CrowdStrike Racing by APRAdds Catsburg to Le Mans Lineup

CrowdStrike Racing by APR (Algarve Pro Racing) has completed its driver lineup for the 2024 24 Hours of Le Mans by adding Nicky Catsburg to drive alongside George Kurtz and Colin Braun.

The trio will drive the No. 45 CrowdStrike-sponsored ORECA-Gibson LMP2 prototype during the June 15-16 race, which takes place in the French town of Le Mans. Kurtz and Braun won last year’s LMP2 Pro-Am race in an APR entry.

• The addition of Catsburg gives CrowdStrike Racing by APR three defending Le Mans race winners. Catsburg won in GTE Am last year in a Corvette for his first victory at the French classic. He is one of the most accomplished names in racing, with victories at Le Mans, the Nürburgring 24 Hours and CrowdStrike Spa 24 Hours in the last 12 months.

Catsburg also captured the FIA WEC GTE Am title and the Asian Le Mans Series’ GT championship in 2023. This year’s Le Mans will be his first race in a prototype although he has testing experience to his credit in addition to a stellar career in production-based GT racing. 

CrowdStrike by APR earned its invitation to this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans following a stellar 2023 season in which Kurtz claimed the IMSA Jim Trueman Award, presented to the top Bronze-rated driver in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship’s LMP2 class. Kurtz and CrowdStrike by APR claimed two race victories – including the 10-hour Petit Le Mans – and won the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup in LMP2.

Starting the 2024 season strong, Kurtz and Braun have already captured the Asian Le Mans Series’ LMP2 championship for CrowdStrike Racing by APR. The pairing stand fourth in this year’s WeatherTech SportsCar Championship LMP2 points standings and Endurance Cup rankings after two races to date.

The 24 Hours of Le Mans is the inspiration behind the European Le Mans race season, a six-race endurance series awarding the winners an automatic invitation to the French classic. APR is fielding two independent LMP2 entries in the 2024 season which will be housed in the CrowdStrike-branded team garage at all ELMS races.

Nicky Catsburg, No. 45 CrowdStrike ORECA 07-Gibson: “It is a very big honor to be part of CrowdStrike Racing by APR at this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. I feel like Le Mans is always a race that is ‘unmissable’… as in we all as drivers want to do this race every year. 

“It’s a very cool opportunity for me to do this in a class that I haven’t raced in before. I have some mileage in an LMP2 car but not a lot; it’s been six or seven years since I drove one of these cars. So it will be a steep learning curve but with Colin as my teammate, he’s going to get me up to speed quite quickly. I feel like with George that we form a strong lineup that should be able to fight for the win in the class. It’s also very cool for me to work with the APR team. I have known Stuart and Samantha Cox for a long time and many years ago I did quite a bit of work with them. So it’s nice to join them. It’s a new challenge and a racecar with a bit more downforce than what I am used to. I’m looking forward to jumping in the car for the first time. We obviously will do some testing before Le Mans, and I can’t wait for it.”

George Kurtz, CrowdStrike Racing by APR Driver: “I’m very happy for Nicky to join Colin and me for our Le Mans lineup. Together, we will bring a team powered by strength, experience and a tradition of winning to the CrowdStrike Racing by APR LMP2 entry. Nicky’s record speaks for itself with a win at Le Mans and some of the biggest races in the world. His experience and talent will be valuable as we go for a second straight Pro-Am victory at Le Mans.”

Stewart Cox, Algarve Pro Racing: “Winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans in two consecutive seasons was a remarkable achievement, and to take the LMP2 Pro-Am victory in the first year of our partnership with CrowdStrike and George (Kurtz) is something we’re very proud of.

“There are so many elements to a Le Mans victory and much of it was down to the thoroughness of our preparation, as well as a supreme attention-to-detail in the way each track session was managed. In fact, it’s an approach that also helped us to the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup, Asian Le Mans Series and European Le Mans Series titles.”

Cox added: “Alongside George and Colin (Braun) will be Nicky Catsburg, who we know to be incredibly fast with masses of experience as a works driver in a variety of high-level categories. There’s no doubt we have one of the most complete driver line-ups and we know how to win, so we are determined to make it three on the trot in the 2024 edition of Le Mans.”