 2023 following the discontinuation of the GTE Pro division it is competing in this year.

Catsburg moves to a full-time position after three seasons driving for Corvette in the long-distance IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, while top bronze-rated driver Keating, who currently leads GTE Am, will move from TF Sport Team Aston Martin.

A third member of the team, most likely a silver-rated pilot, will be announced at a later date.

Katzberg said he is “very happy and proud to be able to call myself a full-time Corvette driver,” which he has stated has been his goal since joining the team in 2020.

Keating, who owns a chain of car dealerships, said he had ambitions “to keep racing Corvettes for a long time, and he was making money to make that happen because I want to race what I sell.”

The move to GTE Am has been described by Corvette as a “transition” that hints at future involvement in customer racing when its GT3 car hits the stream in 2024.

Next season marks the final year of eligibility for the GTE version of the C8.R before the WEC moves to the professional GT3 formula for 2024.

One car in IMSA, GT3 development continues

Along with the WEC program, Corvette will continue to field one C8.R modified to compete against GT3 machinery in IMSA’s GT Daytona Pro class in 2023.

This year’s runners-up Antonio Garcia and Jordan Taylor joined Tommy Milner for the Rolex 24 at Daytona, Sebring 12 Hours and Petit-Le-Mans.

There will be no second C8.R for the Rolex 24, as was the case at the start of the current season.

Milner, who shares the Corvette WEC GTE Pro entry with Nick Tandy this year, will also spearhead development of the new Corvette Z06 GT3.R, which debuted last month at GM’s Milford Proving Ground.

Then this month, the test program moved to mid-Ohio for a run on a suitable race track.

Laura Clauser, GM Sports Car Program Manager, said: “We’ve learned a lot this year from running dual programs in both IMSA and the FIA ​​WEC – all of which will benefit the Corvette brand going forward.

“At IMSA, we will return to GTD Pro against a very competitive field of manufacturers, laying the foundation for the Corvette Z06 GT3.R.

“Similarly, the Corvette Racing FIA WEC program gives us the opportunity to continue to expand Corvette’s global presence in the World Championship.”

Tandy is going to return to Porsche

Corvette’s statement about its 2023 plans made no mention of Tandy, who joined the marque ahead of the 2021 season.

His absence appears to definitively confirm that he will leave Corvette and return to Porsche, with which he won the 24 Hours of Le Mans overall in 2015 midway through an eight-year stint as a factory driver.

Porsche has announced eight drivers for its two Penske-based programs with 963 LMDh in WEC and IMSA, leaving two full-time vacancies.