With just 179 points separating the top seven contenders in the GTD Pro class, the stage is set for a high-drama finale at Saturday’s 29th running of the Motul Petit Le Mans. As the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship concludes its season with 10 grueling hours of racing at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta, all eyes are on the fiercely contested GTD Pro title and Michelin Endurance Cup honors.
Leading the GTD Pro standings are Nicky Catsburg and Tommy Milner in the #4 Corvette Z06 GT3.R, fielded by perennial frontrunner Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports. A runner-up finish in the most recent round at Indianapolis Motor Speedway vaulted the duo into the championship lead by 47 points over their nearest rivals.
For Milner, who is making his 221st IMSA championship-level start – third among active drivers – and his 21st start at Road Atlanta, the weekend represents a chance to claim his third IMSA championship title following GT honors in 2012 (under the American Le Mans Series banner) and a WeatherTech GTLM title in 2016. Joined this weekend by co-driver Nico Varrone alongside Catsburg, Milner enters the finale with four podiums from nine starts this season.
“Certainly it’s great to be in the points lead going into the last race,” Milner said. “That’s where you’d prefer to be, of course. But everything is still very close. Ultimately, we need to have a very strong race, no matter what. There’s still many, many cars mathematically in the hunt for the championship, and so all of those teams will certainly be doing everything that they can to get that win.
“For us, it’s as we’ve approached all the other races this year. Obviously, we need to score good points, no matter what. I know there’s lots of points possibilities and things like that we won’t bother ourselves with at this point. That won’t matter until the race gets going. But yeah, we’ve had a good year so far. Some ups and some downs, but obviously great to be P1 going into the last race.
“And then great to have Nico back as well. He’s a super, super talented young kid who’s been very fast this year. So yeah, for us, it’s going to be a little business as usual in many ways, and focusing on ourselves, making sure that we have the best Corvette that we can for the race and see what happens at the end.”
#4 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Tommy Milner, Nicky Catsburg, #3 Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports Corvette Z06 GT3.R: Antonio Garcia, Alexander Sims
Photo by: Michael L. Levitt / Lumen via Getty Images
Chasing the Corvette squad are Connor De Phillippi and Neil Verhagen in the #1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 EVO, sitting 47 points back in second place. Sandy Mitchell and Andrea Caldarelli (#9 Pfaff Motorsports Lamborghini Temerario GT3) sit third, 53 points off the lead.
De Phillippi and Verhagen – joined by third driver Dan Harper – are also aiming to secure Paul Miller Racing and BMW’s fourth Michelin Endurance Cup title, which they currently lead by six points over the #4 Corvette team. De Phillippi brings an impressive track record to Road Atlanta: in 11 previous starts at the venue, he has claimed three victories, including a GTD Pro win in 2025 as part of the #48 entry. Looking for his first overall WeatherTech Championship title after opening the season with a win at the Rolex 24 At Daytona, De Phillippi embraces the role of the pursuer.
“Road Atlanta is generally a strong track for us as a team and also the car, also for myself, I’ve always enjoyed racing there,” De Phillippi said. “I like just the whole dynamic of the multi-class racing at that circuit.
“We’re going in as the hunter this weekend instead of the hunted. So that’ll be a refreshing position to be in, in terms of how we race, and it’s kind of go in and that’s really the only option. So, I’m excited for that.
“We had a really good test about a week or week and a half ago; car felt good there. Obviously, hoping that all translates into race week, and we still have the Endurance Cup to still try to win, but obviously the overall endurance, overall driver championship is obviously a big priority for us as well. So having Dan join us again as our third will be nice. Obviously, we had a good result in Daytona with him there, so hopefully we can book in the season and try to end with a win, and hopefully that’s enough for the title.”
The battle among manufacturers is equally intense. Chevrolet leads Ford by 68 points in the main championship chase thanks to strong two-car, factory-backed efforts. Meanwhile, in the Endurance Cup manufacturer standings, BMW holds a narrow three-point lead over Chevrolet and a four-point gap over Porsche, with the #77 AO Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R [992] driven by Harry King and Nick Tandy sitting just seven points off the Endurance Cup team lead.
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